ProductVision
Formula Management (FM) Module is the foremost
Product Development software available for process manufacturing companies.
ProductVision
FM dramatically reduces R&D time necessary for new product development by providing
the tools to take a product from inception through final manufacturing.
Laboratory
calculations, specifications, and approval workflow are just of a few features of the
system. Query features allow you to easily find
existing formulas that may meet new requirements. For a single formulator or for thousands, FM
gives your R&D department the competitive advantage. tools.
Manages the Entire
Product "Life-Cycle"
Formula Management is a
rapid
product development tool that manages all aspects of the creation of a
product from the initial concept through retirement. All formula
revisions are automatically maintained. Product development tasks can
be tracked and controlled using the Projects
and Workflow Modules.
Regulatory documents can be created immediately using the integrated
Regulatory Compliance Module.
Detailed change tracking is available using the
Audit Module. Approved
formulas and raw materials may be “locked” to prevent accidental
changes. Historical formulas may be archived to separate them from your
production formulas.
Increases
Formulator Productivity
FM greatly reduces the effort
required in creating new products and enhancing existing formulas. New raw materials and
formulas may be copied entirely from existing items. Or you may create new items by
"dragging" parts of the existing item with your mouse to the new raw material or
formula. A flexible formula editor allows freeform entry of an unlimited number of lines,
including unlimited levels of intermediates, to handle even the most complex products.
Instruction text may be inserted anywhere to enhance readability.
Multi-level "where-used" and global
component replacement features allow rapid and accurate substitution of obsolete
ingredients. And FM automatically performs all property and cost
calculations quickly and accurately. Formulators can focus on what’s important --
creating and enhancing products for quicker release to the marketplace.
Developed Exclusively for
Process Manufacturers
FM was designed to
meet the special needs of process manufacturers. It efficiently manages input of all raw
material information required for formulation. FM includes flexible
formula entry and editing, detailed product cost analysis, plus physical and chemical
properties for raw materials and formulas. Features include formula re-bulking,
user-definable units of measure, and automatic conversions between weight and volume.
Designed
for Immediate Productivity
If you are comfortable using other
Windows™ applications, you
are ready to start producing formulas in FM. Common Windows features such
as Windows Explorer, "drag-and-drop," and right mouse button shortcut menus are
used to increase productivity and reduce the learning curve. Context sensitive help and
on-line documentation are provided throughout for timely, one-touch assistance. The
on-line help even incorporates "live" video clips to provide detailed
demonstrations of system features.
Streamlines
New Product Development
With FM’s
"What-If" Analysis, you can quickly prototype new products. You may set a target
property or cost value for a formula, "float" one or more components, and have
the system arrive at the correct composition to meet the target. Alternately, a
formula’s composition can be directly edited and FM will recalculate
and display the new formula properties.
An unlimited number of alternate formulas can be
created and viewed on-screen. Selected property values can be graphed for convenient
visual analysis. Experimental formulas developed using "What-If" can be saved to
the permanent formula file for future use.
Improves Customer Response
Time
FM’s powerful query tool
allows you to quickly locate existing products that match or approximate specific customer
requests, thus allowing you to provide better service. Internally, queries save time and
money by rapidly locating resources that can be substituted for others, formulas that can
accept re-worked materials, or items that meet any user-selected combination of property,
cost, or component criteria.
Provides Detailed Product
Costs
ProductVision FM
helps you get a true picture of your formula costs and price products for maximum long-run
profitability. With line-by-line as well as overall formula losses, formulators can
clearly define product costs. FM’s cost simulation feature helps you
quickly analyze the effects of anticipated cost changes by allowing you to make temporary
changes to formula compositions or costs.
Enhances Flexibility and
User Control
Throughout ProductVision FM, you
will find extensive user-defined features for maximum flexibility and user control. From
notes, raw material and formula properties to infinite units of measure, you may add any
desired information to meet individual requirements. Multiple descriptions may be entered
for items to allow entry of location or language specific information.
Extensive Security Controls
A combination of password protection and
multi-level user access rights ensures complete control over access to FM
functions. Access to the formula database is strictly controlled through a two-pass login
procedure that prevents users from accessing the formulas outside of ProductVision
FM. Individual formulas may be secured by assigning security "types"
which prevent unauthorized users from viewing or editing them. Approved formulas and raw
materials may be "locked" to prohibit further changes.
Links to Other World-Class
Software
FM raw material and formula
information may be shared with most popular Manufacturing Resource Planning, financial,
and plant and lab automation software packages. This eliminates duplicate data entry,
reduces time to market, and improves information accuracy.
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