Facility managers stand to benefit from performance improvements in Allplan 2009 Allfa

Nemetschek Allplan has launched version 2009 of its facility management software Allfa. It enables the efficient, smooth management of real estate while helping to reduce costs. In addition to significantly higher data transfer rates, the new version provides additional modules for cleaning and workflow, as well as optimized PDF output.

With Allplan Allfa, Nemetschek Allplan offers modular software for modern infrastructure facility management and technical building management. It is used in the entire lifecycle of buildings, assets and strategic capital goods, from area and object management, relocation planning, asset and contract management through to cleaning and inventory creation. "In facility management, database solutions with a bidirectional CAD connection are the key to successful planning. Nemetschek Allplan is ahead of the competition in this respect," says Willy Staiger, project manager at Zurich Financial Services Group.

Significantly improved performance
Version 2009, which is available for both Allplan and AutoCAD in German, English and French, offers 10-times faster data transfer rates between Allplan and Allfa, among other things. The software now enables better data comparison between the Allfa database, Allfa Graphics and the CAD systems Allplan and AutoCAD.

The Allfa Graphics module has undergone significant optimization: users can now measure, edit, color or print plan layouts without any CAD knowledge. As a result, they always have up-to-date and complete documentation of their property, which can also be integrated in the company's intranet site.

User-friendly cleaning management
A module for cleaning management, Allfa Clean Management, has been added to the software. Users can now assign different cleaning types to individual areas, evaluate this information easily and then transfer it to MS Excel, which makes it far easier to create bills of services. Users also use this Excel interface to transfer offers back to Allfa. This simplifies the area-based management of several cleaning contracts. A comprehensive analysis of cleaning costs helps users optimize operating costs.

Complex processes under control
There are also new web modules for workflow and administration: Allfa Process can be used to map individual workflows from release processes through to complex internal processes in Allfa. Task lists and status messages also ensure that operations are documented in a traceable way and quality is ensured. Allfa Process runs as a web application and is ideal for maintenance, service or hotline use. Users can, for example, generate service enquiries on a website and track enquiry processing. Information exchange via e-mail, sometimes incomplete in the past, is therefore replaced by a central, web-based ticketing system accessible to all.

The new administration module also improves the management of user rights and licenses. Administrative tasks are now fully integrated in the new web interface.

Simple PDF output and archiving
With the Graphics module, users can generate PDF files directly from Allfa and thus provide business partners with graphical and alphanumeric information easily, or forward plans reliably. As Allplan 2009 Allfa also supports layers, details such as usage, room occupancy or inventory number can be hidden or shown interactively. As a result, the user determines which information the recipient sees. For archiving purposes, PDF-A format can be generated from Allfa, which thanks to ISO standardization guarantees readability over many years. Paper archives are therefore a thing of the past.

Improved linking of CAD and FM
New functions in the Allfa Graphics module, such as the measuring of lengths and areas or the interactive display of object information as soon as an object is drawn in the plan, simplify and accelerate coordination between the CAD system and Facility Management. In version 2009, tasks such as the positioning of floor plans in overview drawings, legend displays or plan header management have been further optimized.

Allplan 2009 Allfa is approved for Windows Vista and has been optimized for Windows Server 2008. "Thanks to the many new modules and improved data exchange options, Allplan 2009 Allfa provides facility managers with a software that significantly simplifies work processes and therefore opens up new ways of reducing costs," states Felix Kubasch, Business Unit Manager Facility Management Software at Nemetschek Allplan.