Loc8 flies high with Australia’s new F/A18F Super Hornets.
Sydney, 22 March 2011 - Smartpath Software, developers of the class-leading field service software Loc8, has begun the rollout of its solution to the Royal Australian Air Force’s Super Hornet Squadrons.
Selected by Number 1 and 6 Squadrons to aid in the control of the F/A18F’s tool management and asset maintenance, Loc8 has been configured to manage the many specialist tools and test equipment used on the new F/A18F Super Hornets, both when stationed at home base and when on deployment around the globe.
Until now, it has been a challenge to track and manage the thousands of tools and assets that are used to maintain aircraft, particularly when hundreds of maintenance staff are required to keep a military squadron in the air and ready 24/7/365. With Loc8’s powerful asset and maintenance functions, coupled to it’s check in / check out tool and asset management application, Loc8 will help 1 and 6 Squadron’s tool store staff and maintenance officers ensure that all tools used to maintain the Super Hornets are accounted for and maintained correctly.
In an aviation environment, the importance of this task is utmost; aircraft will not be cleared for flight unless all tools and equipment are accounted for. Place this into a military environment with a round-the-clock readiness requirement, and the significance of tool accountability increases even further.
Smartpath was also faced with the unique considerations of a military unit deployed into a remote context, and it was able to use its extensive experience with online / offline environments to provide a deployment solution that echoes the master system back at base. The remote solution allows for synchronization when possible, or through manual file exchanges when operational security is paramount, and all information is securely housed and managed.
“We have provided the RAAF a unique and powerful solution that helps take away a huge risk to flight operations,” said Owen Batt, Smartpath’s Chief Information Officer. “The simple, clear workflow of the tool management system, coupled to our premier asset and maintenance solution, Loc8, really offers a 21st century solution to an age old problem, and we have a system that can be taken into an operational environment on deployment as a sub-system; that is unique.”
“We have also provided Number 1 and 6 Squadrons a dashboard display that updates in real time showing the current state of an aircraft, and if it has tools checked out to it. This gives the maintenance officers and ground staff unprecedented live information to aid with flight clearance and maintenance turnaround,” said Owen. “We look forward to working closer with the RAAF as we rollout this solution into the squadrons.”
Smartpath’s Loc8 AirPower, its aviation focused solution, gives aviation operators and maintenance groups an amazing fault & maintenance tool for all aspects of aviation maintenance. Its specialist aviation operations team provides a product tailored to the complexity & technicality of aviation operators. Loc8 AirPower helps aviation operators with:
- Aircraft asset management & maintenance (preventative & reactive)
- Fault management & tracking to resolution
- Tool management and ready-to-fly clearance
- Specialized check in / check out kiosks
- Network assets, allowing system “chains” for fault impact analysis & delay management
- In-field technician mobility & real-time, remote job dispatch
- Integration to enterprise reporting, such as SAP & Oracle
Loc8 is the next evolution of asset management & field service management software, giving small, medium, and large enterprises unprecedented operational control, maintenance, and tracking of their assets.
For company information, please visit: http://www.smartpath-software.com or via www.twitter.com/smartpath.
About Smartpath Founded in 2001, Smartpath publishes Loc8, a web 2.0 asset, maintenance, helpdesk and mobile workforce management software solution.
Headquartered in Sydney, Australia with offices in Melbourne, San Francisco, New York and London, Smartpath works across all industries with aviation, rail, engineering, health, IT, petro-chemical, resources, manufacturing, transportation, building and construction, and government specializations.
Customers include BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, The Royal Australian Air Force, ARA Group, Brookfield Multiplex, Spotless, Spastic Centre, Cue Clothing, Department of Human Services, Spotlight Stores, William Angliss TAFE, Nortel Networks, St John’s Grammar, and Microsoft.
Loc8 Release 3.0.0.4-PROD {21218:50}
Version 3.0.0.4-PROD {21218:50}
STANDARD FEATURE RELEASE
This release contains a number of improvements and new features primarily focused at the management and use of Loc8's Fault tools, both within the browser and on the PDA mobile device. It also has improvements and additions to the Email Parser
This is a free upgrade for all Smartpath customers who have a current Loc8 maintenance and support agreement and it is a recommended upgrade.
