Customer FIRST Program Guide
Best-in-Class Software Maintenance, Support & Services –
Get Maximum Value from Your Assets with Avantis Software & Services
1
About Schneider Electric and Avantis
Schneider Electric is a leading global technology company with over
50,000 software customers. Our software runs in more than 200,000
industrial and manufacturing facilities worldwide. Your investment in
Avantis® is the first step in driving world class processes and enterprisewide business results. However, the right technology is just one factor of
your overall success.
Customer FIRST for Avantis
The Customer FIRST for Avantis program demonstrates our commitment to your success. It offers a rich portfolio of essential software
maintenance, award-winning technical support and services to help you protect and extend the value of your investment and keep your
Avantis software performing at peak levels. The Customer FIRST for Avantis program ensures that you get:
• Continuous software maintenance and innovation through software version upgrades to evolve your Avantis software to best address
changing business needs
• Access to technical support experts that are adept at resolving issues quickly, capitalizing on years of experience
• Optional services to help you manage, optimize and extract the most value from your software solution
2
Why Customer FIRST?
A Customer FIRST software maintenance and support agreement is the
foundation of your ongoing service and support relationship with Schneider
Electric. It provides continuous software maintenance and quicker access to
highly skilled resources to remedy any technical issue that you might experience
as you adjust, fine-tune and upgrade your Avantis software. Additionally, a
Customer FIRST agreement provides an assortment of software and service
entitlements, including full-featured software upgrades and operational support
services designed to maintain and optimize the performance of your Avantis
software through its entire lifecycle.
Customer FIRST offers exceptional customer-focused software maintenance,
services and support and is specifically designed to provide:
• Improved Operational Performance – Augment your internal technical
resources with Schneider Electric experts to help improve your operations
• Software Investment Protection – Get access to product enhancements and
innovative technology to keep your asset management software current and
“state-of-the-art”
• Increased Business Productivity – Self-support tools, user community
forums and exclusive peer group events enable your employees to
troubleshoot issues on their own, enhancing overall productivity
3
Customer FIRST for Avantis Lets You Choose What You Need
da
an
St
Included Services
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Pr
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m
El
ite
With an array of service levels and options, you choose the program level that best suits your specific needs. Whether you are planning
a new installation, optimizing a mature system or evolving your system with the latest software upgrades to take advantage of rich new
capabilities, one of our service levels will ensure you have what you need.
Technical Support And Services
Business Hours Technical Support (normal
local business hours)
√
√
√
Global Customer Support Website Access
√
√
√
Search for answers for your questions and log and track cases directly
√
√
√
A mobile app designed to help utilize and realize value from your support and
services agreement
√
√
√
Understand the current state of your software
10%
10%
20%
√
√
√
Avantis will re-host original production licenses on a new machine in the event
that the original machine is decommissioned
√
√
√
Should a hardware failure occur, Avantis can temporarily re- commission a
production system while you repair/replace your server
√
√
Support available around the clock for emergency situations
√
Meet with key Schneider Electric executives to discuss your success and/or
issues with Avantis software and services
√
Establish 3rd-party escrow for access to Avantis source code
√
A comprehensive review of Avantis.PRO business processes, system setup,
interfaces/customizations and technical infrastructure
2
A focused meeting with your sales or support partner to review utlization
and value derived from your support agreement
Customer FIRST Benefits App
Annual Lifecycle Assessment
Discount on Technical Support Consulting
Services
Rehosting Access
Disaster Recovery License Access
Emergency 24/7/365 Technical Support
Annual Executive Briefing
Beneficiary Status to Avantis Source Code
Sustainability Assessment
Contract Management/Performance reviews
per year
Access to expert technical assistance
Leverage award-winning Avantis expertise at discounted prices
Software Maintenance And Utilities
Software maintenance releases, service
packs, patches, updates and hotfixes
√
√
√
Software Version Upgrades and Revisions
√
√
√
Run the latest versions of your Avantis software for optimal capabilities
Included Test and Offline System Licenses
√
√
√
Temporary license provision for your test environment during your support term
√
√
Discount on Additional Test and Offline
System Licenses
Stay current with the latest updates and fixes
Save on additional permanent licenses for your test environment
Additional Benefits: Minimum Contract Spend Required
Included Avantis Training (Classroom,
Recorded or Virtual Instructor-led)
1
seat*
2
seats*
Take advantage of our expert training to quickly gain advanced knowledge
Block of Technical Support Consulting
Services included
16
hours*
24
hours*
Expert guidance on best practices during initial rollout and on- going phases
for your application
Complimentary Invitations to Schneider
Electric Customer Events
2*
5*
Enjoy attendance at our annual User Group and other engaging end- user
events
√
√
A universal window to access all your plant’s support activity, license and
purchase history. Includes online content library, dedicated online chat & forum!
