Following an extensive research and development programme spanning three years, Adroit Technologies – an open source 32-bit supervisory control and data acquisition (scada) software development company – will be revealing Viznet, the new Microsoft .NET user interface framework at the upcoming International User Conference at the Lesedi Cultural Village outside Johannesburg on 1 and 2 July.
Blending the world-class vector graphics users of Adroit have come to appreciate, with a forms-based approach to building and displaying data from common data sources, make Viznet quite unique.
Datasources include Adroit, OPC, Databases, Web Services and the ability to integrate all of these into the screens securely and easily make Viznet a truly unique product for enterprise wide data visualisation.
Data is secure with banking level security, giving users piece of mind when using Viznet as the single user interface portal for their businesses. This whether viewing data over an intranet or passing sensitive information to a supplier in a supply chain.
Commonly used graphic objects can be held centrally and simply dragged onto new forms being built elsewhere in the organisation, adding more value as users build up these re-usable objects across the world. According to managing director, Dave Wibberley, "The development team held a number of workshops with users and extensively researched the needs of the modern day enterprise. This meant taking into account what the main points were in presenting data from different functional systems within an organisation to the entire organisation. The answers were the same, users wanted a single user interface environment that would allow them to present data securely both on the intranet and the Internet to a wide spectrum of users."
The Viznet team then took into account where Microsoft was heading with the .NET platform and has come up with this product.
Mike Lamusse, technical director adds, "It is not very often that a company can start with a fresh slate on the back of a major shift in technology from Microsoft. The timing of the Viznet design allowed us to build functionality into the product allowing users to take advantage of the technologies and services that will form the backbone of industry. This, as suppliers adopt and integrate the .NET technologies such as Web services into their day-to-day offerings."
The Viznet product name stemmed from the combination of 'visual and networking' and is a true portal product. The deal announced late 2003 between Adroit Technologies and Cimnet (where Cimnet will be building its new version of its successful MES software product, Factelligence into the Viznet framework) will complete the product offering.
Along with OPUS, a Web-based plant reporting solution, Adroit Technologies can offer partners and customers a complete suite of products matched and integrated to enable complete manufacturing, and reporting solutions for almost any requirements.
Growth prompts move to larger premises
Adroit Technologies has announced its move to larger Johannesburg premises. The company attributes its successful growth to careful planning, sound judgment, long-term goals and objectives, strong values and an uncompromising drive for innovation.
From 1 June 2004, Adroit Technologies will be located at Adroit House, Waterford Office Park, 752 Witkoppen Road, Fourways, Johannesburg.
The modern Adroit team, led by MD Dave Wibberley, and his dedicated complement of directors, balanced and augmented by experienced staff, continues to acknowledge the sound principles of the past on which the company has grown. Wibberley comments, "We are, as we have always been, in a good position to seek out and respond to new opportunities to create long-term value for shareholders, and expect further strong growth in the future."
As the competitive environment becomes more complex, Adroit continues its commitment to talent development and skills transfer. "The overall thrust of our HR campaign is to recruit, reward and retain young talent and to develop it through mentorship and on-the-job training," says Wibberley.
Mike Lamusse, Technical Director says, "Adroit Technologies has grown significantly since its humble beginnings in 1985 with the ever-changing face of PC and software technologies. The result of this has been the development and introduction of our scada products on the DOS, Windows and .Net platforms respectively, which have always provided a new and exciting challenge to the company."
With the imminent introduction of VIZNET for the .Net platform, Adroit's technology innovation once again enters a new and exciting phase and product life cycle. "The level of interest generated by VIZNET from the international marketplace, especially as an OEM tool, bodes well for the company. Being a technology company, we will continue to be challenged by the requirements and expectations of our customers in respect to the usage of our products. As we have done for the last 20 years, and from our new home, we will continue to rise up and meet them to the best of our ability," says Lamusse.
"Strong customer orientation and innovative, competitively priced products are the foundation of our business and essential to our success. Our markets are always changing, and so are the products we offer. We anticipate trends, respond to changes through our product offerings and lead by developing new innovative features," says Wibberley.
The overseas distribution network has expanded extensively, and the strategic growth in this area remains a key focus. Adroit now boasts skilled distributors in the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada, the USA, Malaysia, and India. With over 40% of revenues coming from these distributors, this translates to more Adroit products being sold outside South Africa than internally. These figures suggest that there are more exciting possibilities existing in these markets waiting to be tapped.
Adroit also made headlines in the US when it entered into a joint venture with NASDAQ listed MES Cimnet. The two companies joint vision, in its first stage, is to integrate MES and Adroit's VIZNET HMI technology, providing Cimnet with an environment that could easily deploy a visual user interface to its MES.
Strengthening of the domestic sales and service network remain a key focus to maintain and grow market share. The company has branches in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. Adroit continues to forge partnerships with systems integrators and complementary technology providers to enable the company to deliver innovative end-to-end solutions for customers.
In 2000 Adroit capitalised on its core competencies in development and data assimilation by creating the independent spin-off business, Opus Technologies. This BI (business intelligence) and reporting software soon gave rise to specialist consulting arm, Opus Knowledge Dynamics, a value-add for niche market clients requiring database design and customised reporting systems.
Adroit's continued commitment corporate social responsibility activities have included the donation of scada systems to several tertiary education institutions and universities and the deaf community. Adroit is also a founder member of the Proudly South African campaign and remain dedicated to the country's social and economic development.
Along the way Adroit has won many awards including two Technology Top 100 finalist awards and the prestigious Department of Trade and Industries Award for Outstanding Industrial Innovation in 2000.
"To be competitive in the future market, it is key to get things right in terms of customer satisfaction and quality. This involves a positive experience with the sales engineer during the sales process, satisfaction with the quality of the product in terms of its ease-of-use, scalability, flexibility and reliability - and satisfaction with the after sales service and support," says Wibberley. The introduction of Opus reporting and analysis software in the Adroit Customer Support Centre continues to drive already high service levels and remains a hallmark of Adroit's success.
For more information contact Megan Davidson, Marketing, Adroit Technologies, 011 781 3513, [email protected], www.adroit.co.za
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