The Amazing Seed
From PHIntro
'The Amazing Seed!
by Bob Treumann, Pure Harvest Software
Cross posted at http://www.seedquest.com/keyword/datamanagement/primer_seedquality.htm
Agriculture production starts and ends in the seed. Through all the changes in weather, before and after the harvest, the Quality of the Seed is paramount. Growers, sellers and buyers rely on independent, reliable analysis of the seed for pricing and planting. With so much riding on the Seed that is used, it is smart to use every tool available to get accurate results quickly in a final form that can be delivered to the buyer.
This is where trusted data management can be a boon to your business. No computer program can replace the expertise of your people, or their commitment to serve the customer. What a computer program CAN do is to let them deliver their best customer service with the minimum of time and effort. When everything works together as it should, your lab will be testing for the same customers year after year!.
A well designed computer program will start with reference lists of all the valid information that your lab needs to manage. This includes customer names, addresses, emails, crop & weed names, crop testing rules, seed test names and prices. Reference data should be entered once-only, and uses of this data should be limited to information already in the lists. This prevents misspellings that can look unprofessional and can create erroneous reports and customer billing records. I know of one lab that had an internal system that would not create the same customer invoices twice in a row!
A computer system can produce consistently accurate results by doing calculations based on raw data entered by the analyst. An analyst who has to enter numbers in a calculator and type the results into a report is bound to make some mistakes. Using manual calculation, if your lab is busy, the mistakes will proliferate. Even spreadsheet calculations are vulnerable to mistakes if data is entered into the wrong cell, or a calculation is accidentally modified by overtyping.
A reliable system will not only do the calculations for you, but will retain the raw data that was entered, and issue warnings if data is missing, out of range, or out of tolerance.. It can be entered by lower level staff, and reviewed before release by a certified analyst. It creates a history that will be important if your test results are ever challenged.
Almost as important as getting the results of testing correct is getting them to the customer as quickly as possible. An automated system can email or fax results to your customer AS SOON as they are ready. No one can afford to lose a potential buyer because there are no test results ready. This can make the difference in a seed dealer selling all the seed, or having it left over at the end of the year. The profit is always at the bottom of the bin!
A well designed system should have robust search capabilities. If your customer calls in for test results, and the person calling doesn’t know the lot number or lab number, you should be able to zero in on it by searching the crop, the test requested , the approximate date the sample was sent in and who sent it. Better yet, the customer should be able to do that independently from a 24hr web site!
Billing should be integrated into your testing process. A good computer system will support billing based on the tests actually performed. You should not be re-entering your testing into another system like Quickbooks just to generate invoices. Integrated billing also makes sure that your invoices include all the testing that you do, and leaves nothing out.
Mission critical software should be available anywhere, and not be tied to a particular workstation. It should be capable of holding an unlimited amount of data without slowing down or choking. Your software should meet your needs as you grow, so you can attend to business.
Some companies decide to build their own computer programs with contractors or internal staff. The thinking is that a custom system will fit your needs better. Unfortunately, that is not the most common result. Internally developed systems generally fail to meet the initial expectations, and nearly always cost far more than predicted. About 30% of computer projects are thrown away before ever being used.
If you choose to review existing software for your lab, you can be confident that Pure Harvest from Elmwood Solutions Inc meets all of the above needs, and much more! We have been meeting the needs of this business for thirteen years, and our software has become the Gold Standard for this application.
