NASHVILLE, Tenn., Oct. 28, 2002 — Today at the 2002 APICS International Conference and Exposition, Microsoft Business Solutions announced the release of Microsoft® Business Solutions — Navision®
3.60, an integrated business management solution designed for small to medium-sized companies.
With its focus on increasing productivity, the latest version of Navision, formerly known as Attain®
, enables businesses to improve internal procedures, particularly in the supply-chain area. Navision 3.60 includes features such as Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) for organizing warehouse layout and an automated data capture system (ADCS) that uses radio-frequency technology to keep track of all inventory in stock.
WMS is the natural extension to the warehouse management functionality found in the previous release, which covers basic warehouse activities such as receiving and stocking, picking, and shipping. Designed to reduce costs by introducing efficient warehouse processes, WMS is aimed at companies that need to send and receive goods while effectively utilizing warehouse space. The system expedites the order-handling process and streamlines warehouse operations by improving layout and space utilization.
For example, WMS helps divide a warehouse into zones. Within each zone, bins are allocated rankings according to picking priority, and items in certain bins are picked before others. Items can be pinpointed easily according to the zone and bin in which they are located. Warehouse staff members will spend less time moving between bins because the most regularly picked items are located in proximity.
ADCS is a data collection system that uses radio-frequency technology to collect and validate real-time inventory information. Warehouse staff members can scan items using a handheld device. This information is relayed back to the Navision system via wireless transfer where it can be validated against the data stored in the system. For example, a user might scan five items that have been picked to fulfill a sales order and then be informed immediately by Navision that six items are required. Using ADCS, the quantity, location, bin and zone number are recorded so that the system is able to tell exactly where a specific item is at any given time. Data collection becomes faster, and the accuracy of inventory data increases, enabling better businesswide decision-making.
“Companies are under increasing pressure to become more efficient. Their internal processes must keep evolving to maintain a competitive position,”
said Niels Bo Theilgaard, general manager of Microsoft Business Solutions in Denmark.
“Navision 3.60 builds on the foundation of the former Attain series and adds functionality that is specifically designed to streamline companies from the inside out, making them more productive.”
Navision 3.60 also integrates with the latest version of eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), the financial report language. Other new features of Navision 3.60 include extended pricing functionality and new levels of integration with Microsoft products. Smart tags can be used to access sales information stored in Navision directly from Microsoft Office XP applications such as Word, Excel and the Outlook®
messaging and collaboration client. Navision also can create and log e-mail messages in Microsoft Outlook in Navision customer relationship management (CRM). The dimensions functionality has been extended so that information stored in Navision’s analysis view can be exported to and analyzed in Microsoft Excel.
About Microsoft Business Solutions
Microsoft Business Solutions, which includes the businesses of Great Plains, Microsoft bCentral (TM) and Navision a/s, offers a wide range of business applications designed to help small and midmarket businesses become more connected with customers, employees, partners and suppliers. Microsoft Business Solutions’ applications automate end-to-end business processes across financials, distribution, project accounting, electronic commerce, human resources and payroll, manufacturing, supply-chain management, business intelligence, sales and marketing management, and customer service and support. More information about Microsoft Business Solutions can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/businesssolutions/ .
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
Microsoft, Outlook, Great Plains and bCentral are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Navision and Attain are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Great Plains Software in the United States and/or other countries.
Great Plains Software Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft Corp.
Navision a/s is a subsidiary of Microsoft Corp.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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