RE: Why did you choose BPCS

You have just described to me what I've been thinking for years - and to
have come from an end user is interesting from my perspective - I thought
the world was going mad.....
Client server, for high volume transaction systems is high cost and delivers
no benefit.
And even if benefits are thought to exist (I know many who do THINK it
delivers benefit!) this is likely wiped out by the cost of mega bandwidth
required, high installation costs (new / bigger PC's, memory etc), mega
rollout costs (applying a bug fix is a major organisational event with
client server - it used to be simple!!!) - I could go on.

Now you, an end used says "the more fancy GUI screens are no longer a high
priority with me." - I'm interested in why you say this now and moreover why
they ever were?

We use BPCS mixed mode. The most problematic modules (and costly to
implement / maintain) needless to say are the fat bits that we use, COM and
OLM. The rest works, of a fashion. True, we run our business on it, but it
takes more support now than ever.

I have worked with BPCS for 11 years. I first used V2.something on a S/38,
and now V6.00.02 on AS/400 V602 - and many V's in-between. I have to say
that I once swore by BPCS - it had bugs sure, all software does, but it was
stable, realiable, fairly efficient, accuarte in the most part and genuinely
added value to the organisation I worked for at the time. The IT dept had
time to help the business use more of BPCS, and in turn more benefit was
delivered - all without a PC in sight. Today I'm not so sure this is the
case. With every release I've worked on we've been promised more (i.e.
another module at a cost), but the core system (INV, MRP, SFC etc) is at
best unchanged and more often gets worse. IT are absorbed in keeping the
system running - and there is no impetus on the part of the business to use
any more of the system - they've had enough too!

I'm sure BPCS isn't the worst on the market, but my point is that things are
getting worse - not better - at a time when we're all being told that
systems are getting better, more advanced, deliver more benefit, integrate
with our business "processes" and other trash like that.

It seems to me that SSA have forgotten their customer base and gone to fry
bigger fish - chasing unix customers and providing a C/S solution was not
(in my experience) what their REAL customer base wanted. I'm just waiting to
see if they survive as they are, and at the moment I'd not wager on it.

Paul.


At 09:16 10/06/99 -0400, you wrote:
>We are not a BPCS user now and probably not a prospect, so I don't want to
>take up too much mail list bandwidth here.  I just an end-user of another
>ERP system that follows mail lists for BPCS, JDE, JBA and SAP and I'm
>intrigued by the trials and tribulations of other users.
>
>We use JBA on an AS/400, which is far from perfect, but is pretty stable and
>performs decently for Distribution and Financials.  We don't do any
>manufacturing.  The funny thing is that I really wanted a Client/Server
>solution when shopping for ERP systems in June 1997 and yet that seems to be
>the biggest problem with BPCS and JDEdwards.  I find it funny how many JDE
>sites are turning to MS Terminal Server to solve WAN problems.  JBA has a
>simple GUI screen scraper front end which runs on plain TCP/IP which over
>time is looking better and better to me.  They developed some Visual Basic
>front ends to their programs, but they were never released to user base due
>to performance problems.  They are developing some Java front-ends now, but
>the more fancy GUI screens are no longer a high priority with me.  We looked
>at BPCS some in 97, but they didn't seem that interested in wholesale
>distributors.  
>
>Prior to my message prompting a few users to "come to the defense" of BPCS,
>I had never heard any user or vendor say anything positive about BPCS.
>
>Now I'll go back to being a silent observer of the proceedings and leave
>everyone to solve their business needs.  
>
>Dan Thomas
>Sr. VP Information Systems
>Medical Distribution, Inc.
>4500 Progress Blvd
>Louisville, KY  40218-5058
>Phone (502) 454-9013 ext 120
>email  DThomas@lpw-mdi.com
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Mark Curtis [mailto:mark.curtis@hafele.co.uk]
>Sent: Thursday, June 10, 1999 5:09 AM
>To: BPCS-L@midrange.com
>Subject: RE: Why did you choose BPCS
>
>
>Dan,
>
>Why did I choose BPCS ....
>
>Value for money, flexibility, openness, easy development, ease of use,
>expandability ... and did I mention year 2000 compliance.
>
>We are on Unix/Informix and have written a lot of additional code in VB
>using ODBC and making use of SMG's.  The underlying data structure to BPCS
>is easy to work with and given a development team very very quick to expand.
>We added a whole warehousing system in around 3 months.
>
>And I must agree with George Sagen, on a mailing list used for problem
>sharing and solving you will get the impression the system is bug ridden
>(which of course it has its share but how many packages can you name that
>are bug free ?)
>
>???? Why do you ask ????
>
>Regards
>Mark Curtis
>IT Director
>Hafele U.K. Limited
>Tel : +44 (0)1788 542020
>Fax : +44 (0)1788 541860
>email : mailto:mark.curtis@hafele.co.uk
>Web : http://www.hafele.co.uk
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: owner-bpcs-l@midrange.com [mailto:owner-bpcs-l@midrange.com]On
>Behalf Of Dan Thomas
>Sent: 09 June 1999 18:41
>To: 'bpcs-l@midrange.com'
>Subject: Why did you choose BPCS
>
>
>I've followed this mail list for about five months now and most of the
>comments seem to be rather negative about performance and stability.  I
>realize these forums are not always indicative of the entire user base, but
>I'm curious what is driving users to choose BPCS or even stay with it.
>
>Dan Thomas
>Sr. VP Information Systems
>Medical Distribution, Inc.
>4500 Progress Blvd
>Louisville, KY  40218-5058
>Phone (502) 454-9013 ext 120
>email  DThomas@lpw-mdi.com
>
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