Changelog
SERVER - Major items
NEW - PDF template parsing for Incident creation - requires that it follow a specific format, however new formats might be added in consultation with Smartpath Software.
NEW - Export for report data from Dashboard Reports & Report Explorer to CSV
NEW - A user can allocate a Technician to a Work Order through a web form (provided the web form has been created to support it)
NEW - ACL restrictions have been applied to the Preferences Area
NEW - The Emaill Parser is now able to edit an Incident status and add a Progress Note
NEW - The Email Parser now supports multiple sites to be parsed into an Incident
NEW - Fault Handling on Work Order Work Screen has been implemented
NEW - Add Last Update Date column to the Asset Explorer
NEW - Handling of Assets and Tasks on the Work Details tab of the Inspector
NEW - Progress Notes have been added to the the Incident form
NEW - A Technician column has been added to the Incident Explorer
NEW - The ability to add Attachments has been added to the Incident Form
IMPROVED - Date format localisation
IMPROVED - The browser now remembers last username in login panel
IMPROVED - The structure of the field categorisation within Incident form panel
IMPROVED - The performance of the Incident inspector with large asset count has been improved
IMPROVED - The performance of the Work Order inspector with large asset count has been improved
IMPROVED - The administrator can identify users with tablet licenses
IMPROVED - The usability of notifications interface has been improved
IMPROVED - The Fault workflow has been improved
IMPROVED - Icons have been updated for the Work Details tab of the Work Order inspector
IMPROVED - $xxx.xxx$ markup options added to Message Templates
IMPROVED - FSR PDF text specific to Electrical trade/work has been updated
CHANGED - Text editors in Loc8 have been replacted by a new HTML Rich Text Editor thaty is more reliable and usable.
CHANGED - Black errors no longer are shown and have been replaced with a new white Report Error dialog for better error reporting and tracking. These are submitted to support@smartpath-software.com
FIXED - Incident / WO Closure status changes recorded in Action Log
FIXED - Departure time is being updated when the user is editing the Arrival date on a FSR
FIXED - CSV export date results differing for reports have been fixed
FIXED - User unable to refresh report
FIXED - Incident Explorer incorrectly reporting multiple regions
FIXED - Long notification message causes exception on save
FIXED - Filtering the Launcher options no longer hangs the browser
FIXED - Emails failing to send when using the function from the Incident preview have been fixed
FIXED - Remove the "All" option from the predefined filters in the Incident Explorer cuasing unexpected results
FIXED - PO# not coming through on FSR inventory from PDA to server
FIXED - The Schedule report not showing schedules without generated Work Order
FIXED - Unable to inspect a technician from the region preferences inspector
FIXED - Excel export replacing blank dates with the current date
FIXED - User Access history record fails to save with null IP address
FIXED - When editing a Warehouse "Wh " is prefixed to the name when you get the edit lock
FIXED - Intermittent error on completion of an import
FIXED - Closing of an Incident is not populated into the action log
FIXED - Multiple row selection in Explorers not working on Google Chrome
PDA - Major Items
NEW - A user can choose to Add to Work Order or Save when creating a Fault
NEW - A user can scan barcodes in on an M3 PDA running Windows Mobile 6.5
NEW - A user can view Open and Actioned Faults on an Asset
NEW - A user can create a new Fault from an Asset
NEW - A user is able to create a Fault from the Task screen
NEW - A New Fault menu item has been added separate to the Faults menu item for better usability
IMPROVED - Loading performance for the FSR menu has been improved
IMPROVED - A user can search and scan for an Asset when adding to a Fault
IMPROVED - A user is now able to remove inventory from a Fault
IMPROVED - Loading performance for New Fault form has been improved
CHANGED - The Time component has been removed from first fault page
CHANGED - The Fault addition function in FSR workflow has been removed
FIXED - Search function in the asset tree was not behaving as expected
A number of other bugs and performance items have also been addressed as part of our standard code improvement cycle.
