Dac Systems takes Solenta Aviation to new heights of operation

DAC Chat Issue #1 0
August 201 3
A
Foreword
Chris Willemse, CEO, Dac Systems
s we move ever closer to the last
quarter of 201 3, the issue of skills
availability in the broader ICT market
has become increasingly significant.
Irrespective of which area of the market a business
operates in or what size a venture is, successful
trade and profit margins are dependent on people.
More specifically sustainability in technology
businesses is down to the quality of technical
capability of individuals. This issue is at the top
of the list of priorities for decision makers –
including Dac Systems.
Together with our industry partners, we
continue to help organisations get the most out
of their solutions, out of their investment in
technology.
Given that South Africa’s unemployment
figures have not improved and now stand at
almost 25%, according to Statistics South Africa,
the relevance of Always-On Learning and
greater access to education via the Net cannot
be disputed.
Dac Systems is a proven leader when it
comes to the convergence of technology and
the learning environment. We plan on staying
here a long time!
Official Launch of the MTC at Microsoft SA on 31 July 201 3, a first for Africa!
Dac Systems takes Solenta Aviation
to new heights of operation
D
ac Systems, a national specialist
services provider focused on turnkey implementations of leadingedge industry solutions, has implemented a Microsoft system for its client,
Solenta Aviation. The result has been improved
control of capex due to intricate, precise stock
control.
Global air charter company, Solenta Aviation,
together with its services operation, Solenta
Workshops, is based in South Africa and meets
the aviation requirements of both domestic and
international markets – including Africa and the
Middle East.
The commercial aviation company was established in 2000 and provides flexible, valueadded aircraft leasing solutions across a selected spectrum of turbo-prop aircraft.
The vision is to provide first-class aviation
services to these key markets. One of the key
challenges in realising this vision is to maintain
control over resources, regulate the impact on
capital expenditure and sustain the highest
quality of service levels.
Solenta has relied on its Microsoft Dynamic AX with maintenance reporting functionality
to help control stock, to account for services and
manage the respective finances.
Dac Systems has been the company’s trusted service provider and installed the Microsoft
Dynamic AX.
Today, with Solenta’s extensive growth and
requirement to proactively log and manage flight
time and maintenance schedules of the entire aircraft and relevant parts, there is more pressure on
the system to cover these key requirements.
Tracking the dynamic
Following consultation with Dac Systems, Solenta
agreed that Microsoft’s Dynamics AX would be
the solution to meet these requirements.
This solution and Dac Systems’ proven track
record in AX service delivery to its client represented a winning combination. It was the right
combination to address challenges that had
been identified.
As Gary Carter, Director at Dac Systems,
The system has already paid for itself
‘
‘
— Leon van de Moortele, Financial Director
explains, the ability to track ‘rotable’ items (located either in a hanger, the store or supplier)
was an issue that hovered over the project and
was always a primary consideration.
“Our client wanted to ensure the process of
tracking resources – including aircraft parts –
and what are known as ‘rotable’ items that are
sourced from stock for repairs and parts replacement. This counts as capital expenditure
because these resources are owned by Solenta.
The challenge is to know exactly where the part
is at all times. Such a tracking function also has
to include the details of the rotable item (such
as serial numbers) throughout the entire maintenance workflow,” says Carter.
Dac Systems skilfully customised Dynam-
ics AX so that Solenta’s rotable items are professionally tracked at all times, and ensures that
pro-forma Goods Received Vouchers are automatically generated to remind the Solenta storeman to collect the part from the mechanic once
the maintenance is complete.
“We are proud of our installation and contribution to our client. We delivered on time,
within budget, to client requirement on the initial implementation and continue to do so in our
ongoing support to Solenta,” Carter adds.
Leon van de Moortele, Financial Director at
Solenta, said: “The system has already paid for
itself when compared to the value of rotable
items that would potentially have gone missing
in this year alone.”
l
E v e n ts C a
en d er
4 to 8 September:
Dac is going on their annual
spanbou (house build) at
Shongwe in Mpumalanga
1 7 September:
Dynamics AX event at
Microsoft South Africa
Combined Knowledge training
dates for September
24 September:
getting started with Office 365
25 September:
SharePoint 201 0 Site Collection
Administration
It’s a tsunami of information
By MICHIEL BESTER
Why am I surprised? "All
new projects start like
this", I tell myself. HUGE
amounts of verbal information dished out by colleagues, online manuals
and Wiki-confusion flush
over a sputtering self.
Despite the apparent
signs of drowning, I see flashes of familiar
terms:
• Point of Sales, aka POS.
• Posiflex – (Hey! I used to build software for
these cute terminals… … )
• X and Z Reports – Cash register terms for intermediate and final total reports.
And then, an olive branch… … DAC systems
employ and support Microsoft Dynamics® AX
for Retail. The out-the-box POS functionality is
astounding, providing support for transactions,
reporting, client and product management, stock
control, payment management, loyalty schemes
and and and… . Damn, during my early encounters with POS, this meant a HUGE amount
of design, coding and debugging. How things
have changed… ..
Brescia House School Where Learning is Always On
B
rescia House School, situated in
Bryanston Gauteng, is one of South
Africa’s leading independent girls’
schools catering for 850 learners
from grade 0 to matric (grade 1 2). Brescia House
School has implemented a number of initiatives
to provide learners with access to technology
as part of their well-rounded and balanced education. Teachers are encouraged to use techno-
logy – including the AlwaysOn-Learning Solution that utilizes Microsoft Office 365 - to stream line administration; to communicate with
colleagues, learners and parents; and above all
to provide opportunities for creating engaging
learning experiences that are enhanced by technology.
In an attempt to keep abreast of technology
trends in education, in 201 0 Brescia House
School embarked upon a project to equip every
grade 1 0 girl with a netbook. Having this technology in the hands of every learner in a grade
meant that teachers could assign work requiring the use of technology, learners could be-
come comfortable using computers and theoretically activities using the internet and social media were possible.
Whilst the learners who were part of this
project (who are now in their final year of
high school) are still making use of their netbooks, the technology was not being used to
its full potential and in some classes the netbooks were barely touched.
The school’s ICT Coordinator Lyneth
Crighton says: “If you came to our school
three years ago I would have had to have
made a special effort to make sure that
someone was using the computers on the
day of your visit”.
Three years later a casual stroll down
the corridors of Brescia reveals laptops open
in almost every classroom, interactive whiteboards on in most venues and even learners
whose teachers are absent are sitting quietly
in front of their computers busy with work. In
this case study the role of the AlwaysOnLearning Solution utilizing Microsoft Office
365 is explored to determine its contribution
to meaningful anywhere, anytime learning. Whilst it takes some time for teachers
to get comfortable with using technology,
having hardware and software that are userfriendly, easy to learn and intuitive helps to
ensure that the investment in technology
pays off. Brescia House School’s ICT Coordinator explored a number of different
hardware and software options to find solutions that would be easy for teachers to use
without taking away teaching time to perform
administrative tasks. The school sought a
solution that would be appropriate for the
age of the learners whilst still familiarising
them with the technology they will encounter
in the workplace. A recent McMethod.net event held at the MTC
This project, portfolio and workflow management solution was developed by McManus Consulting and Dac Systems using leading technologies from Microsoft and Nintex.
If you would like to attend the next event, please contact Colleen Harris at colleenh@dac.co.za
to book your seat.
Read more...
http://dacblogs.wordpress.com/201 3/08/23/bresciahouse-school-where-learning-is-always-on/
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