The Next Generation of Award-Winning Estimating Software

The accuracy of your estimates can make the difference between profit and no profit. Sage Timberline Office Estimating is a completely integrated, single-source estimating solution that automates and streamlines the entire estimating process so you can create tighter and more accurate estimates. Better still, it easily adapts to your changing needs so you can always improve overall operational efficiencies as your business demands evolve. When it comes to the flexibility and power you need to increase speed and accuracy of your bids, only Sage Timberline Office Estimating provides mid-sized contractors, real estate developers, and specialty contractors with the confidence they need to stand behind their numbers.

The long-anticipated SQL Server-based Sage Timberline Estimating (11.1) is now available. Of course, the current version of Sage Timberline Office's Estimating software will continue to be supported.  The new Sage Timberline Estimating solution will have an updated and modern user interface as well as some new features not in the current Estimating software.  Along with it comes a fresh user interface focused around tasks and workflows for increased productivity and a Pervasive to SQL Server Migration tool. 

For current Timberline Office Estimating customers on a current support plan, you can choose to continue on your current Estimating software and receive updates as you do today, or you can opt to migrate to the new Sage Timberline Estimating software (SQL Express) for free.  If you decide to migrate but are not on a current support plan, by signing up for a support plan today, you’ll be eligible for the free migration to the new Sage Timberline Estimating solution.


If you would like more information on this release, give CPA Technology a call at (610) 862-1998.

Hop Into Spring Savings!

Be sure not to miss out on Sage's newest Spring promotion.  New and current customers* can receive 0% financing (dependent upon credit approval) for any Sage Timberline Office, Sage Estimating, Sage Master Builder or Sage Timberline Enterprise purchase. Current customers can choose from the 0% financing offer or take 15% off any order over $3,000.  Hurry though...offer lasts now until June 24, 2011!

Call CPA Technology for more details (610) 862-1998

(* Does not apply to third-party or off-schedule applications. Customers must be on an active service plan at the time of purchase.)

Read CPA Technology's Spring/Summer 2011 Newsletter - "The Net"

Flowers are blooming, the birds are chirping and our beloved baseball season is finally upon us once again. So when you're sitting outside during your lunch break getting some of that fresh springtime air or lounging on your favorite chair on the beach listening to the ocean waves, grab some interesting reading. Yes, folks, CPA Technology's latest newsletter is published. And here it is!

Read it here!

"The Net"Vol. V

March is here...bring out the "green!"

If you've thought about enhancing your Sage Timberline Office or Master Builder system, now is the time to do it. You're in luck...through the month of March, Sage is running a promotion where current customers can save up to 25% on additional modules or user licenses. Spending a little bit of the "green" can go a long way when it comes to building productivity.

->  10% off one additional module or user license
->  15% off two additional modules or user licenses
->  20% off three additional modules or user licenses
->  25% off four or more additional modules or user licenses

* Folks taking advantage of this deal must be on an active service plan.

Is the Cloud Ready Yet? Let's Ask the Accountants

This is a guest post from Hunter Richards of Software Advice. His original post comes with a survey about accountants' impressions of the cloud. Vote here: Is the Cloud Ready Yet? Let's Ask the Accountants.

Recent interviews with accounting professionals have revealed some lingering hestitations about cloud computing. Accountants aren’t yet fully convinced, but their doubts can be answered with improved products.

“I’m a firm believer in [the cloud] - I really am,” says Carolyn Duffy, who directs business advisory services for Hein & Associates. “But if I had some special legacy system, I would have to look at the integration issue.”
Similar concerns from accounting firms should get the attention of software makers, given these firms’ history of influencing the software-purchasing decisions of their clients. The list of may initially seem troubling for the cloud, but vendors are releasing new services and products that suggest future improvements.

Customization

“If you have a secret sauce in how you want to handle some orders or how you handle your pricing, then often times the cloud might not be the best way to do that,” says Doug Wiescinski, a partner at accounting firm Plante & Moran. 
Accountants often cite customization problems as a reason to avoid the cloud, but software vendors such as NetSuite and Intacct have already gotten the message and have built customization tools. As more of these hit the market, the process could be easier in the cloud than it’s ever been for on-premises systems.

