MANAGING TECHNOLOGY
Critical choice
Engineering consultants should select their CAD resellers with care, checking out
that the range of services they provide are what is required, says Claire Bass
SOME OF the most forward-thinking engineer-
ing consultants are not aware of the full range
of services provided by design software
resellers. Many do not realise that this new
generation has evolved to provide much more
than just product.
With CAD products becoming increasingly
specialised and discipline-specific yet
simultaneously interoperable, resellers no
longer just sell AutoCAD, or its equivalent,
without knowing much about what the
end-user is going to do with it.
Today, the better resellers can provide a
valuable, cost-effective consultancy service,
helping you to maximise the benefits of the
latest technology — and also your return on
investment.
So if your existing reseller is still talking to
you about its latest special offers and what it
can sell you, rather than what you need, it may
be time to look around for someone who can
provide the whole spectrum of services.
But how do you go about choosing someone
new, and what questions do you need to ask?
To begin with, you should enquire about the
reseller’s expertise in the engineering
industry. As CAD has become more industry-
focused, the better companies have built up
staff with a background in the industry they
serve, thus providing a common language and
understanding.
This ability to cross-function and inter-
operate between the engineering and design
services is increasingly important. So you
don’t want a firm that focuses too much on a
single design discipline and fails to
understand the need for a broader design
requirement.
For example, you may need advice on
visualisation products as well as Inventor or
the usual engineering solutions. Or you may
have an interoperability requirement between
mechanical services in a building design
project. Real awareness of both the profession
and the market are crucial.
Another important question to ask is
whether the reseller has vision. New software
is a big investment. Old-style resellers will
force-feed you with what they think you need
now, but the new generation will also look at
what you will need in two or three years’ time.
36
Of course, it is difficult to assess who has
Looking ahead: resellers need vision so they can advise what you will need in two or three years’ time
business vision and who hasn’t. But it is a
good sign if they start asking about your
strategic plans and how you see the practice
developing. Also, all good consultants should
demonstrate an understanding that software
implementation is not an end in itself. Your
business success comes from the people
using the software and the processes and
workflow around it, rather than the
technology itself.
You should also know whether they operate
globally. Even if you are not an international
operation now, you may be in the future and
might have to outsource. While there is a
mature and robust market in the UK, dealing
with users in Russia or Abu Dhabi sometimes
throws up problems that inexperienced
resellers can’t deal with.
Other issues to consider are the accessibil-
ity of training, the reseller’s financial stability
and licence and subscriptions.
Resellers should consider increasing their
number of customer services managers
trained to give advice on asset management,
software inventory and subscriptions queries.
These can help customers optimise their CAD
investment by researching which licences can
be upgraded or made live again.
When you have finally chosen a reseller,
make it a long-term friend. The reseller role
has been transformed and it looks set to go on
changing. If the current trend towards
integrated working and moving data from one
solution to another continues, there will be
even more new ways for third-party
consultants to contribute to your business.
Events in the CAD industry have forced
these specialists to look carefully at where
both the technology and architectural
processes are heading. They have become
experts, too — so make the most of them.
Claire Bass is sales director of design
software supplier CADline
the EnGIneeR 2–15 JUNE 2008
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