Preactor v10.0 brings unparalleled developments in underlying technology and User Interface

Preactor International, a leading UK specialist planning and scheduling Software Company, will unveil the much anticipated Preactor v10.0 at the IT & Logistics Exhibition at the NEC, Birmingham on 28-29 March 2007.

Three years in the making, Preactor V10 represents the greatest investment in time and resource since the products first release in 1993 and can be exclusively viewed at stand 206.

While the complete product has benefited from this major redevelopment, the three main areas of increased benefit are a new tabbed window sequencer User Interface (UI), a new calendar editor and a new database for storage of data in MS SQL 2005.

Mike Novels, Chairman and Managing Director, commented on this milestone in the development of what is widely regarded as the definitive APS solution.  v10.0 is the result of planning decisions made within Preactor over three years ago as we recognised the impact that the .NET environment would have within manufacturing IT. As our ethos has always been to provide enabling technology to allow manufacturers get the best from their IT investment, it was important for us to develop Preactor to continue to be able to do this for those manufacturers going in this direction.

The new sequencer UI takes Preactor to news levels of excellence which when combined with the graphical calendar editor provides an Outlook Like UI familiar to most users. Tool bars have been simplified but remain completely customisable with data views now being possible to place in separate tabbed windows that can be made part of other window groups or displayed independently. Users will also benefit from the ability to set up complex shift patterns as templates that can then be assigned for defined periods to both primary and secondary resources

The use of SQL 2005 as the underlying database structure opens up much greater reporting and data analysis possibilities whilst retaining all the flexibility and functionality of the Preactor data tables, widely regarded as a key Preactor strength. A migration tool exists to assist the migration of 9.x versions of Preactor to the new version 10.
 

Choice of Version

Whilst recognising that many customers will want to take advantage of Preactor v10.0 from the outset, Preactor will also be releasing Preactor 9.4 for those users unable to benefit from the latest Microsoft advances in SQL 2005 and/or the .NET Framework 2. Preactor 9.4 will focus on speed enhancements with the majority of the new functionality being only available in v10.0.

Technical Director Graham Hackwell has been responsible for overseeing the development of Preactor V10 and anticipates very strong interest in the new version. As a solution, Preactor has been widely recognised for its proven abilities to deliver benefits to customers across all manufacturing disciplines, irrespective of size. Version 10 takes the existing traditional Preactor strengths, and adds to them in terms of power and flexibility, providing the assurance of a long-term APS solution that can adapt perfectly in step with any business.

Deliveries are expected to commence at end of March 2007.

About Preactor International

Preactor International is the world leader in production scheduling software with more than 7,000 installations in more than 1,700 companies located in 58 countries. Preactors unique combination of ease-of-use, flexibility and affordability provides planners with a decision support tool that helps companies reach maximum agility in a fast moving, demand driven, make to order, lean environment.

Preactor has been used successfully in many different types of planning and scheduling environment. It has a significant installed base in Automotive, Aerospace, Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Printing, Packaging, Plastics, Metals and Metal Fabricated Products, Food and Beverages, Electronics and Electrical Equipment, Precision Engineering, Services and Logistics. There are more than 60 documented case studies showing how companies have saved money through Preactor, in particular through lower stocks and inventory levels, higher productivity through better sequencing and obtaining new business through improved on-time delivery performance.

Preactor is designed for integration with other software such as ERP. These products typically export a list of operations that need to be completed to produce all new and existing demands. Using Preactor, the user then schedules which task to complete, by which production resource, and at what time using a combination of automatic rules and manual drag-drop on the interactive planning board. When released by the planner the schedule information updates ERP with the confirmed production schedule, revised route, sequence and timings from the Preactor plan.   Preactors sequencing engine provides additional functionality over and above competitive products. For example multiple constraints (e.g. machines, staff, tooling etc), attribute based sequencing (e.g. preferred sequencing and campaigning to minimise changeover times), complex, user definable scheduling rules and dependencies between orders.

Some of the most well known mid-market ERP companies including Sage, SYSPRO, Divalto, Softbrands and QAD partner with Preactor to offer their clients the production scheduling power of Preactor. In addition to a huge range of SME companies, Preactor is also used by some of the most well known companies in the world including Toyota, Pfizer, Alcan, CST-Arcelor, Bakkavor, Imperial Tobacco, Diageo, GKN, PPG, Dunlop, Quebicor and many more.