Page 36: of Marine News Magazine (February 2012)
Inland Bulk Transportation
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36MNFebruary 2012 capture the required information, cre- ate less stress on shore-side staff to process incoming data and provide consistent information to managersfor better analysis and decision mak-ing, UBL chose BTForms. Rocky Gunter, Sr, Director of Commercial and Strategic Planning at UBL, said of the decision, ?Feedback from the captains has been excellent, and we now have consistent and accurate ves- sel information to improve operations and productivity.? According to Boatracs, BTForms has enabled UBL captains to reduce 33% of their paperwork and 67% of the time required to document and send required information to shore. For 13 years Ron deBruyne has served as the CEO of Victoria, BC- based Edoc Systems Group , develop- ers of Helm Marine Operations enterprise software. The challenge of towing and tracking log booms in British Columbia inspired the devel- opment of Helm. Today, Edoc has 30 employees and coastal and inland barging customers from Alaska to Florida. Two highly anticipated releases from Edoc are just around the corner: the new Helm Onboard, Edoc?s easy- to-use on-vessel software, will be launched as well as Helm Executive Dashboard, a module that gives users the ability to pull up graphical results from analytical and trending data on one screen. The Helm system is much easier for mariners ? who ultimatelyare the source of the data ? to input and use. Clark Todd, President and COO of Blessey Marine Services Inc., said recently, "We were pleased that Edoc took the time to meet with our captains and listen to their needs andchallenges prior to the design ofHelm Onboard. The result was a sim- ple user interface that everyone can use with minimal disruption to vessel operation." That product is also being improved as eDoc gathers more feed- back from its captains and customers. The eDoc solution also contains a Subchapter M focus within the Safety module. Also developed with best practices using a Safety Advisory Board from across the inland and coastal workboat industry, a group of approximately 25 safety officers, auditors and educators acted as arequirements gathering body as well as a sounding board during develop- ment.Although eDoc is not a general ledger tool, it interfaces with all the standard financial software. eDoc?s CEO Ron deBruyne adds, ?Most companies are already using another finance piece.? The Helm Executive Dashboard, on the other hand, meas- ures and tracks Critical Performance Indicators. The interface is already set for next generation of tablets.Combining the simplicity of an onboard system and interface with shoreside systems, the eDoc touch screen interface is an ?app? like fea- ture. And, as technology advances, the use of multiple tablets on board a vessel will only make the eDoc inter- face even easier. / MarineCFO Live! is a web-based, software solution to manage person- nel, jobs and billing, maintenance &schedules. Designed for small/divi- sional, or medium-sized marine com- panies, it is web-based so there is no need to install servers. MarineCFO Enterprise is a robust software solu- tion used to automate all businessprocesses from the boat straight through dispatch, personnel, safety, maintenance and financial reporting. It?s modular, enterprise-ready and customizable.MarineCFO differentiates its prod- uct from others that also serve the bluewater markets. Marine CFO President Joe Galatas adds, Bluewater and brownwater employees have markedly different job requirements. With no deepwater shipping clients, MarineCFO markets far simpler soft- ware for different employees, differ- ent requirements and different roles. SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGYMarineCFO Live! is a web-based, softwaresolution to manage personnel, jobs andbilling, maintenance & schedules.Designed for small/divisional, or medium-sized marine companies, it is web-basedso there is no need to install servers. MN#2 (32-43):MN 2011 Layouts 2/3/2012 11:43 AM Page 36