Access Dimensions

Dimensions delivers the technology used by the world’s largest companies, in two highly cost effective packages (1 to 500+ users).

Full Dimensions is optimised for Microsoft's SQL Server database, while Dimensions Lite is built around Microsoft's free version of SQL Server, 2005 Express Edition.  These solutions provide market-leading functionality at a highly competitive price. And you do not have to overspend today in order to gain flexibility for the future - Dimensions adapts easily to your changing business needs.

Dimensions is a fully-featured business and financials solution for large companies. It can be deployed over local or wide area networks and will bring the best available functionality to every area of your organisation. Built around Microsoft’s full SQL Server database, its ‘open-architecture’ and huge capacity enables integration with any number of other business applications - while maintaining excellent data processing speeds and superior levels of security. (User privileges can be granted or declined down to individual functions).  It has a total of 35 fully integrated multi-currency and multi-language modules, all of which can be configured to your precise business needs. Full e-business facilities are available, including B2B, B2C, eBIS XML transactions, web site integration and secure, remote operation. This is the definitive back-office solution for enterprises with high transaction volumes, large user numbers and complex operational requirements.

System-wide Benefits

Microsoft’s SQL Server database is the engine powering your Dimensions solution. Access has designed its business and accounting modules to work in harmony with - and extract maximum benefit from - this ‘industry-standard’ database application. This partnership leads to significant improvements in performance and functionality over similarly priced products. As with all Access solutions, Dimensions provides excellent flexibility and real ease of use, with detailed on-screen help and configurable toolbars. It includes a host of powerful admin utilities, such as Smart Tags and attachment of documents. Here is an overview of the other factors that really set Dimensions apart. . . and make your life so much easier.

Security

Processing, analysis and sign-off procedures are all geared to the stricter controls required by larger organisations. Users can be granted or denied access at two different levels: through the Dimensions application itself and within the SQL Server database. This enables you to segregate duties at module and transaction level, or all the way down to individual fields, options and tables. Use this flexibility to mirror your existing controls and build profiles that give your staff the functionality they really need (hiding options that are irrelevant or inappropriate). Dimensions can then be deployed in every department and for every individual with complete confidence. In the unlikely event of a power or hardware failure, rollback facilities protect the integrity of your accounts system.

Speed & Capacity

Because data processing occurs on your server (rather than on individual PCs) tasks can be completed with far greater speed. In a typical business environment, Dimensions performs between 20 and 40 times faster than solutions built using proprietary databases. The outcome is a system capable of finding one record in 10 million in less than a second. With the capacity of SQL Server to draw upon, there is no practical limit to the volume of historical data that can be stored within Dimensions. The only restriction in capacity experienced by most companies is that imposed by hardware. This helps to ensure that excellent processing speeds are maintained, regardless of transaction volumes and user numbers.

Integration

Dimensions modules integrate seamlessly with one another in real-time and include powerful facilities for exchanging information with all your other business applications. This means that transactions generated on Point of Sale and manufacturing solutions, web sites, custom software packages and other remote systems can enter straight into your daily workflow. Building a single, central database for all your business activity is the most important step in eliminating data re-keying and duplication. With their open-architecture and SQL Server power, Dimensions solutions are ideal for this task. To help maintain the accuracy and integrity of your core data, transactions brought in from other systems are fully validated before they can enter the accounts.

Multi-Periods - Auditing & Enquiries

Dimensions brings greater transparency to your trading activities. Completed transactions update your whole system instantly, and automatically become part of an indelible audit trail. You can retain the full line by line detail of every transaction indefinitely, or purge selected items at your discretion. Two years’ accounts can be kept open at all times, allowing transactions to be posted forwards and backwards from the current trading period. Management reports are also available ‘as at’ these future and previous periods. Individual transactions can be traced using a wide range of facilities, including detailed reports and powerful drill-down options. Each detail line can be annotated for complete clarity and source documents (such as sales orders and invoices) can be re-printed at will. This helps to keep your accountancy and audit fees to a minimum.

Management Reporting - & Business Intelligence

When it comes to management reporting and data analysis you set the rules. A 3-year activity ‘snapshot’ is available instantly for each individual record, while sort keys enable you to establish the guidelines for system-wide reporting. Transactions can be searched, sorted and sub-totalled with ease. They can be analysed to an unlimited number of headings and allocated to any number of project or cost centres. With 230 conventional (paper-based) Crystal reports, over 250 advanced (on-screen) business intelligence summaries and dynamic links to Microsoft Office, Dimensions will help you to understand your business with new depth and clarity. Every report and summary can be configured to your precise business needs - ensuring that you can spend your time analysing information that is directly relevant to the task at hand.

Multi-Currency - & Multi-Language

Multi-currency functionality has always been one of the attractions of Dimensions. There is no limit to the number of currencies that you can use, or the number of exchange rates that can be allocated to each currency. The system calculates exchange rate differences and passes full currency analysis into the Nominal Ledger, for detailed management reporting. It calculates, holds and reports Home, Foreign and Second Base currencies in every line of every transaction. Dimensions can also be operated using an unlimited number of Western (script-based) languages. You can have different languages on each terminal in a multi-user environment and defaults can also be specified for customers and suppliers - allowing documents to be printed in the language of the recipient. Reports can be printed in any language loaded onto your system.

<<Back to Business & Accounting Software