OIL & GAS

At the APICS 2003 International Conference & Exposition, SAS, the leader in business intelligence and analytics, today announced the immediate availability of SAS(R) Process Intelligence. A new analytic software solution that allows manufacturers to dramatically reduce the overall cost of quality, SAS Process Intelligence requires minimal customization and quickly delivers results. It incorporates the best quality improvement practices from SAS' 27 years of experience working with leading manufacturers. SAS Process Intelligence is unique in that it provides an enterprise view of the manufacturing process. It seamlessly accesses and integrates equipment, product and process data from manufacturing execution systems (MES), enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and other sources, across multiple plants and geographies. The SAS solution identifies relationships and correlations among manufacturing processes and operations that could contribute to special cause variations. This insight allows organizations to proactively implement strategies and tactics that simultaneously speed time-to-yield and problem resolution. Companies in the semiconductor, high-technology and life sciences industries are among the initial targets for this solution. Like all SAS solutions for manufacturers, including SAS Supplier Relationship Management and SAS Warranty Analysis, the new offering goes beyond the traditionally accepted definition of business intelligence software. Query and reporting is important, serving as a rear-view mirror that provides historical insight into manufacturing operations. But only analytics, a core strength of SAS and a fundamental element of SAS Process Intelligence, helps customers make the proper forward-looking decisions that optimize quality, scrap and other manufacturing-related performance. "As evidenced by our long-term customer base, market leadership and profitability, SAS clearly understands the business value of analytic intelligence," said Donna Fulenwider, director of process intelligence strategy at SAS. "By marrying this unique understanding with our ability to seamlessly integrate high-quality manufacturing data, SAS Process Intelligence delivers unparalled insight into the total manufacturing process. The result is a competitive weapon for manufacturers to quickly drive sustained process, product and service quality improvement."