Smartpath Software Announced as Finalist in the Red Herring Asia 100 Awards
Sydney, 26th October 2010 - Smartpath Software announced today it has been selected as a Finalist for Red Herring's top 100 Asia award, a prestigious list honoring the year’s most promising private technology ventures from the Asia business region.
The Red Herring editorial team selected the most innovative companies from a pool of hundreds from across Asia. The nominees are evaluated on both quantitative and qualitative criteria, such as financial performance, technology innovation, quality of management, execution of strategy, and integration into their respective industries.
Smartpath Software was selected because of its successful, market-leading Web 2.0 cloud-computing applications for the asset management, scheduled & reactive maintenance, and workforce mobility markets. Its flagship product, Loc8, can be delivered as a traditional perpetually licensed product, or through it’s world-class cloud-computing platform, Loc8.com. Loc8 is a feature-rich on-demand application that is highly configurable delivered through the latest Adobe Flex, Adobe AIR, and Java Enterprise Edition frameworks, straight through a web browser to the user’s PC.
Through Loc8, Smartpath is revolutionizing the asset management, facility management, maintenance software, and workforce mobility markets, in a similar way to what Salesforce did for Customer Relationship Management software.
The selection of Smartpath Software for the Red Herring Asia Awards is a solid recognition of this fact and Smartpath Software is proud to be involved with the Red Herring competition.
Loc8 selected in top 20 applications consecutively.
Loc8 has been selected as one of the www.GetApp.com Top 20 Business Apps for September & October 2010 consecutively.
3.0.0.2-A-PROD
Version 3.0.0.2-A-PROD {20508:30}
MINOR FEATURE RELEASE
Released 18/08/2010.
This release contains the update for the ARA Web services, as scoped with ARA. It also contains bug fixes for the RFID integration with Tracient ThingMagic RFID readers, and simplification of Loc8 configuration for single business unit, single contract customers are concerned.
This is a free upgrade for all Smartpath customers who have a current Loc8 maintenance and support agreement and it is a recommended upgrade.
Changelog
Major items
NEW - Preference items have been added for the configuration of a one business unit, one contract system. This greatly simplifies Loc8 set up in the case of a standard customer, and includes queues, statuses, company details etc
NEW - Work orders are now able to be created through the email parser. This is an option that is able to be switched on or off in the preferences, however the incident is always still created in the help desk. Standard details such as description, site and contract are copied to the work order, but it is not allocated and no tasks or activities are added to it as manual decision making is required for this step.
NEW - A new error reporting system has been implemented. No longer will "black errors" occur within Loc8. Users are now displayed a simple and friendly white error dialogue if an error is detected by Loc8. Users may record the actions they were doing at the time and send the information to Smartpath automatically. The errors are emailed by Loc8 (not the user's email system) to Smartpath Support with great detail than previous errors, including the user, tenant, exception stack, and a screen shot of the user's screen.
NEW - Asset status / state mapping is now available. Like the Work Order workflows, asset statuses can now be mapped to system states. This allows users to create their own asset statuses and then map them to states that have system functions. These include ACTIVE, INACTIVE, DISPOSED and a few others.
NEW - Asset notifications have been added to the rules engine. Users may now create rules and use asset triggers, such as an asset state change, to send email or SMS notifications as per the standard set up of a notification in the rules engine.
CHANGED - The ARA Web Service integration for the ARA Web Service plugin and endpoint has been modified and migrated to a REST web service. A new URI is now required to access the reporting web service and the output format has changed from SOAP XML to CSV. Refer to Smartpath Support for the URI
CHANGED - Usernames now default to being a users email address. It is a preference that all usernames are email addresses from herein.
CHANGED - The User Access History now records a user's IP where it can.
FIXED - Timeout connection issues with the ThingMagic reader. The bug found in ThingMagic's Java library may have been addressed by ThingMagic and the new library from them has been included in this update.
