Barcode
Printing Zebra
Alliance
SerialConnect provides full support for barcode
printing to Zebra and other barcode printers. Barcode
printers are connected to the AS/400 over your
existing Ethernet network for high speed
communications. Alliance SerialConnect is a fully
monitored application that provides a high level of
reliability for mission critical manufacturing
applications.
Townsend
has partnered with Zebra Technologies to provide full
support for Zebra's BAR-ONE Platinum barcode design
software. With BAR-ONE software you can use a GUI
interface to design barcode labels with sophisticated
graphics, multiple fonts, and image rotation. Townsend
provides BAR-ONE label design services to assist in
getting you up and running quickly.
Alliance
SerialConnect contains special functions for
monitoring Zebra printers. You can know when a printer
is out of labels, has a ribbon check, has a low
battery, or other error condition that might interrupt
your business operations. Full support for operator
alerts, paging, and email notification of errors is
included.
Alliance
SerialConnect communication functions can be accessed
from web applications using Java, Perl, C++, ActiveX
and other technologies. Web applications can share
devices with native AS/400 applications.
Townsend
has partnerships with several Zebra premier resellers
to provide full implementation support. [top]
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information:
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Zebra
premier resellers
MetroLogic
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Barcode
Verification
Alliance
SerialConnect supports barcode verification systems
from RJS and others. Verification systems are
connected to the AS/400 over your existing Ethernet
network for high speed communications. Alliance
SerialConnect is a fully monitored application that
provides a high level of reliability for mission
critical manufacturing applications.
Alliance
SerialConnect provides bi-directional communications
with verification systems. Your AS/400 applications
can query the verification system and receive results,
or just receive one-way transactions from the system.
Townsend
partners can provide full project support for
specification, installation, and testing of
verification systems. Townsend works with these
partners to provide a fully operational system with
complete AS/400 integration. [top]
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information:
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RJS Systems
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PLCs:
Programmable
Logic Controllers
Programmable
Logic Controllers have many uses in a manufacturing
environment and are commonly deployed to control line
processes in real time. Alliance SerialConnect
provides connectivity to PLCs with serial interfaces.
Alliance Series TCP/IP provides connectivity to PLCs
with TCP network interfaces. Both applications provide
a fully monitored AS/400 application for maximum
reliability and availability.
You
can connect Allen Bradley SLC 5/04 and other AB PLCs
to the AS/400 using SerialConnect. Application
integration options in Alliance let you easily access
AS/400 data for barcode and part number information.
Barcode printers, barcode verification, conveyor, and
other systems can be integrated with the AS/400 in a
high speed environment.
Townsend
provides programming services to assist in PLC
integration with the AS/400. Customized communications
interfaces can be developed as needed.
[top]
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information:
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Allen
Bradley
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Time
Clocks
Several
timeclock systems can be connected to the AS/400
including Kronos and TimePoint from Intelligent
Instrumentation. Alliance SerialConnect is used to
connect timeclocks with serial RS232 interfaces.
Alliance Ser high reliability and availability
requirements.
Alliance
products provide bi-directional communications with
timeclock systems for optimum integration with your
time and attendance and manufacturing control systems.
You can construct user-defined dialogs with
timeclock systems for password control and other
security features. [top]
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Kronos
Intelligent
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Scales
Alliance
SerialConnect provides connectivity to scales from
several vendors including Metler-Toledo, NCI, Texas
Instruments, NEC and others. Communications with
scales can be bi-directional or one-way.
Bi-directional communications are used with scales
that must be polled to receive weight information, or
where you want an AS/400 user to request weights on
demand. One-way communications is used where the scale
will forward weights automatically. Scales are
connected over your existing Ethernet network. There
is no requirement of PC or UNIX controllers. Alliance
SerialConnect communicates directly with the scales.
Townsend
and its partners provide programming services to
assist in integration of scales with your AS/400
applications. Full project management is provided. [top]
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information:
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Metler-Toledo
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Conveyors
Conveyor
systems are used in many places in manufacturing
environments. Process control, assembly, packaging,
and shipping are just some of the systems involved.