√
√
An assigned support liaison to coordinate and prioritize support related
activities to keep your operation at peak level
1
Incl.
√
Incl.
Dedicated Customer Portal
Customer Support Account Manager
Contract Management/Performance reviews
per year
Annual Executive Briefing
Maximize the benefits and value derived from your Customer FIRST agreement
Meet with key Schneider Electric executives to discuss your success and/or
issues with Avantis software and services
*This is the base quantity provided to customers meeting the minimum spend. Depending on your spend, you may qualify for additional quantities.
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Optional Services
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Flexible Funding for Services
♦
♦
♦
Embed funds into your Customer FIRST Agreement for optimization and
consulting services to use at your convenience during your agreement term
Upgrade Planning
♦
♦
♦
Enlist Schneider Electric experts to assist with your upgrade project planning or
justification to replace competitive applications with current Avantis technology
Migration Assessment (from Avantis.XA to
Avantis.PRO)
♦
♦
♦
Understand the impact of and opportunities expected from an Avantis.XA to
Avantis.PRO migration
Customer FIRST for Solutions
♦
♦
♦
Application support and lifecycle maintenance for Advanced Solutions
engineered/implemented by the Schneider Electric
3rd Party Software Support
♦
♦
♦
Schneider Electric acts as a single point of contact for specified non-Schneider
Electric software
After-hours Support Access for Upgrade and
Migration Implementation
♦
♦
♦
Tap into expert technical resources round-the-clock during the pivotal upgrade
process
Operational Support
♦
♦
♦
Post implementation operational support and resources to maximize utilization
and benefit of your Avantis software
Sustainability Assessment
♦
♦
Incl.
A comprehensive review of Avantis.PRO business processes, system setup,
interfaces/customizations and technical infrastructure
Beneficiary Status to Avantis Source Code
♦
♦
Incl.
Establish 3rd-party escrow for access to Avantis source code
Customer Support Account Manager
♦
♦
An assigned support liaison to coordinate and prioritize support related activities
to keep your operation at peak level
Resident Consultant
♦
♦
Augment your technical staff with a skilled Schneider Electric consultant resident
at your plant year-round to help you achieve your operational goals
Implementation Consultant
♦
♦
Ensure the successful deployment of your software project with a dedicated
technical expert to oversee your implementation
Application Clone (remote, hosted)
♦
♦
A virtualized replica of your Avantis application hosted at Schneider Electric for
testing, issue replication and advanced troubleshooting
For Your Consideration When Selecting Service and Support Resources
With the Customer FIRST for Avantis program, you choose a program level that best meets your business
needs: Elite, Premium or Standard. You select the level based on your resources, their knowledge levels,
and the complexity and criticality of your Avantis software system. The Customer FIRST for Avantis program
offers you the flexibility to tailor your support and services to the specific needs of your business by layering
optional services on top of your core program level. Listed below are some questions to help you determine
which level of Customer FIRST for Avantis best fits your needs:
• How quickly can you identify a system (or software) issue if an unexpected interruption occurs?
