As times get tougher, it is always tempting to cut corners.  Companies look at every item of expenditure and, often without too much deliberation, begin to prune back on everything they see as ‘non-essential’. 

When it comes to software, often investment in new products or upgrades may be deemed critical to business.  However, in the spirit of compromise, it may seem sensible to buy from a reseller who offers free technical support.   This may even help to clinch the budget for the actual software and demonstrate an appreciation of the need to be frugal.

So, how have we got into a situation where some software resellers can offer their services free while others are able to charge for a variety of support packages and schemes?   Surely, market forces will prevail and all resellers will soon have to offer their services for nothing?

As with life...

The fact is – with technology as with life; you get what you pay for.  Skimp on the peripherals such as support and in time you could be left with far heftier overheads for loss of productivity and even substantial downtime.

To explain why, let us consider a particular area familiar to most machine builders and designers; that of CAD.  Some decision makers with only a passing knowledge of the technologies involved may be totally unaware of the developments that have taken place in this area over the past few years.

However, CAD has changed from being practically a single product technology with a wide and mature user base that could be relied on for advice and expertise - to a far more highly-developed and tailored product.  While, in the past, resellers have been able to make their money through selling the product and leaving the customer to get it out of the box and install it, they too have become far more sophisticated. 

Accrued knowledge

After all, they have been accruing knowledge over the past decade or so and, consequently, are a valuable source of skill and guidance.

For example, take the latest movement towards digital prototyping.  This is the process whereby designers create a virtually real model on the screen, which can be tested and analysed before the investment in creating physical prototypes. 

This has been shown to be a real time and cost-saver, as well as accelerating time to market. In fact, recent Aberdeen Group research shows that best in class manufacturers build half the number of prototypes and consequently get their products to market, on average, 58 days earlier.  They also cut their prototyping overheads accordingly.

Take companies moving to Autodesk’s digital prototyping solution Inventor such as Lintott Control Systems for example. The company designs large assemblies which need to be broken down into manageable chunks of work, while maintaining the ability to view the products as a whole to ensure that everything coordinates and fits together.

The company realised that the best way to do this was to implement a 3D design solution and worked closely in a consultative process with Autodesk value added reseller Micro Concepts to ensure that the solution it selected was right for the company.

Initial support

Firstly Micro Concepts took time to advise on the implementation process: “Because of the size of our designs, they advised us that we needed to invest in more powerful computers. They provided us with the exact specification of what we needed, enabling us to make an informed purchase. They were really committed to making sure that all the technology worked for us as a company,” explains Chris Wise of Lintott.

Further to its initial support, Micro Concepts’ training package has ensured that Lintott has achieved the maximum return on investment. The training package covers everything from basic skills such as how to create and edit documents to DWG interoperability and 3D sketching.

“Thanks to Micro Concepts’ training and expertise, Inventor has become a really powerful tool for us as a company. True we’ve put time and resources into the deployment but we’ve already had a good return on investment,” concludes Wise.

A ‘free’ support package would clearly not have offered the same level of time and personalised service, meaning Lintott could have been left with a system that didn’t fit it as a company.

Reseller as consultant

There are other considerations when moving to a new technology such as digital prototyping, including changes in processes and workflows. Often advice on complimentary technologies such as data management can help a firm to handle these changes.

If a client is installing a design data management system, a reseller can act as a consultant, taking a step back and advising on maximising the investment by feeding the design data into an organisation-wide ERP or MRP system.  Resellers can also advise on more practical matters such as hardware, a key issue when dealing with large assemblies.

TROX, a forward-looking manufacturer who uses 3D modelling in innovative and exciting ways recently upgraded to Autodesk Inventor through VAR Micro Concepts. TROX manufacture air conditioning and building services units, traditionally these have always been hidden behind a suspended ceiling but as this becomes seen as old fashioned and architects want to use all available ceiling heights, the company needed the ability to design in 3D to create surface mounted and attractive units.

With the help of Micro Concepts TROX was easily able to make the transition to Autodesk Inventor to enable it to design in 3D. “Having someone who could give us real support on the detail of the product is good. Micro Concepts understands what we want,” explains Martyn Mills of TROX.

It was this understanding of the client’s need that allowed Micro Concepts to go out of its way to recommend that the company also introduce Productstream. Mark Mills of Micro Concepts explains: “We are helping the team to identify ways to further streamline the manufacturing process through the implementation of Autodesk Productstream. This data management system will allow TROX to improve the re-use of its design data and collaboration amongst team members, and by automating the design process, can shorten development cycles and get products to market faster.”

“We now have Productstream on order,” concludes Mills of TROX, “which will help us maintain even better build control over our concurrent engineering between bespoke design and factory build.”

Time is a key factor

But you are probably wondering why all this consultancy cannot be carried out as part of a free package.  The key to this is time.  For example, free support won’t include a constantly manned help desk.  Instead, firms include a clause saying they will solve your problems to their ‘best endeavour’.

However, industry today is so finely tuned, that to wait until the support engineer comes out of a meeting, or reaches their destination, can mean two hours of downtime.  However, most paid-for support packages provide fully-qualified engineers at the end of a phone or available to come to you at any time.

Suppose an organisation has a data management problem, for instance, which affects the entire four-man design team.  Even if the system is only down for two hours, they have lost a whole man day.

But it’s not just reactive help that’s needed.  Most support packages offer to keep customers up to date with new developments, provide tips and tricks for new releases and can pre-empt any problems caused by software glitches by sending out warning emails.  They may also be at the end of a phone to help customers use the technology to solve knotty design problems.

Proactive support

A benefit that James Cannon of InterFocus has experienced first hand: “I attended Micro Concepts’ Inventor conference to hear all about the latest releases. It’s an excellent opportunity for me to learn about the latest editions to Inventor and to talk to others using the solution. For example, the new frame generator – I probably would have missed this feature if Micro Concepts hadn’t pointed it out to me – and it has actually been very useful.”

So investing in high quality support will enhance your productivity and develop the knowledge you will need to optimise your use of design technology and ultimately, it will help you achieve competitive edge.