For conveyor systems with serial RS232 interfaces you
can use Alliance SerialConnect for real-time or batch
transfer of data. For conveyor systems with TCP
network interfaces you can use Alliance Series TCP/IP
for real-time data exchange. If your conveyor system
is run by a stand-alone NT or UNIX server, you can use
Alliance FTP Manager for periodic transfer of data
files. Alliance FTP Manager supports many data formats
including Excel CSV, tab-delimited, fixed ASCII, and
others. All Alliance products are fully managed
applications providing high reliability and
availability.
Townsend
and its partners provide AS/400 integration services
for specialized programming needs. Full project
management is provided.
[top]
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information:
- Alliance
SerialConnect
Alliance
Series TCP/IP
Alliance
FTP Manager
- Alliance
CrossData/400
- Townsend
services
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Data
Collection
Shop
floor data collection is accomplished using a variety
of devices including PLCs, barcode verification
systems, handheld devices, and operator data
collection units.
Data collection systems such as LanPoint from
Intelligent Instrumentation can be connected to the
AS/400 using Alliance Series TCP/IP for a fully
managed solution.
Data
collection can be integrated with other devices such
as barcode printers for more complex requirements. For
example, you can receive data from a collection
station, print a barcode label for a part and trigger
conveyor activity all using Alliance products.
Townsend
provides programming services and custom
communications interfaces to assist in integration
with your existing AS/400 applications. Full project
management services are provided.
[top]
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Series TCP/IP
Intelligent
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Forklift
Allegany
Technologies manufactures forklift systems that weigh,
barcode scan, and transmit information to RF base
units for rapid loading and unloading operations.
Townsend's Alliance SerialConnect has built-in support
for Allegany systems and can communicate with up to
100 forklifts from a single base unit. An unlimited
number of base units can be connected to the AS/400.
Communications with the AS/400 is highly reliable even
when forklifts are out of range of the base unit.
Manufacturers and distributors are able to bring a new
level of efficiency with these systems by avoiding
delays for weighing and bar-coding.
[top]
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Handhelds
Handheld
Products Inc manufacturers the rugged and dependable
Dolphin handheld units. These handheld systems are
programmable and sport options for barcode reading.
You can connect Dolphin handheld units to the AS/400
using the Alliance SerialConnect product. Batch
upload/download and real-time RF communications are
supported. Handheld units are excellent for field data
collection, inventory management, shop floor
operations, and many other uses.
Townsend
has partnered with American Barcode Concepts for
integration services for the Dolphin units. Full
support is provided for programming the handheld units
and integration with AS/400 applications.
Handheld
products from Telzon, Intermec, and others can be
integrated with the AS/400 using Alliance
SerialConnect. There is no requirement for terminal
emulation products or PC controllers. Alliance
SerialConnect communicates directly with the handheld
units over your existing Ethernet TCP network.
[top]
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information:
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Handheld
Products, Inc.
American Barcode
Concepts
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RF
RF
(Radio Frequency) communications is becoming popular
for applications requiring mobile communications. RF
systems are being used for workforce communication,
inventory control, and many other applications.
Alliance Series TCP/IP can be used for real time
communications with RF connected devices. For email
support you can use NetSend or NetPage for application
integration with RF devices that support email
interfaces.
[top]
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Paging
/ PCS
Sending
pages from the AS/400 is easy with NetPage. Standard
AS/400 applications let you compose a message to send
to an alpha pager. Pages are sent to the pager's email
interface and delivered within seconds. All major
brands of pagers supply email interfaces including
SkyPage, Metrocall and others. For PCS capable devices
that support two-way interfaces you can supply a
reply-to address that is different than the AS/400.
All
Alliance products support paging via email when error
conditions are encountered. Alliance Application
Monitor can send page messages when critical
conditions on the AS/400 occur. Application Monitor
sends page messages for a variety of events including
disk utilization too high, user job on message wait,
subsystem not active, line not active or failed,
controller not active or failed, SNADS distribution
queue depth too large, and so forth. See the section
below for more information about Alliance Application
Monitor. [top]
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information:
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Digital
I/O
Digital
I/O interfaces seem like rocket science to AS/400
business applications developers, but these interfaces
can be used to read temperature, weight, pressure and
other types of inputs. You can also use digital I/O to
set voltage levels and perform direct process control.
Townsend has partnered with Millenium Software to
produce digital I/O solutions for the AS/400 using
Intelligent Instrumentation's EDAS 1002E units.
