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FabTrol MRP FabTrol Systems
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About the KISS standardThe KISS standard is an effort to provide a workable solution today to one segment of the larger problem caused by incompatible data formats. Our assumption is that KISS will eventually give way to a broader standard, most likely the CIS/2 standard endorsed by the AISC EDI Review Team. In the meantime, though, you can use KISS files to transfer bills of materials and other fabrication-related data between CAD and fabrication management software applications. The origins of KISSThe KISS standard was developed under the auspices of FabTrol Systems, in conjunction with several other software vendors. FabTrol Systems continues to devote substantial resources to the project for the mutual benefit of everyone involved. Nevertheless, the KISS standard has been put into the public domain and is offered freely to the industry. Why do we need electronic data exchange standards?What's good for the industry is good for its vendors. Compatibility between different software products benefits the customer. A fabricator should be able to pick and choose the mix of products that best meets his or her individual needs, knowing that the products are compatible with each other. Proprietary, mutually exclusive systems force our clients to choose between one complete system and another. This ultimately weakens both the vendor and the industry as a whole. A common communications interface benefits all vendors. Instead of writing multiple drivers to communicate with a myriad of products, a vendor can write a single function that links to many different products. The vendor is responsible only for the interactions between his or her own products and the neutral file. Changes within other products will not affect the communication as long as the other products accept responsibility for maintaining their KISS links. Several short-term benefits accrue to our customers:
Short-term benefits also accrue to vendors who support the KISS standard. CAD systems are immediately compatible with FabTrol MRP software. MIS/MRP products can immediately exchange information with FabTrol MRP and many CAD programs. Establishing an industry-standard means of communicating between products also offers several long-term benefits:
Testing KISS filesThe development team at FabTrol Systems is available to test and troubleshoot KISS files from other vendors free of charge. Simply send a trial KISS file, preferably with supporting documentation showing another view of the job for comparison, to support@fabtrol.com. We will e-mail or fax you the results, including an error log, for double-checking. Other topics: KISS-compliant software | KISS & AutoCAD EDI white paperRead our white paper on electronic data exchange: FabTrol Systems | Software for Steel Fabricators Since 1984 ©2010 FabTrol Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. |
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