FIXED - The bug found in Internet Explorer 7 with relation to download of files from Loc8 has been implemented into all file downloads. This bug is a Microsoft issue with IE 7 that we have had to work around.
IMPROVED - Work order push to Loc8 Mobile Tablet Edition has been improved.
IMPROVED - Work order sync to Loc8 Mobile Tablet Edition has been improved.
IMPROVED - SMS reporting now allows selection of a date range.
A number of other bugs and performance items have also been addressed as part of our standard code improvement cycle.
3.0.0.0.1-B-PROD {20262:26}
Version 3.0.0.1-B-PROD {20262:26}
PATCH RELEASE
Released 31/07/2010.
This update contains the functionality for the new rules engine of Loc8, focused around notification based on rule conditions.
This is a free upgrade for all Smartpath customers who have a current Loc8 maintenance and support agreement and it is a highly recommended upgrade.
Changelog
Major items
NEW - A rules engine has been added with a new configuration interface in the Loc8 Preferences. Users may now map triggers (eg. New Incident) to conditions and notifications. Notifications can be via SMS or email.
NEW - An updated and improved message template interface has been added to the prefernces.
EOL - The old nofications and message template interfaces as now end of life. They will still work for compatibility, however we encourage administrators to start migrating their rules to the new rules interface in the preferences so that they are not lost in upcoming releases.
A number of other bugs and performance items have also been addressed as part of our standard code improvement cycle.
Release Notes: 3.0.0.0-F-PROD {19965:16}
Version 3.0.0.0-F-PROD {19965:16}
Released 01/07/2010.
This update contains serveral fixes for bugs resulting from 3.0.0.0 release on 03/06/2010 and performance improvements. It also contains one or two small features.
This is a free upgrade for all Smartpath customers who have a current Loc8 maintenance and support agreement and it is a highly recommended upgrade.
Changelog
Major items
IMPROVED - Memory issues that saw a user's web browser increase its memory usage significantly and would not release it.
IMPROVED - Web browser crashing as a result of increased memory use.
FIXED - Server metastore search speed that caused some explorer searches to slow down significantly.
FIXED - Slow opening of the work order inspector. Speed is now improved.
FIXED - Slow opening of the incident inspector.
FIXED - Slow opening of the asset inspector.
FIXED - Fixed issue with only showing 1 existing asset warning.
FIXED - issue where inventory wasn't being decrementing.
FIXED - Work Order FSR Count. Fixed a problem with the count.
FIXED - Cal Addresses. CAL Addresses filter to all Contacts associated with the Active Customer.
FIXED - Explorer Views. Can no longer delete global views that were not created by you.
FIXED - Bulk Asset Edit now handles attachments.
FIXED - All PM Workorders with FSRs broken and cause an error as well as unexpected behaviour
FIXED - The Delete icon in the FSR wizard is broken and causes an error
NEW - Added a menu to the meta store search in all explorers that allows a user to search by ID's, subject or description. This has the effect of speeding up searches when the correct type is selected eg. selecting ID and searching for a work order ID will improve the speed of the search by up to 1000% (thus it is encouraged).
NEW - Added seperate inputs for outgoing email server details to the BU inspector.
NEW - Message Templates. Added "Closure Notes" to incident message template.
NEW - New functions and calculations have been added for depreciation within Loc8. These are accessible in the Preferences pane.
NEW - The association of an Asset and Task to a Fault in a Work Order.
NEW - Site Importer. Can now edit sites through the importer.
NEW - Bulk Incident Edit function now able to be done from the incident explorer.
NEW - Added Grounds Asset Type.
CHANGED - The Asset Importer has been modified to allow for new depreciation fields.
CHANGED - Do not allow removing of 'Active' Status.
CHANGED - Asset Lists. Asset List functionality added to server & placed in Preferences.
Numerous other bugs and performance items have also been addressed as part of our standard code improvement cycle.
Release Notes: 3.0.0.0-I-PROD {20048:23}
Version 3.0.0.0-I-PROD {20048:23}
PATCH RELEASE
Released 12/07/2010.
