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R6V05: Strength On Strength

PFW's Latest Software Release Builds on a Sound Foundation

PFW Password - spring 2007PFW’s approach to software development is one of “evolution”. The positive effects of this philosophy are many, including the residual ability to minimize PFW software users’ business disruption or “downtime”. Some software vendors take a more radical approach to development, and change and the subsequent abandonment of software systems and hardware platforms can leave customers adrift.

When software is developed thoughtfully and in response to a critical mass of customer requests, the cost to you is minimized. PFW IntelliDealer’s web client allows users to view information in new and optimized ways. The web interface facilitates quick learning and minimizes training costs. Data input is also improved through the thoughtful design and flexibility offered to system administrators.

Each PFW release provides users with the strongest cumulative package yet, and contains the enhancements and streamlining that are industry-specific and derived from customer consultation. Coming in Spring 2007, the latest PFW software release, R6V05, gives users even more opportunities to meet their business objectives. With enhancements and additions regarding everything from vendor communications, to electronic services,
to reporting power, this release is yet another example of the always- expanding, evolutionary power of PFW software—software that benefits both you and your customers.

Ross Atkinson, PFW VP of System Architecture & Product Design, says, “R6V05 has an excellent mixture of software modifications, including ease of use, reporting, customer requests, performance and key architectural changes, to name a few. Dealers will find something that they can utilize in their dealerships—whether it is an application such
as Rental Counter, or a smaller change, such as mandatory field identification. PFW continues to balance the development workload and appreciates the feedback received from dealers who care about the product and its future.”

PFW Software Releases: An Evolutionary Decade
Someone once said that “a rolling stone gathers no moss”, and that has certainly been true with regard to the PFW Dealership Management System and PFW IntelliDealer. The table above, which represents a snapshot of the last ten years, illustrates the steady, powerful and evolutionary approach that is a trademark of PFW software development.
The following new features represent just a few examples of the growth shown by R6V05:

Complaint/Cause/Correction
Smart dealerships know that if they are keenly aware of the problems that may
arise from customers’ dealership contacts, the appropriate remedial measures and adjustments can be made to address issues, streamline processes, and improve operations. When “service recovery” can be consistently carried out, the long-term
result is customer loyalty and retention. Unfortunately, many businesses ignore
customer complaints, while others do only marginally better by operating on a
reactive rather than proactive basis. These passive actions—or inactions—function
as competitive disadvantages.

When dealerships can capture clear and concise descriptions of product and service complaints, what caused the problem, and the correction that was applied, a valuable resource is created that can be used repeatedly and indefinitely. The goal should be to create a systematic, proactive approach to complaint resolution. In this model, customer feedback is treated as valuable and is capitalized on, in order to correct root causes. The service department, for example, when armed with details on what caused the problem—as opposed to the symptoms—can quickly address the issue.

For companies who know that the customer voice is a valuable one, PFW
IntelliDealer facilitates the integration of customer notes, via new, warranty-based “Complaint/Cause/Correction” functionalities: for example, a warranty claim complaint can be imported from a work order, and then submitted to the manufacturer as a
pending claim. Users can also print “The 3 Cs” on work orders as an option.

eSales Flexibility
PFW eServices eSales application now sports a new, fresh look and feel, as well as additional features and functions. Shoppers can now browse through your equipment offerings via new functionality that allows for a complete product description, through
the use of a series of graphic files, which can originate from any network or foreign
file server. Administration of eServices is simplified throughout its integration with
PFW IntelliDealer. For example, eSales information is maintained from IntelliDealer’s Equipment Profile screen. As well, the option now exists to set eSales to run outside the network firewall, so that your “electronic marketplace” can be available to the public, via your corporate website.

Print To PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF) is the de facto standard for printable documents. This “universal”, document fixed-layout format is device- and resolution-independent. The autonomy of PDF files comes from the fact that they do not encode software and/or hardware data from the document’s source. This means that a PDF will render identically, regardless of its origin or destination. The only requirement is that non-encapsulated fonts must be available on the reading machine. PDF files are most appropriately used to encode the exact look of a document in a device-independent way. The PDF format can be used for multi-page documents that contain a variety of fonts, graphics, and images.
With these format-related advantages in mind, R6V05 features new printing flexibility. Via the IBM Infoprint Server, it is possible to print directly to PDF. A program installed on the server converts the print spool files to PDF format via a special output queue. As well, throughout IntelliDealer, the user is now prompted for the desired printer or PDF, where the new PDF Viewer option allows for on-screen viewing of generated PDF reports.

Equipment Reporting
IntelliDealer users now have the ability to create powerful, equipment-based reports. Whether it’s a retail or wholesale sales report, a financial report based on notes payable, or important metrics regarding cost of sales, margin analysis or washout, IntelliDealer has it covered. In the example above, it’s possible to see that through the use of web elements such as lookups and dropdowns, effective data mining is easily attainable. This kind of advanced design ensures that new users are not saddled with a difficult-to-use tool. In fact, the opposite is true in IntelliDealer, where new or “substitute” users can quickly adapt to become more effective.

Data Miner Boost
The architecture and “under-the-covers” technology of this reporting tool has been restructured, giving R6V05 users increased querying power. Not only has the query “return performance” been improved—environmental factors notwithstanding—
Purpose-Built Software Spr 3 ing 2007 but the query design process has some
additional functionality that makes this tool even more powerful and useful. A new
“totalling” function now exists in order to summarize numeric-column data, and the
report’s results can now be made available as a PC file that is rendered in a variety
of file formats.

Custom Stock Order Allocation
The facility now exists for users to “allocate” inventory on a stocking order to a specific line on a sales order, i.e., for a customer. Users can either allocate an order that has already been placed, or for one that is “in progress”. If no order has been created,
you can have the part added to a vendor stock order queue. The benefits are many: IntelliDealer usage is streamlined, as parts can be assigned to one, “working” stock order, as opposed to the necessity of creating multiple orders; the automation increases efficiency; and business practices are also simplified. The resulting benefit is that users can take advantage of stock ordering discounts and negate higher-priced machine-down/overnight surcharges.

Case Communications
Efficiency is critical, and when duplication of effort occurs, cost is the result. It’s with these principles in mind that PFW’s vendor-integrated software is designed. Case parts availability is now available through IntelliDealer over IP, replacing the former dial-up
or SNA connection. Product Support Parts Ordering’s CCN Web provides support for
back orders, discounts, freight, and purchase orders.What other enhancements can IntelliDealer administrators and users expect in R6V05? See the adjacent sidebar for a sample. As shown here, PFW software release R6V05, available in April 2007, promises to be the strongest version yet. Whether it’s inventory control, instantly-accessible customer views, manufacturer integration, equipment and parts information selection,reporting power, or complementary software that extends your dealership umbrella, PFW R6V05 has got it.

For more information please visit www.pfw.com and www.intellidealer.com