Port Elizabeth-based Armstrong Hydraulics can now control access and keep accurate time and attendance records of all its employees to ensure maximum plant productivity.
This is thanks to the seamless integration of Armstrong's new access control and time and attendance systems with its enterprise SAP Human Resources (HR) applications through a solution supplied by South African access control specialists, Total Access.
Total Access is the local partner for Kaba Benzing, recognised internationally as a leader in the provision of time and access control solutions.
Armstrong is the first company in SA to use Kaba Benzing's B-COMM (Benzing communications) software for SAP R/3 and its proximity cards, based on the company's own contactless identification technology.
Total Access development engineer, Carlos de Gouveia, says the B-COMM software, a communication software interfacing the hardware time recorders and terminals with the SAP HR system, was key to the success of the project.
"Having extensively studied the potential suppliers it became apparent that Kaba Benzing offered a superior SAP-certified software interface with the most advanced hardware on the market today", says Tim Lane, MD of Armstrong.
The system is live at Armstrong's PE head office and two remote sites, Gillett and TAPE (Tenneco automotive products engineering). The two plants communicate via a diginet line to the main network backbone, which includes Armstrong and Tenneco world-wide.
The system works as follows: an employee arrives at the company's turnstiles and presents his or her proximity identification card to gain access to the building and clock in. A card reader relays the information to a local concentration point. In turn, this device accepts the card and releases the turnstile or rejects it, depending on master records received from SAP HR.
A time record is collected by the Access Manager and routed by the B-COMM server to the SAP solution. The integrated communications interface regulates the data exchange between the SAP modules and the Access Managers. Data is encrypted to prevent data manipulation during transfer.
The Access Managers all have a direct route to the B-COMM server over the network. However, the Access Managers can also operate independently for a short period of time should the network not be available. In addition, all access and time recording terminals at the local and remote sites can be monitored via a graphical interface at Armstrong's data centre.
John Trollip, a consultant at Armstrong's implementation partner Combined Design Engineers (CDE), who is directly responsible for the HR project, says: "We were pleasantly surprised at the ease and speed with which the equipment was installed. The interface with SAP was 'hassle-free' and the few minor problems which came to light during testing were solved effortlessly and quickly."
Phillip Booth, business unit manager: HR at SAP Africa, says: "The universe of technology is simply too big for one company to provide everything that customers need. It is through the close co-operation that exists between SAP and its certified partners that customers can be assured of swift implementations delivering immediate value.
"The certification program shields the customer from issues revolving around interfaces and balancing and assures that the two products are able to work with one another seamlessly from the outset," he says. "SAP provides a full range of business solutions coupled with selected integration components from partners that are leaders in their fields.
"The work we have done at Armstrong with our partners CDE and Total Access is just one example of how this approach is bringing significant benefits to our customers," concludes Booth.
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