Managing Automation - September 2007 - (Page 23)

business intelligence iDASHBOARDS: Portal Provides On-Demand, Real-Time View of Performance usiness intelligence software provider iDashboards was founded in 2003 to help companies better utilize their stores of information. The software, also called iDashboards, provides a portal that draws live metrics from databases, data warehouses, Excel spreadsheets, XML, and other data sources throughout the enterprise. Users can customize views with a selection of charts and other visual tools as needed. The software’s chart interactivity and data visualization features are patented. “iDashboards delivers a direct impact to the bottom line for manufacturers,” says Shadan Malik, iDashboards CEO and co-founder. “Executives and managers don’t waste time poring over out-of-date reports and spreadsheets looking for problems and outliers; iDashboards manifests them instantly.” AET Films, one of North America’s largest makers of specialty plastic films used in consumer goods packaging and labeling, rolled out iDashboards in its manufacturing operation early this year. The company wanted to move from a “snapshot” view of its performance data to a dynamic, real-time model that executives could access on demand. Shadan Malik Since AET’s implementation of iDashCEO and Co-founder boards, “VPs and senior-level managers are able to work with information as opposed to chasing it down the management chain,” says Jim Burger, AET’s director of information systems. B iDashboards recently reported 510% growth in revenue year over year for the first half of 2007 and signed more than 100 new customers in the period. Future plans for iDashboards include enhanced integration with leading ERP and supply chain software packages, as well as “delivering the very best in ease of use and a fascinating user experience,” Malik says. — Diane Himes i YEAR FOUNDED: 2003 PRODUCT NAME AND CATEGORY: iDashboards/business intelligence INDUSTRY SEGMENTS SERVED: CPG, industrial equipment, aerospace & defense, food & beverage KEY PROBLEM SOLVED: Provides a simple alternative for manufacturers struggling to close the gap between plant floor performance and executive visibility, without requiring a huge investment DIFFERENTIATOR: Uses a patented visualization metric that draws from databases, data warehouses, spreadsheets, XML, and other sources to pull live metrics from enterprise and plant floor apps TOP CUSTOMERS: Georgia Pacific, International Paper, NOW Foods FUNDING: Internally generated manufacturing intelligence INCUITY SOFTWARE, INC.: Assimilating Information Aids Decision-Making I ncuity Software, Inc., founded in 2004, is the developer of Incuity EMI, a software product that applies business intelligence to manufacturing environments, helping with plant floor-to-enterprise integration efforts, as well as tying together manufacturing equipment from multiple vendors. “Incuity helps businesses to be agile by enabling them to leverage existing information assets and avoid a ‘rip and replace’ approach,” says CEO Doug Lawson. “The complexity of the manufacturing information landscape makes it extremely difficult for people to access the information they need. YEAR FOUNDED: 2004 PRODUCT NAME AND CATEGORY: Incuity EMI/manufacturing intelligence INDUSTRY SEGMENTS SERVED: Oil & gas, specialty chemicals, beverages, metals KEY PROBLEM SOLVED: Integrates silos of data across the enterprise; provides timely, clear, and context-rich information DIFFERENTIATOR: Enables creation of data models in a “point and click” environment; writes associated XML code on the back end TOP CUSTOMERS: 3M, General Mills, Hexion Specialty Chemicals FUNDING: $5 million investment from American River Ventures and Palomar Ventures, August 2006 i Every day across the enterprise, well-intentioned personnel are forced to make less-than-optimal decisions on the basis of incomplete data.” Incuity’s software assimilates information scattered across the enterprise into a single view called the Unified Production Model. This model lets users access, combine, correlate, and interpret information from multiple sources without requiring knowledge of application-specific interfaces or data locations. Users can analyze information using a standard Web browser, Microsoft Office, or via a manufacturing analytic application, and collaborate by publishing reports, graphs, and dashboards to the Incuity portal. Hexion Specialty Chemicals uses the EMI software to provide a common platform across its North American and some international sites to access its process data, says David Holmes, North American resin process techDoug Lawson nology manager at Hexion. “One advantage CEO we’ve seen is the ability to provide ‘virtual’ technical support to remote sites,” he says. And “the capability to pull historical process data across the business network has been instrumental in helping our Six Sigma organization identify improvement opportunities.” Going forward, Lawson says, Incuity and its partners will develop more and richer composite applications to address a broader range of manufacturing problems. — Diane Himes September 2007 23

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Managing Automation - September 2007

Contents Take 1 Europe’s Automation Chiefs Upbeat on ’08 Business Prospects Vendor Coalition Pushes Human Element of SOA Wireless: Users Still Approaching with Caution One Year Later, IBM Shows Plan for MRO’s Maximo Study: More Work Needed to Lure Next-Gen Talent Executive Q&A Notes Cover Story: 2008 Companies to Watch Special Report: The 2007 Progressive Manufacturing High Achievers Progressive Manufacturer of the Year Business Model Mastery Innovation Mastery Customer Mastery Supply Network Mastery Data & Integration Mastery Education & Training Mastery Operational Excellence Mastery Leadership Mastery Transformation: Orchestrating the Multi-Tier Supply Network Integration: The Timeless Quest for Accurate Data Industries: Maintenance No Longer on Schedule Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - September 2007

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.