What are the advantages to upgrading

[oz1]

Hi

Everyone talking about it, I've been to a few quick demos, but still don't fully understand the advantages of upgrading.
We are currently using 4.3 and can't really see that much different in Ellipse. Will Ellipse include envoy?

What are other concidering doing?

 

[FionaD]

Ellipse 5.2 Overview

Ellipse 5.2 is the enterprise solution for organisations that want to participate in the emerging world of e-business and application inter-operability. Ellipse operates as a fully integrated set of business components within the Mincom AReNA framework, which is a superior technology platform for delivering and integrating solutions and e-business applications.

The Ellipse Architecture provides organisations with an underlying structure that is ready for e-business in the demanding environment required by capital-intensive operations. The architecture of Ellipse 5.2, with separation of distinct application servers from database and web servers, requires low bandwidth and is specifically designed to operate efficiently on Wide Area Networks (WAN) and the Internet. This structure allows Ellipse 5.2 to support many thousands of users concurrently in a heterogeneous configuration.
The Ellipse architecture has the following attributes:
· Open with non proprietary platform and database support
· Scalable
· Leverages Robust Application /web servers
· Web Enabled
· Easy and open access to application services
· Ease of Integration.
· Uses standards such as XML, HTTP, CORBA

The Ellipse 5.2 Web Interface is simple to use, with the thin-client interface providing high performance and scalability even across low bandwidth modem connections. It provides easy and cost effective deployment, while providing an ideal delivery mechanism for infrequent users of Ellipse or users who need access to the Web for e-procurement or similar functions.
The Ellipse Personal Portal is a fully customisable web interface. Organisations can determine what applications appear on a user’s portal, including third party applications such as Excel and access to external web sites.
Ellipse 5.2 Functional Enhancements
Web-enabled and feature enhanced, Ellipse 5.2 provides a number of significant functional and technical enhancements that build upon the rich functionality of MIMS Open Enterprise. Ellipse 5.2 offers additional functionality including the following.
US Benefits Administration
While this is a core HR process for all businesses within the US, many of its features have applicability in other countries. Benefits Administration includes management of 401K, Savings Plans, Health Plans, Medical Plans, Life Insurance, Legislative requirements and integration with payroll.
US Payroll Enhancements
These enhancements include fully exploiting the functionality of the BSI ReportFactory application, and ensure that the Ellipse payroll application complies with the latest regulatory taxation requirements.


U.K. VAT Enhancement
Based on the BASDA Accreditation Standard, this feature provides the ability to handle the U.K. VAT legislative processing requirements in both Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable.
Nameplates
Nameplates enables the storage of a variety of engineering characteristics (attributes) against a piece of equipment in the Ellipse database. It provides:
· a list of reference information against each asset in a standard format
· the basis for complex database searches
Maintenance Strategy Support System (MSSS)
Ellipse supports many different maintenance philosophies (including Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM)) through the appropriate selection of codes and practices. The data required for these philosophies is held against the equipment (asset) in the Ellipse Equipment Register, Work Order, Standard Job, Maintenance Scheduling, and Condition Monitoring modules.

Utilising intelligent work order coding MSSS provides:
· Identification of the available Function Codes, Failure Codes, and Failure Modes for the RCM system throughout an organisation.
· Identification of Equipment that is to be monitored using RCM including the (optional) system to which the equipment belongs
· For each piece of RCM-monitored Equipment, identification (in coded and descriptive format) of
· Functions
· Function Failures
· Failure Modes
· Consequences
· Failure Effects
· Maintenance Strategies
· Agreed Actions
· Identification on a work order (for equipment under RCM ) of the following:
· participation in the RCM analysis programme
· the function, failure, mode of failure, and consequence of failure
Oracle CAI Modifications
The Oracle GL accounting transaction export process has been enhanced to block export of selected Ellipse accounting transactions to the Oracle General Ledger or Oracle Projects. The Ellipse accounting transactions can be blocked by either transaction type or expense element code.
Advanced Rostering
This new function provides for an advanced level of rostering enabling assignment of employees to activities based on operational capabilities.
The major components include:
· Activity definition including working / non-working activity and activity requirements, such as skills, employee type and category, job class level and location. In addition, employee preferences for activities can be defined by both employer and employee.
· Daily activity requirements for a day of the week or a specific date.
· Employee shift schedule preferences
· Daily shift analysis and load balancing which enables an analysis and modification of the availability of employees by considering shift and the activity requirements
· Automatic allocation of employees to activities based on the analysis
· Automatic labour costing based on activities
· Timekeeping functions including the ability to move between non-working and working activities. It also includes the ability to bring up a list of unscheduled employees who best fit the activity requirements.
Advanced Work Scheduling
Advanced Scheduling provides enhanced integration between the Work Manager application that is used as a "macro" level resource balancing application and the Job Dispatch application that is used as a daily/shift scheduling application.
Technical Enhancements for Ellipse 5.2
Ellipse 5.2 technical enhancements include the release of an administration console that simplifies the deployment and administration of Unix platforms (e.g. Sun Solaris, HP-UX, AIX) by providing features which:
· Install Ellipse
· Size and create the database
· Administer the backend operating environment
· Provide diagnostic and performance monitoring

 

[blakej]

Why Upgrade?
Ignoring the pain of a conversion, new functionality and or the death of 3.13 and 4.1 in the future.
The key technical areas...
- A light client via IE (good or bad)
- including no more painful paradox popups (Web version)
- apparently something called output designer which lets you send report output to html or word format
- Support for more recent Database eg Oracle 8.1.7
- no more Green screen (on UNIX or NT).

My understanding, Envoy is not standard with Ellipse. A seperate tick (and $) on the order guide.