• Do you have in-house experts around the clock to quickly troubleshoot and resolve issues?
• Do you need a single Schneider Electric point of contact for your technology-related questions?
• Do you need better coordination for your support-related issues and problem resolution?
• Are maintenance costs difficult to budget?
• Is your team trained for maximum utilization of your Avantis system?
• How quickly do you require corrective assistance?
• How secure is your system against cyber security threats?
• Do you need a Schneider Electric System Expert to augment your engineering staff?
Keeping Your Finger On the Pulse
By design, Avantis software enables your company to derive maximum benefit from your assets by tracking
scheduled maintenance, automating replacement parts procurement and monitoring inventory and parts
logistics. Avantis software helps you understand asset utilization and better manage capital and maintenance
costs. In a nutshell, Avantis software helps customer realize outstanding return from all their assets, including
people, processes and equipment. The Customer FIRST Program for Avantis software is designed to help
you maximize the benefits of your enterprise asset management software by keeping it current with software
maintenance, providing access to expertise should the need arise for technical support, and other valuable
services designed to help you realize the most from your Avantis software.
• Learn about
the latest
technology
and new
Avantis
products
and services
• Exchange
ideas and
network with
your peers
• Enhance your
skills and
boost your
knowledge
of Avantis
products
The Customer FIRST software maintenance and support agreement protects your entire investment by
delivering value in the following critical areas:
• Software Upgrades – Avantis software is generally upgraded at least once a year to further improve
performance and security, embrace new technology, and provide new functionality to meet evolving
market demands. Software upgrades give you the power to improve the reliability and capability of your
Avantis software application and extend new functionality to others in your company. Schneider Electric
has an unparalleled history of investing in software development, so clients using Avantis core software can
seamlessly upgrade from one version to the next. We are very proud of this deliberate R&D practice, as it
allows our clients to keep their software current without significant capital expenditures.
• Access to Exceptional Global Technical Support – Schneider Electric clients have specific business
objectives and responsibilities that rarely include troubleshooting industrial software technical issues.
The Customer FIRST for Avantis program provides you with streamlined access to support experts who
have years of experience supporting diverse Avantis installations around the world. They are adept at
understanding potential software implementation issues, replicating problems and resolving them quickly.
You also get access to extensive online self- help, online product training, dedicated and collaborative web
portals, and a vast knowledgebase of technical tips, tools and best practices. With the Customer FIRST
Program, you can leverage vast Schneider Electric experience and expertise, saving you time and money.
• Leverage Our Extensive User Community – Only members of the Customer FIRST for Avantis program
can take advantage of the global Avantis user community. Exchange ideas, ask questions and discuss
solutions with your peers using Avantis software through online forums monitored by Avantis experts.
Additionally, the Avantis team regularly sponsors end-user events focused on enabling face-to-face
conversations with Avantis engineers, the technical support team and key business leaders.
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Maximize Your Investment and Simplify Your Business Complexities
Your business has enough challenges already, with constantly changing needs, market and competitive
conditions, operational situations, rapidly changing technologies and myriad other concerns. The Customer
FIRST Program is a cost-effective approach to help you manage and mitigate some of these business
complexities. When you leverage its many valuable aspects — software upgrades, technical support, and
software utilities — your membership will provide a significant return. The program is specifically designed
to provide you with improved operational support, software investment protection, and increased business
productivity so that you get maximum value from an investment in Avantis software.
Enable plant
resources to
contribute
additional value
to your company
by focusing on
their day-to-day
job instead of
troubleshooting
issues that
Customer
FIRST can
help address.
Our services
are designed
to optimize
your Avantis
implementation.
Schneider Electric Software
26561 Rancho Pkwy South
Lake Forest, CA 92610
Phone: +1 (949) 727-3200
Fax: +1 (949) 727-3270
software.schneider-electric.com
PN AV-0119
Rev. 04/15
© 2015 Schneider Electric Software, LLC. All rights reserved.
Assistance where
and when you need it!