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Inquiry into AD Vault.

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Message 1 of 3
acwtzwegers
423 Views, 2 Replies

Inquiry into AD Vault.

At the moment I am reviewing different PDM systems to pick what system our company will be moving to for the future (since our current PDM system has been discontinued, lacks integration with our drafting software etc etc.). Since we do use AutoCAD and Inventor, obviously AD Vault has come up as a choice... But there are still some questions that remain and that I hope people here can answer. There's probably some sales-place to do so... but I rather hear it from a user-techie angle then from marketting.

 

1. The product data claims that AD Vault can be used to manage MS Office documents, however:

 

A previous time I used AD Vault (at a different corp mind you), this tended to cause trouble... If Excel sheets (or any non-CAD file) were (x)referenced in ACAD Mechanical drawings; they would be taken up in the Vault... but would basically be stuck there (as in: the (x)reference would be dead while the referenced file would just sit there w/o being able to be checked out or removed... wheras meanwhile the DWG, when checked out, would endlessly look for the file and make the whole system incredibly slow.)

 

- Was this caused by a wrong install/admin of that particular AD Vault at that particular corporation or is it a typical issue?

- Can Office documents also be "vaulted" by non-CAD users of the corporation?

 

2. The product data talks of "Simple Data Loading" and "rapidly load large quantities of design data"...

 

Does this mean that legacy data/drawings can be automatically added to the Vault or does someone (ok, me) have to do such things manually? Solid Works PDM says they will not add legacy data until it is needed; but this corporation needs its "legacy" data because it gets used often, every day. Being able to add it quick and easy to a new Vault would be an important deciding factor.

 

3. How much can the Vault Viewer be configured to suit a corporation's/departments's needs, or alternatively: In how far can the Vault's DWF's be accessed by other clients like browser based (php) GUI's?

 

We (like many corporations) have many different users and departments that have different needs. While the developpers must be able to open and edit the drawings, the production may just want to have some extra measuring done in the viewer (possible) while sales and packing may just need to view files (and different ones at that). Can the Vault Viewer be configured so each department can only get the views they are supposed to, without being bothered by GUI they don't need (and that may just confuse or invite to do more then they are supposed to do)?

 

 

 

Overall the case for AD Vault currently looks very good, but I have management that will ask these questions as well and I need real answers before any decisions are made. Any (fast) help would be highly appreciated.

2 REPLIES 2
Message 2 of 3
broepke
in reply to: acwtzwegers

Hi There,

 

I can give you my perspective and others can chime in with their's:

 

1. The product data claims that AD Vault can be used to manage MS Office documents:

 

First off... Any file can be added to Vault.  Doesn't matter what it is.  For MS Office (Specifically Word, Excel, PowerPoint) we have a dedicated Ribbon based integration that allows you to do things like open, check in (save) check out, etc... right from within the application.  Works really welll.  

 

And yes - With either Vault Workgroup, Collaboration or Professional you can float your Vault licenses to other users in the company allowing them to put their office docs in it.  Also the security can be configured so they can only see what you want them to see.

 

Additionally in 2012 we've added a new integration with MS Outlook that allows you to Vault emails and/or the attachments in them.  This is a great new addition.

 

I'm not sure as to the issue you spoke of but I'm pretty sure that was just a defect and would have been resolved.  Linking XLS docs to CAD files is a pretty common workflow.

 

2. The product data talks of "Simple Data Loading" and "rapidly load large quantities of design data"...

 

We have a tool called Autoloader that can bulk load any of your data.  Specifically built for AutoCAD and Inventor however it will make sure your links are maintained and things like the DWFs are created when they're loaded.  I think the best way to learn about this is with this White Paper which shows the best practices.

 

http://images.autodesk.com/adsk/files/best_practices_for_using_autoloader1.pdf 

 

3. How much can the Vault Viewer be configured to suit a corporation's/departments's needs, or alternatively: In how far can the Vault's DWF's be accessed by other clients like browser based (php) GUI's?

 

Both Vault Collaboration and Vault Professional include a web client that allows for FREE access to any number of users in a READ ONLY way.  E.g. Search, View, Print, etc...  This client can easily view the DWF files that are automatically published and maintained in Vault and the DWF Viewer can measure, etc...  This is an awesome benefit of Vault (Free access) for companies that want to share (in a secure way) their designs with other departments. 



Brian Roepke
Director, Analytics & Insights
Message 3 of 3
acwtzwegers
in reply to: broepke

"Both Vault Collaboration and Vault Professional include a web client that allows for FREE access to any number of users in a READ ONLY way.  E.g. Search, View, Print, etc", this and the Outlook integration sound very promising. Thank you for your reply.

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