News

D-Tool Unveils System Integrator 4 at CEDIA Expo (20/9/2004)

Leading System Integration Software Firm Releases Major New Version of Popular Software Package For System Integration Professionals

Building on the success of their award-winning System Integrator v3 system design and management software, D-Tools, headquartered in Concord, CA, unveiled their latest version of the program to the industry here today at the opening of CEDIA EXPO 2004.

System Integrator 4 (SI 4) signals a major advancement in the power, performance, quality of graphics and software usability for system integration professionals. Company officials report that with the added flexibility and customization options built into this new version, system integrators in both the commercial and residential industries will be able to manage virtually every important aspect of their business, utilizing just one software package.

This is the fourth major release of System Integrator, which was first introduced in 1998. The software solution has evolved to provide dealers, designers and integrators with a set of affordable tools to design and engineer complete systems, estimate both equipment and installation, prepare full proposals with graphics and manage the entire installation with customizable documentation.

One of the major benefits to system integrators who use the software is having access to the manufacturer database of current SKU data and graphics for tens of thousands of products from more than 200 leading manufacturers. The company reports that more than 1.5 million product SKUs are downloaded monthly by users of the software to create their designs and presentation proposals.

Bill Battaglia, Director of Product Development D-Tools and chief architect on the project indicated that SI 4 is more than just another update to the product. "SI 4 is not only a step-up in increased performance, but will become the backbone for other major enhancements coming over the next 12-18 months." It had been reported previously that the company has partnered with Autodesk and is moving in the direction of providing a separate version of the product built upon the AutoCAD platform.

Featured additions and enhancements in this latest version improve on ease of use and provide many more customizing options for reports and documentation. The most visible change to the program will be seen in an all-new graphic interface that provides streamlined navigation for the user. Other notable changes include:

o Pre-engineered system configurations that can be easily inserted into a project, saving time and allowing integrators to create and archive packages of equipment from their most successful product combinations.

o Improved reporting capabilities that allow users to create their own custom reports using Microsoft Word.
o Introduction of a new Product DataMatrix with editable data fields, similar to an Excel spreadsheet.
o Automated HTML-export of project drawings and documents to the Web for client review.
o Increased schematic detail for wiring diagrams and reports.
o More CADTools use, with automated AutoCAD export.
o All versions work with Microsoft Visio 2003.

The number of versions of System Integrator has been reduced to five editions for the SI 4 release and includes:

Text - a version without graphics for use primarily by salespeople to create fast, accurate proposals, or accounting/office managers to manage the business side of their system integration company.

Lite - a predominantly graphics version for designers/engineers to create all the necessary drawings for use in a system integration project without reporting capabilities.

Basic - designed for the person who does double duty as both a designer and a salesperson and needs both graphics and proposal generation capabilities.

Standard - includes the functions of Basic, plus the accounting and management reports in the Text version for the manager who is involved in all aspects of the sales and design process.

Pro - this is the full version for power users/owners who plans to integrate their entire organization, utilizing one program for managing all aspects of their business. The Pro version includes a wide range of additional functions and reporting capabilities.

Company officials report that they plan to continue to offer their current boxed Value Edition, which is a low-cost, entry-level version of the software that allows SI professionals the opportunity to learn and use the program, which can be easily upgraded to other levels as desired.

As with prior versions, the company offers a variety of optional modules to the software package that enhance the usability of the product by linking to popular accounting programs, sharing the database in local area network, or sharing data over the Web.

Training on the new software is already available and is offered in a variety of on-site, regional classes or distance learning formats.

www.d-tools.com