SAGE Pastel Evolution (ERP) in Mauritius

Posted by Ashesh on

On Friday 4 May 2012, there was the launch of SAGE Pastel Evolution at Hennessy Park Hotel, Ebene. The event was marked by the presence of Hon. Jim Seetram, Minister of Business, Enterprise and Cooperatives, the President of the Mauritius IT Industry Association, the Product Manager and Technical Manager of SAGE Africa, a representative of Sage Alchemex  (i.e Business Intelligence module of Sage Products) and the Directors/ Accountants of different companies invited by the organiser: Software Concepts Ltd (SFT).

It was a fine Friday Morning though was feeling a bit cold. I was present at the launch together with a friend who is an Accountant who uses SAGE Pastel as Accounting Software. We were welcomed by the employees of SFT who were all dressed in blue shirt/blouse uniform. At the time of registration, all the participants were given a no. as there was a Lucky Draw at the end of the session and the Winner would win a Free Training on Sage Evolution worth Rs. 28k. Well, my Lucky number was 19 and I did won!! :)

Well, around 9.30 am the welcome speeches started and after that the Product Manager introduced the SAGE Group and the African Market for their business. In brief, Sage provides business software, services and support to small and medium sized businesses:

After the Corporate Presentation of SAGE Africa, then came the most awaited demo of the new Pastel Evolution and together with its Roadmap. This part of presentation was done was a Technical Guy (also another South African).

And the guy went on and on with his presentation slides demonstrating the new features of the Accounting software like Branch Accounting, new add-on modules etc. The information can be accessed on SAGE website: http://www.sagepastel.com/Sage-Pastel-Software-Products/Pastel-Evolution-ERP-Software-Solution.asp. What was of particular interest to me was the demo of the Point of Sale (POS) software, synchronizing data with the Accounting software such that the invoices are matching the accounting entries in the Pastel Evolution. Secondly, the demo of Pastel Evolution on Mobile devices like iPad was Super interesting!! Apart from Sage products being on Mobile Platforms, I hear that they are also targeting the cloud platform.

Then after a Tea Break, we resumed the event. This time, a presentation on the application of SAGE Software in Specific Industry like Construction, Tourism and Hospitality, Document import/export etc. by Mr. Roshan Betum, CEO of Software Concepts Ltd. His presentation was kinda cool and dynamic. Then, I was very eager for the demo of Business Intelligence Centre integrated in Sage Products and powered by Alchemex. It was very interesting to view how OLAP could be performed on the historical data stored in the SQL database used by Pastel Evolution. And also, how to slice and dice data in Excel 2010 Sheets which helps decision maketing in the business.

Moving forward, came the Testimonial of Mr. Daniel Ng, CEO of MACCS and Past President of Mauritius Gymkhana Club. Daniel related his experience on the implementation of SAGE Evolution ERP at the Mauritius Gymkhana Club, with the support of the employees of SFT. The audience was brought to the real-life experiences of implementing the product and the customer satisfaction of the business solution from SFT. What I liked the most in his slides were:

1. The mention of the Critical Success Factors of implementing an ERP (i.e People, Structure & Process and Technology)

2. Change Management (as users will need to use IT or will be affected by IT in their daily tasks)

3. Business Process Re-Engineering

4. The Need for Business Intelligence

5. His experience of working with SFT and critical comments (SFT need to manage Growth of the company and strengthen Support of SAGE products)

Personally, this was a very informative event as I learnt a lot about ERP for medium business in Mauritius. At Accenture IT, we had the SAP capability where such ERP were deployed for Large Organisations or countries, embedded with lots of complexity.

ERP Solution Providers in Mauritius

After a quick search I read that in Mauritius, there are few companies selling SAGE Products like: New Edge Solutions ltd., Acclivity Consulting, BIC Solutions Ltd, Harel Mallac Technologies Ltd. etc.

Other companies delivery solutions from Microsoft like MS Dynamics etc. Ex. FRCI (Insight), Enterprise Information Systems Ltd.

or from SAP Business One Ex. iO.sys, State Informatics Ltd., DCDM Consulting, Accenture IT (Mauritius)

or Oracle Ex. Spoon Consulting

Uniconsults delivers Sicorax products. During my University of Mauritius days, I had friends doing computer lab sessions on Sicorax HRM, as part of their e-Human Resources Module.

