The first Return on Investment
The first major transaction in the early 1980’s was the sale of sixteen computers to all universities in Baden-Wuerttemberg, the south-western state of Germany. Since the money of this transaction was sitting on an ABAS account for more than two weeks before being invoiced, ABAS decided to withdraw the money quickly and to deposit the amount at a different bank to receive interests. Facing a deadline, the money, carried in plastic bags and in multiple pockets of a winter coat, was be rushed across town to another bank. As the authorization was finished, the cash deposit of 360,000 Deutsche Mark gained 700 Deutsche Mark of interests and became a priceless story.
“Catch the cursor”
After an upgrade, a customer reported an amusing videogame within abas ERP. If the tab key was used to move the cursor, one cursor remained in the original position and a second cursor was visible on the screen. If the cursor then was moved using the error keys, both cursor would move at the same time, so that in the end only one cursor was left. One customer with a good sense of humour noticed this bug and sent a telex with the following wording: “Ladies and gentlemen, we are very pleased with the new upgrade that was implemented by you and which provided us a number of improvements and new features. However, we would like to ask you to remove the newly installed game ‘Catch the cursor’!”
Blurry screen
When visiting a customer on site, the customer criticized that an abas screen was becoming more and more blurry. As product manager Peter Forscht looked at the screen more closely, he came up with the solution right away. “Please get me a cloth, water and some dish liquid,” he required. Just a few wipes and the visibility of the screen, which had been blurred by the heavy smoker who was using this workstation, was restored.
Pulled plug
A German company, world market leader in parquetry sanding technology, has been using abas ERP since 1989. With a lot of enthusiasm, they started the difficult task of selecting an ERP software. abas ERP was among the final contestants, next to such well known providers as Nixdorf, Honeywell Bull and Phillips. ABAS, the “rookie” had a tough act to follow against the powerful competitors and their established systems. The test methods were exceptional: “The IT people were pretty irritated by the fact that we pulled the power plug during running operation. We wanted to see the reaction of the systems if such everyday break-downs occur,” says the managing director with a smile. ABAS not only received the contract, but also gained another priceless story.
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