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Geotech Computer Systems |
Summer 2013 Newsletter |
In This Newsletter...
Free Tip - Download
a Free Environmental Computing Glossary
Summer Special
- Half Price Software Licenses
Enviro Data News
- ACE-IT Approval, Enviro Cloud, CDPH&E, ERPIMS and
ERIS, Expanded Crosstab Wizard
Enviro Spase News
- ESRI Delays VBA Removal, Soliciting Input on Mapping Platforms
Geotech News - New Clients, MR Attends
Field Days
Smart Moves in Tough Times
- Increasing Revenue with Data Management Services
Geotech
Humor
- Laughter is Good Medicine!
Welcome to the Summer 2013 issue of our newsletter. We hope you find it interesting and useful. And remember, this newsletter is for you and not for us, so if there's something you would like to see, please let us know at info@geotech.com or call 877-740-1999 Toll-Free and we will try to include it in our next newsletter. Click here for previous newsletters.
Geotech is happy to provide a free resource to our friends. This is a 44 page glossary of environmental and computer industry terms. It has evolved over the last few years in various forms, and has recently been updated. You can download this useful tool from www.geotech.com/downloads/glossary.pdf.
Summer Special - Half Price Software Licenses
50% off purchase of Enviro Data or Enviro Spase
software licenses through Sept. 30, 2013!
Purchase any Enviro software license during this timeframe and save ½
of the original price! Don’t
wait to streamline and improve your company’s data management process, do it
now and start saving time and money today!
Two Army Corps of Engineers districts now have the
Enviro software for their data management and GIS needs, and have been using
the 2010 version, both in their own and in cooperation with their
contractors. Geotech recently received word that the Corps IT department has
now approved our 2012 version as well. Our Corps users will now be upgrading
to the latest version, and other districts can adopt the software without
needing to go through the approval process. Thanks to the Omaha District for
their help in getting this done.
The current Enviro Data architecture has been serving Geotech’s clients for almost 20 years. The Access front-end allows us to efficiently build great functionality, while providing a product that users can modify as necessary for their specific needs. The flexibility of storing the data in Access, SQL Server, and Oracle lets the software scale from small to large projects. We anticipate that this architecture will continue to provide good service for the foreseeable future; however some of our clients have expressed a need for: 1) a different architecture that does not require Enviro Data and Access to run on their desktop, and 2) for the software and data to be made available on the web. This type of a model is often called Software As A Service or SAAS. Geotech is responding to this by starting development for a version of Enviro Data that will run in the “cloud.” As we begin this undertaking, we are soliciting feedback from potential Enviro Data cloud users about how they might use a system like this, and what value it would provide. We would love to hear from you about how cloud-based functionality might benefit your organization. Contact Mike Rich, mrich@geotech.com or call 877-740-1999 Toll-Free for additional details.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has switched their database platform from EQuIS to Enviro Data. In their recent re-bid of the Summitville project, which was won by Tetra Tech, one of the bidders asked what submittal format would be required. They were told "EQuIS is not acceptable."
Geotech recently updated two of our supported Department of Defense formats. One is the ERPIMS format for the U.S. Air Force Civil Engineering Center (AFCEC, formerly AFCEE). Enviro Data can now export ERPIMS version 6.0 files. Likewise, the Enviro Data export for the Environmental Restoration Information System (ERIS) from the U.S. Army Environmental Command, has been updated to version 3.0.
Enviro Data’s Crosstab Wizard feature, introduced in version 2012, has turned out to be our most popular feature ever, and with the recent addition of statistical calculations, is now even more powerful. However there was one limitation that was a problem for clients who wanted to create reports for large datasets. When Access runs a crosstab (pivot table) query, it is limited to 255 columns, which is not enough, especially when they have more than one column per result, such as separate cells for the value and the analytic flag. We had added the option to export the data in parts by station, and this helped some, but users wanted two more things. First, they wanted to split the data onto separate Excel sheets by any field they wanted, such as matrix or analytic method. Secondly, they wanted Enviro Data to automatically create a new sheet when the current sheet is full. Now, as of version 2012 B 1.6, Enviro Data does both. Now you can make those spreadsheets with 100,000 records or more in just a few minutes.