For now, let me focus on the Potential of Open Source in the field of Enterprise Software..

Till then,

Keep Connected!

100 Years after the Titanic Disaster

Posted by Ashesh on

Courtesy: news.discovery.com

10 April 2012 marks the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s tragic maiden voyage from England to New York which they hoped to make in six days. The Titanic struck on the 4th day and iceberg the evening of April 14 1912 (100 years ago). Warnings about icebergs in the area had been ignored. The ship flooded and sank into the deep. When word spread that the technologically advanced, “unsinkable” ship had gone down, the shock was immediate. Some Ocean Photos of the Titanic.

Icebergs are very dangerous objects because they drift, they are not stationary, and in higher wave conditions they can be masked or hidden from a ship’s radar. That’s why they are still a danger today. More info on the RMS Titanic Iceberg can be read here titanic-nautical.com

Titanic was considered as one of mankind’s most remarkable feats of engineering. At the time of her construction, Titanic was the largest ship ever built—882 feet, 9 inches long, and standing nearly 20 stories high. Her weight was over 46,000 tons. Her hull spanned four city blocks. She had nine decks encompassing 370 first-class cabins, 168 second-class cabins, and 297 third-class cabins. Accommodations for up to 3,547 people.

Life on Board

Titanic’s first class cabins rivaled the most exquisite decors of the day. Every effort was made to give the illusion that she was not a ship, but the kind of locale here elite guests were accustomed to. The orrnate Grand Staircase adorned with bronze cherubgs and topped by a massive glass dome and chrystal chandelier is arguably one of the most luxurious spaces aboard. 8 men died during the building of the ship. While 15,000 workers at Harland & Wolff contributed to building the massive ship, these three individuals are most often credited with its design. Click here to read more on Life on board Titanic.

Source: National Museums Northern Ireland

Harland and Wolff’s elite Guarantee Group was a selection of the best men in their fields chosen to represent the shipbuilders on the Titanic’s maiden voyage. Nine men were selected for the honor (None of which survived, sadly). Thomas Andrews, the Naval Architect was also in the Guarantee Group. He headed the group of Harland and Wolff workers to observe ship operations and spot any necessary improvements.  On 14 April, Andrews remarked to a friend that Titanic was “as nearly perfect as human brains can make her.” According to John Stewart, a steward on the ship, Andrews was last seen in the first–class smoking room staring at a painting, “Plymouth Harbour”, above the fireplace, his lifejacket lying on a nearby table. The painting depicted the entrance to Plymouth Sound, which Titanic had been expected to visit on her return voyage. Here is an Interesting Timeline on Building Titanic: http://news.yahoo.com/titanic-anniversary-timeline/

The Lifeboats

Early designs for Titanic included up to 64 lifeboats, but the number were later reduced as it was felt that the Boat Deck where passengers could promenade freely would be too cluttered. In the end, Titanic was equipped with 20 boats in all:

14 Wooden Lifeboats (65-passenger capacity)

2 emergency boats (40 passenger capacity)

4 collapsible boats (47 passenger capacity)

In total, the rescue boat capacity was 1178 passengers.

Titanic’s officers knew how many the lifeboats could seat. They did not fill them to capacity for two reasons. First, Second Officer Charles Lightoller testified the crew doubted that the lowering mechanisms could bear the weight of the full 70 passengers per boat. Second, crew members knew they could not waste time before launching;

On 15 April 1912, 2:20 a.m., Titanic disappeared. All who had failed to find a lifeboat seat went into the frigid water. A life jacket did virtually no good. Smith, Murdoch, Andrews, Phillips, and hundreds of others ranging from millionaires to dirt-poor immigrants drowned or froze.

Miles away, Cunard liner Carpathia received Titanic’s distress calls and got under way—straight into the ice field surrounding the stricken ship’s final radioed position. Normally, Carpathia topped out at 14.5 knots, but Captain Arthur Rostron rerouted every ounce of energy to the engines. At 17.5 knots, Carpathia zipped forward as extra lookouts scanned nervously for bergs. Rostron ordered rockets to be fired every 15 minutes to give hope to survivors, told his medical staff to set up three makeshift hospitals, had chefs prepare hot soup and drinks, and readied the ship for traumatized passengers. Rostron then did one last thing: He stood on the bridge, closed his eyes, and prayed.