Software searches for data in disparate systems

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Oct 13, 2006

Intelligent search application discovers and classifies all structured and unstructured product information stored behind the firewall in disparate, enterprise-wide systems.

Centric Software has announced the global availability of Centric InSight 6.0, an off-the-shelf product intelligent search application that discovers and classifies all structured and unstructured product information stored behind the firewall in disparate, enterprise-wide systems.

Centric InSight further expedites access to the most important product documents, technical drawings, bills of material, ERP records and other content, allowing users to spend less time searching and more time making decisions based on the latest content.

Unique among search alternatives on the market, Centric InSight has the most built-in intelligence for recognition of product and technical content of any search application or engine on the market today.

Unlike other search engines that return lists of results, out-of-the-box Centric InSight discovers and classifies results based on common product attributes from multiple systems, such as CAD, PLM, PDM and ERP systems, as well as office documents, PDFs and email files.

Its powerful features include comparisons of results, multiple options to manage results as-needed and complete respect for established network and data security restrictions that protect document sources, only allowing access based on roles.

For engineering and manufacturing teams in automotive, aerospace, consumer goods, Centric InSight 6.0 expedites just-in-time access to technical drawings, manuals, and other documents for parts manufacturing, parts reuse, or part replacement for machine repair and minimised downtime.

Additionally the application enables rapid access to technical drawings and manuals to control the costs and schedules of construction projects, and reduce the timeline and costs of repairs for capital construction programs or facilities maintenance.

"Only a portion, and often a small one at that, of product engineering data reside under the control of the engineering department".

"Making available such 'hidden' documents should save organisations countless hours searching for the right documents to properly complete a design, tool a machine, replace a part, or address a quality issue", said Ray Kurland, President of TechiCom, a CAD industry analysis firm.

"Demonstrating unparalleled power in discovery and management of results in comparison to other search engines, Centric InSight 6.0 will reduce cycle times and improve cost controls in many companies".

Additional product intelligence built into Centric InSight 6.0 recognises duplicate results, categorises results against data types, and gives users options to navigate through unindexed document relationships.

To manage results, users can select to share documents or organise them in a project folder for secure sharing with a cross-functional team over the Internet.

Selected unmanaged files instantly become manageable with the automatic assignment of revision control identity and population of relevant data-management tags.

"By offering complete visibility into all documents, including documents not indexed by other systems, Centric InSight's product discovery and classification improves decision making and accelerates execution", said Chris Groves, Chief Executive Officer at Centric Software.

"Centric InSight is a key element of our overall strategy to help global corporations improve their financial and operating performance using Product Intelligence solutions built on live product and business information from all systems".