This update contains a few fixes for performance resulting from 3.0.0.0-F-PROD release on 01/07/2010.
This is a free upgrade for all Smartpath customers who have a current Loc8 maintenance and support agreement and it is a highly recommended upgrade.
Changelog
Major items
IMPROVED - Work order save times with large quantities of assets, tasks and activities by a factor of up to 750%
IMPROVED - Work order download times for work orders with large quantities of assets, tasks and activities
IMPROVED - Further improved memory issues that saw a user's web browser increase its memory usage significantly and would not release it.
IMPROVED - Further improved web browser crashing as a result of increased memory use.
IMPROVED - Work order generation performace from schedules for large sites
FIXED - Asset location details not displaying in the asset inspector
FIXED - Work Order Completed Date. Should be set properly now
FIXED - User Inspector is now able to assign Business Unit to a pda user
FIXED - Work order inspector activity graph now working correctly again
FIXED - Fault inspector not showing content in tabs
Numerous other bugs and performance items have also been addressed as part of our standard code improvement cycle.
Case Study: VMWare & Smartpath Software
“We would not have been able to scale to support our growth rates without deploying VMware virtualization. It is very much entrenched within our business.”
Owen Batt, Co-founder and Chieft Technology Officer at Smartpath Software
CHALLENGE
Implement a scalable, responsive infrastructure that enables the rapid delivery of asset and maintenance software to customers and the cost-effective running of internal applications.
SOLUTION
VMware virtualization enables Smartpath Software to deliver applications as pre- packaged virtual appliances to customers with and without virtualized infrastructure and expedite the creation of new servers to support customer needs if hosting with Smartpath. Smartpath is also running key applications at lower cost and with higher availability than in a physical environment.
VMWARE AT WORK
• ESXi/ESX
• VMware Consolidated Backup
• VMware vCenter Update Manager
DEPLOYMENT ENVIRONMENT
• ESXi/ESX on Supermicro servers with dual or quad-core Intel Xeon processors running at 2.2GHz to 2.5GHz and 6-8GB RAM s
• Supermicro SAN with 3TB of storage
• Guest operating systems: Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Mac OS X Server
• Virtualized applications: Apache Tomcat, PostgreSQL, Postfix email server, Bind DNS
=============================================================================
Founded in 2001, Smartpath Software delivers asset management software, maintenance and helpdesk services using Web 2.0 and Software as a Service (SaaS) technologies. Headquartered in Sydney and with an office in Melbourne, Smartpath also has a wide international presence. Fuelled largely by demand for its Loc8 asset management and maintenance suite, Smartpath has grown by 300 percent year-on-year for the three years prior to 2009. To deliver the IT resources to sustain growth, the organization leases space in a co-located datacenter in Melbourne, operates some hardware in Sydney for redundancy and is building its infrastructure internationally.
With datacenter costs and energy use growing and customer demand placing pressure on the business to increase the availability of server resources, Smartpath needed an infrastructure that combined scalability with centralized management to reduce the load on administrators. “We looked at virtualization around late 2007 when our physical server numbers had grown to about 30,” said Owen Batt, Technical Director. “We then implemented VMware ESXi with VMware Consolidated Backup and VMware vCenter Update Manager. The performance we achieved convinced us to upgrade to ESX. We are now evaluating features such as VMotion and High Availability to enhance the resilience of our infrastructure.”
The VMware hosts are running around 200 virtual machines, most of which are used to provide applications and services to customers. “We have been able to deliver pre-packaged applications as a VMware-based virtual appliance to customers that have a VMware installation in their own datacenters,”said Batt.“We are also running key internal applications such as email in a virtualized environment.” Smartpath also uses VMware’s Fusion product to develop its Linux- based virtual appliance in a Mac environment.
Results
• Avoided investment of A$1 million in new physical servers that would have to be housed in four to five racks
• Increased CPU utilization from 2-4% to 20-30%
• Improved quality assurance by delivering products in SOE integrated with VMware
About Smartpath
Founded in 2001, Smartpath publishes Loc8, a web 2.0 asset, maintenance, helpdesk and mobile workforce management software solution.