Millenium Software uses the digital I/O support in
Alliance SerialConnect to produce custom applications.
[top]
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Intelligent
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Email
Email
is becoming critical for the operation of any
manufacturing system. Townsend provides several
solutions for email on the AS/400 ranging from
application enablement to full AS/400 green screen
email applications. These applications are provided by
the Net400 suite of products and are fully supported
by Townsend.
Application
enablement is accomplished with NetSend. NetSend
allows you to incorporate email functions in any RPG,
CL, or Cobol application using APIs or commands. Full
support is provided for email attachments in text or
binary format.
For
a full green screen email solution you can use the
NetMail*400 product. All standard email functions are
supported for 5250 terminal users including inbox,
outbox, address book, distribution list, and
attachments. [top]
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information:
NetMail*400
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Fax
Faxing
from the AS/400 is easy and requires no investment in
expensive fax server equipment. Townsend has partnered
with Mail.com for Internet delivery of faxes using an
email interface. With NetSend and Mail.com you can
send a fax from any application or from your AS/400
5250 terminal session. Fax delivery via Mail.com is
often less expensive than internal fax machines or fax
servers. You can attached Word, PDF, RTF and other
types of documents for faxing. Mail.com also supports
receiving faxes. You can acquire your own inbound fax
number and receive faxes via email directly to the
AS/400, to your LAN email account, or to any Internet
mail account.
Alliance
FTP Manager supports sending spool file reports via
fax using the Mail.com interface. With PDF support you
can do form overlays and add graphic images to your
reports.
[top]
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information:
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EDI
Electronic
Data Interchange
EDI
is the process of sending and receiving business
documents such as purchase orders, invoices, shipping
notices, etc., in standard formats. Formats include
ANSI X.12, EDIFACT, and UCS. EDI can also include the
exchange of data in proprietary formats. Manufacturers
often process hundreds of EDI documents every day from
customers and vendors.
Alliance
EDI Workbench/400 provides support for processing ANSI
X.12 documents on the AS/400. You can convert these
documents to your AS/400 database, and convert AS/400
data to ANSI X.12 documents.
Alliance
FTP Manager and Alliance BankLink/400 provide
communications capabilities to send and receive
business documents. Both products support all of the
major value added networks such as Advantis,
Harbinger, Sterling, GE Information Services, etc. You
can also use Alliance products to communicate directly
with your trading partners.
For
real-time EDI you can use Alliance Series TCP/IP to
receive data via a standard sockets interface. You can
respond to trading partners within seconds instead of
hours.
Alliance
CrossData/400 supports converting files in Excel CSV
or tab-delimited formats to the AS/400, and can
convert any AS/400 database file to these formats
without programming. This is ideal for working with
trading partners who are too small to support standard
ANSI X.12 or EDIFACT formats.
[top]
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information:
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EDI Workbench/400
Alliance
FTP Manager
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Series TCP/IP
Alliance
CrossData/400
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FTP
Automation
Sending
and receiving files using the FTP (File Transfer
Protocol) is an easy way of exchanging data with
trading partners (vendors and customers), applications
running on UNIX and NT, and with Internet recipients.
Alliance FTP Manager fully automates the tasks needed
to send or receive any AS/400 database file.
FTP
Manager supports email notification, SNMP system
management, audit trials, security, APIs, commands and
other components for application integration.
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Spool
File Distribution
A
manufacturing enterprise creates many different types
of reports including inventory, work in process, order
management, cost accounting, sales analysis, and
financial reports. Alliance FTP Manager can distribute
reports in several formats including text, HTML, RTF,
and Adobe PDF. Reports can be sent to users via email,
Fax, and FTP. If you use FTP to distribute reports you
can copy reports to a user's PC or to a web server for
access via a web browser. You can even send reports to
vendors and customers using the email interface. A
rich set of spool file functions let you automatically
distribute reports and manage printed output. [top]
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Print-To-Web
For
more sophisticated report distribution using the
Internet Townsend supports spool file distribution to
the Allen Systems Group Report.Web product. Report.Web
is a full print-to-web publishing product that
supports print bursting, generational archival,
two-level security, archiving, email notification and
distribution, and many other features. Alliance
Report.Web/400 supports AFP (Advanced Function Print)
reports as well as standard SCS line printer reports.
