December 15, 2009 - Orion Wine Software has released Blend Production version 4.5.  The following is a highlight list of the major enhancements and changes in this version.  You will be provided with a complete list of all the enhancements included in this release when you are upgraded, or you can download them from the internet.  To access Release Notes, go to the Orion Wine Software webpage by clicking on the following link www.orionwinesoftware.com then Client Care Center and finally the Release Notes folder.

Blend Production Query & Reporting Module (Phase 1)

This is the first release of our new Query & Reporting tool.  Using a grid based interface to display data, you can modify and save customized filters and groupings and then send your data to a Crystal Reports output.  The data can also be directly exported to Microsoft Excel spreadsheets.  This is the first phase of this anticipated module, so just a few basic reports have been written and it is our desire to completely replace the current out-dated Microsoft Access based reporting system with this new tool by the end of the calendar year 2010.   This new module is provided to all current customers free of charge.  This feature requires that Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express or Full be installed, so please contact the Blend support team if you have any questions.

Blend Production to WIMS sales management system

This integration between the WIMS sales management system and Blend Production for bottling transactions will create entries in both systems at the same time thereby improving data processing and minimizing data entry errors.  This feature is provided to Blend and WIMS users free of charge.

Blend Production to TankNET tank control integration:

This integration allows the passing of real-time tank control information through to Blend Production and the tagging of TankNET information with Blend specific information.  Please contact Bronwen Hanes if you are interested in learning more about this new add-on module.

Exception handling:

The Blend Production support team has been aggressively tackling the issue of “Exception Handling”.  This is where the system fails to correctly identify an “exception to the rule” and processes a transaction anyway.  As a result we have begun the process of identifying these scenarios and creating rules to deal with them.  These new rules have been enforced in both the Movement and Bottling transactions.  This is the first step to fixing the data problems that have been reported.

Please contact the Blend Support team at blend@orionwinesw.com to schedule your upgrade.