Headquartered in Sydney, Australia with offices in Melbourne, San Francisco, CA and Plano, Texas, Smartpath works across all industries, predominantly engineering, health, IT, petro-chemical, resources, manufacturing, transportation, building and construction and government.
Customers include Rio Tinto, ARA Group, Brookfield Multiplex, Spotless, Spastic Centre, Cue Clothing, Department of Human Services, Spotlight Stores, William Angliss TAFE, Nortel Networks, St John’s Grammar, and Microsoft.
For company information, please visit: http://www.smartpath-software.com or via www.twitter.com/smartpath.
PDF VERSION: apac_au_09Q2_cs_vmw_smartpath_software_english
Smartpath Rises To The Challenges Rail Companies Needing Asset Management Software & Solutions.
Sydney, 26 July 2010 - Smartpath Software, developers of the class-leading Loc8 asset management software, have risen to the challenges placed on it by Rio Tinto Iron Ore to keep the trains rolling.
On a recent engagement with the operator of one of the world’s largest privately own rail networks, Rio Tinto, Smartpath was faced with having to manage the tracking and dispatch of faults across a network that stretches of 2000km, with little or no mobile coverage and technicians being offline for days on end. With satellite communication not an option, Smartpath implemented its new tablet PC edition of Loc8, complete with online / offline synchronization, GPS tracking & mapping, and full asset management functions.
The tablet edition, combined with Loc8’s powerful help-desk and work order management features, allows the network operations center for the railway, located some 1200km away from the actual rail operations, to actively lodge an array of faults and dispatch them in real-time to technicians right across the network.
"The solution we have provided to Rio Tinto Iron Ore is leading edge. Technicians can remotely receive new faults or raise and complete them themselves when they are far from communications in the remote Pilbara, while keeping to the standards enforced by Rio Tintio's SAP installation." explained David Hodges, CEO of Smartpath Software. " The deployment of Loc8 with our new tablet PC version allows the technicians to access unprecedented asset management and maintenance management functions from wherever they are. Gone is the paper trail and administration headache."
As a result of managing these challenges, Smartpath has been engaged by two other rail operators to help solve their similar problems and Smartpath has released it’s vertically targeted Loc8 OnTrack solution.
With Loc8 OnTrack, Smartpath gives rail operators an amazing fault & network maintenance tool. Its specialist rail operations team provides a product tailored to the complexity & technicality of the rail operator. As a result, it is used by some of the largest rail networks. Loc8 OnTrack helps rail operators with:
- Rail asset management & maintenance
- Fault management & tracking to resolution
- Delay accounting for delays resulting from faults
- Locomotive, rolling-stock, signals, level-crossing, & track maintenance (preventative & reactive)
- Network assets, allowing system “chains” for fault impact analysis & delay management
- In-field technician mobility & real-time, remote job dispatch
- RFID tracking of locomotives, rolling-stock and sub-components, such as axels
- Integration to enterprise reporting, such as SAP & Oracle
Loc8 is the next evolution of asset management & field service management software, giving small, medium and large enterprises unprecedented operational control, maintenance, and tracking of their assets.
For company information, please visit: http://www.smartpath-software.com or via www.twitter.com/smartpath.
About Smartpath
Founded in 2001, Smartpath publishes Loc8, a web 2.0 asset, maintenance, helpdesk and mobile workforce management software solution.
Headquartered in Sydney, Australia with offices in Melbourne, San Francisco, CA and Plano, Texas, Smartpath works across all industries, predominantly engineering, health, IT, petro-chemical, resources, manufacturing, transportation, building and construction and government.
Customers include Rio Tinto, ARA Group, Brookfield Multiplex, Spotless, Spastic Centre, Cue Clothing, Department of Human Services, Spotlight Stores, William Angliss TAFE, Nortel Networks, St John’s Grammar, and Microsoft.