Data Integration

“Every additional outsourced app brings another set of steps to go through to create and delete accounts and a new ID and password for the employee to have to remember,” says John Neall, chief information officer of accounting firm UHY. “That may not seem like a lot. But when you multiply that by the number of apps that employees are required to run, it becomes very time consuming just to maintain operations.”

Cloud applications have typically offered limited application programming interfaces (APIs), middleware and other integration tools that are widely available for on-premises systems. But a number of new middleware offerings, such as Informatica, SnapLogic and Dell’s Boomi, are beginning to fill the void with mature APIs and other products - so integration is also becoming more convenient.

Cost

“The pricing models [of the cloud] have been inconsistent,” says David McDonald, a senior managing consultant at BKD, another accounting firm. “Usually, once you get to the five-year range, your TCO is higher for the cloud versus on-premise. And you own nothing.”
Some accounting professionals warn that cloud systems can incur a higher total cost of ownership (TCO) than on-premises alternatives, despite its ability to save money with lower up-front costs. But the on-premises approach is often not an option for smaller firms without the up-front cash for professional IT resources. The nature of smaller, recurring payments actually empowers these businesses to use software when it’s otherwise impossible.

IT Staffing

“The added benefit of a team of [in-house] IT professionals that care about the business” can be much more valuable than services from “a vendor hosting thousands of other clients,” says UHY’s Neall. 
Accountants also recommend comparing outsourced IT services with the value of a dedicated in-house team. Businesses have a love-hate relationship with IT, so they may prefer to shift that function to the software vendor; this concern is unlikely to have a major deterrence effect.
Software selection is never easy, but moving to the cloud is looking better and better. If accounting firms’ current hesitations are any indication, then the doubts about cloud computing are more vulnerable than ever.

A True Timesaver in 9.7

With the busy year-end season upon us, many of you have already upgraded to 9.7 for Sage Timberline Office and to meet the latest reporting requirements.  To maximize effectiveness and simplify workflow in your day-to-day operations, the performance improving enhancements in this upgrade version are plentiful.  Your Timberline Office system now allows your team to efficiently locate and act upon key information with a wide range of automation, workflow and process improvements.

Among the numerous enhancements in 9.7 (Summer 2010- 9.7b release) is improved integration between Project Management and Document Management with the capability of sending and archiving Project Management attachments directly to the Document Management DocuVault. 

Queries can be initiated from the Attachment window and original documents or DocuVault versions can be easily accessed and retrieved.  I remember back in the day, several of my college professors advocated the “KISS” concept – Keep It Simple Stupid.  Now that’s what I call “simplicity.”

Now the question is how do you perform Project Management DocuVault integration?  Keep in mind; attachments are able to be sent from these tasks: 

•          Change Order Requests
•          RFIs
•          Submittals
•          Meeting Minutes
•          Commitments
•          Commitment Change Orders
•          Custom Logs
•          Drawing Logs

 To send an attachment to the DocuVault for one of the above Project Management tasks:

•  Click [Attachments...].
•  On the Attachments window click the File Links tab.
•  Click [Add...] to select a document to attach or drag and drop a file into the window.
•   If the Automatically send to DocuVault check box is selected, then you can click [OK] to close the window. Otherwise, click Send Copy to DocuVault.

Now that your file has been sent to the DocuVault, you can open it from DocuVault or from the original location. In addition, you can now open a Document Management query from the Project Management Attachment window.  And for now, life is simpler.

"Chaos is a friend of mine."

As Bob Dylan once quoted, "Chaos is a friend of mine." 

Come again? Obviously, Mr. Dylan never had the all too familiar task of closing out the books at the end of the year. When we're thinking of business year-end, we think of "chaos." Installing updates, closing applications, printing 1099's, closing the fiscal year, closing the payroll year, yada, yada, yada... Determining the order you should follow for year-end tasks can be challenging, to say the least. Believe it or not, there is a method to the "year-end" madness. 

For a straightforward Q&A on timing year-end tasks, take a peek at the Year-End Resource Center on the CPA Technology website at www.cpatechnology.net. Hey, there's even a workflow diagram to help you along. 

To quote a polar opposite of the above, German novelist/essayist, Thomas Mann once said, "Order and simplification are the first steps toward the mastery of a subject."