In
addition to reports Alliance Report.Web/400 can
publish data to Report.Web in Excel CSV format. You
can publish any database file in the AS/400 to the web
in CSV format without any programming.
[top]
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information:
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Report.Web/400
Report.Web
Allen
Systems Group
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Web
Integration
All
Alliance products offer methods of exploiting
application services from Internet applications
created in Java, Perl, C++, ActiveX, etc. You can
develop web applications that use Alliance services
and which can co-exist with traditional AS/400
applications using Alliance services.
Alliance
Series TCP/IP provides ready-to-use socket server
applications can receive transactions from Java, Perl
and C++ applications using standard sockets. No third
party software is required on the web server to take
advantage of this type of application.
Alliance
SerialConnect provides access to serial devices from
Web applications. You can use standard data queue
interfaces to communicate with serial devices
connected to the AS/400 and receive data.
Townsend
can bring experience to your projects to assist in
developing web applications that communicate with the
AS/400.
[top]
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Windows
NT Integration
Manufacturing
companies often have a variety of systems residing on
the AS/400 and servers such as Windows NT. Townsend
provides software solutions and services to integrate
Windows NT systems with the AS/400. Alliance FTP
Manager provides FTP file transfer automation with NT
servers. Alliance Series TCP/IP provides sockets
connectivity for real-time data exchange. NetMail,
NetPage, NetReceive and NetSend provide full email
integration with Microsoft Exchange.
Townsend
can provide integration services to enable custom
interfaces between the AS/400 and NT server. We can
work with your NT developers to provide a complete
solution for data exchange and application
integration.
[top]
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information:
- Alliance
FTP Manager
- Alliance
Series TCP/IP
NetMail*400
NetSend
NetReceive
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Unix
Integration
Manufacturing
companies often have a variety of systems residing on
the AS/400 and UNIX systems such as RS/6000, Sun
Solaris, HP UX, Linux, and others. Townsend provides
software solutions and services to integrate UNIX
systems with the AS/400. Alliance FTP Manager provides
FTP file transfer automation with UNIX servers.
Alliance Series TCP/IP provides sockets connectivity
for real-time data exchange. NetMail, NetPage,
NetReceive and NetSend provide full email integration
with UNIX SendMail and other systems.
Townsend
can provide integration services to enable custom
interfaces between the AS/400 and UNIX. We can work
with your UNIX developers to provide a complete
solution for data exchange and application
integration.
[top]
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information:
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FTP Manager
Alliance
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NetMail*400
NetSend
NetReceive
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Value
Added Networks
If
your company needs to exchange data with customers or
vendors using value added networks such as Advantis,
IBM Information Network, AllTel, AT&T, Sears,
Harbinger, Sterling, GE,
Goldworks, or any other network we can provide
ready-to-use interfaces in our Alliance FTP Manager
and Alliance BankLink/400 products. Alliance has been
certified with many networks and comes pre-configured
for access. We can help you get accounts set up on the
major networks, test file exchange, and get your
connections up and running quickly.
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GM
Sequencing
General
Motors introduced GM Sequencing in their manufacturing
plants to reduce inventory and improve time to
delivery. GM suppliers connect to the GM assembly
plant and receive orders directly from the GM line.
Townsend
worked with GM suppliers to implement AS/400
communications with GM Sequencing in the Alliance
SerialConnect product. Townsend customers can receive
transactions from GM and easily integrate them with
their order management and tracking systems.
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Encryption
Sensitive
data that is transmitted over the Internet or stored
on public systems needs to be protected from
unauthorized access. Alliance FTP Manager can encrypt
files with PGP or Triple DES encryption. Both methods
of encryption provide very strong protection from
unauthorized access.
Note
that users of PGP encryption may need to review
special licensing requirements from PGP, Inc. and/or
Network Associates.
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Associates, Inc.
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Electronic
Orders
Electronic
order placement is supported via FTP file transfer and
via TCP sockets. For batch placement of orders your
customers can use FTP transfer. Alliance FTP Manager
automatically processes files received via FTP and
provide interfaces to your applications. Response
files and invoice data can be returned to customers
using FTP. For real-time order placement Alliance
Series TCP/IP provides a generalized socket server
that customers can use from their applications. [top]
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FTP Manager
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Series TCP/IP