ESRI, the developers of ArcGIS, had previously announced that as of version 10.2 they would no longer support Visual Basic for Applications, the language in which Enviro Spase was originally written. Version 10.2 is expected out in the summer of 2013. Consequently Geotech has rewritten Enviro Spase in VB.net, and we are now completing testing and documentation. Meanwhile, though, ESRI has announced that 10.2 will in fact support the VBA runtime, so users who upgrade can still run the older software. Users will be notified when the new Enviro Spase, to be called 2012 to match the Enviro Data version, is available.
With so many things changing with technology these days, virtual machines, cloud services, etc., Geotech started thinking out of the box again. While most of our clients use ESRI products for their GIS needs, we wondered if other mapping applications might contain different functionality for different needs. Google Earth is a popular application. It’s user friendly and offers such capabilities as callouts on maps. This newer option might be less expensive in the long run, as it may not require upfront training. Geotech would like to pose the question to our readers: What other mapping applications would provide the most benefit to your environmental data management? Are there GIS or mapping tools other than ARC GIS and CAD that you would like to use for your projects? You can submit your replies to mrich@geotech.com or call 877-740-1999 Toll-Free.
The second quarter of 2013 has been a busy one for the Geotech staff. Besides the myriad of other things that you’ve read about above, that fill our work days, the Geotech sales staff landed four large new clients this quarter. The first was an electric utility in the Northwest, which actually purchased their software last quarter, but added maintenance and training to their purchase this quarter. We next added a large Nevada gold company to our software users list, with their purchase of licenses, maintenance and a week of training. Our next new client was a geoconsulting and environmental remediation services company headquartered in Texas. And lastly, a California county that performs stormwater management services purchased our software, maintenance and training. We look forward to getting them all successfully up and running in the near future, and for many years to come.
Sales Director Mike Rich attended another great Field Days show hosted by the well-known Geotech Environmental Equipment in north Denver. Visiting with other venders and attendees, Mike spent two days helping people find better solutions for their environmental needs. Mike gave a talk: “Managing, Reporting, and Displaying Baseline Data and Similar Data Types”, which helped people understand the best ways to handle environmental data depending on their project type. Mike met many wonderful new people and helped them understand the benefits of a centralized data management system.
Most managers would agree that increasing sales is very near the top of their list of corporate goals. However, we all know that there are many different ways to do this, depending on your line of work, the size of your staff, marketing budget, etc. But for many of Geotech’s clients, who normally do tasks such as sampling and reporting, project management, consulting, regulatory compliance, etc., there is another line of work that could differentiate you enough from your competitors, to increase your bottom line. If you are a Geotech client, you can win this additional work from your clients by marketing your database management and GIS capabilities to your clients. In addition to your usual project management and related tasks, you can now add services such as data entry and importing, database setup, quality control, reporting and mapping, and many others, possibly presenting a cadre of services that your client may not have the time, talent or staff to do themselves. So start using the Enviro software now, and add a new line item to your company’s service offerings list today.
Why did the biologist split up with the physicist?
Because there was no chemistry.
An
environmental lawyer and a non-renewable resource walk into a bar and sit
down for a couple of pints. After a while, the non-renewable resource orders
two more beers. The bartender turns to the lawyer and says, ‘I’ll serve you,
but not your friend, he’s getting wasted.”
Geotech Services
Geotech specializes in environmental software, database management services and custom programming. We can assist with data loading, reporting, mapping, and other services, or we can train you to do these tasks. Geotech has been successfully providing software and services to hundreds of clients over the past 30 years. We would be happy to provide you with references. For more information about Geotech products and services, please visit our web site at www.geotech.com.
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Geotech Computer Systems,
Inc.
12150 E.
Briarwood Ave.,
Ste. 202
Centennial, CO 80112
303-740-1999 (PH)
877-740-1999 (Toll-Free
US)
303-740-1990 (Fax)
www.geotech.com
info@geotech.com
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