QuickRDesign Beta Test

It is not a new diet fad, it just has fewer bytes. Those everyday little beam or column designs do not need the full muscle of VisualAnalysis, and many customers cannot justify $1000 or more on a little design tool. So IES has a test version of this new product to fill a little "hole" in your toolbox and on our order form.

This new tool is called QuickRDesign and specializes in the analysis and design of continuous beams or multi-story columns. We like to think of it as the Low-Carb, 99% Fat Free version of VisualAnalysis.

QuickRDesign is quicker to use for simple beam or column design than the full-blown VisualAnalysis 5.1 Package. It is also quite a bit less expensive, so it fills a hole in the IES product line-up. If you need some basic design, or you are looking for a way to simplify the design of those everyday little beam or column problems, QuickRDesign could be the solution.

Of course, this is just a beta-release of a 1.0 version product. What we are really looking for is some constructive criticism! Feel free to download this tool, run it through it's paces and let us know what it does wrong, and why!

Next month, we will have more details, an official feature list, and pricing.

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Successful Tools to Smart Business

As we continue our backward glance over the 10 year history of IES, it is time to look at why IES has succeeded. Last month we hinted at our successful business model, but it all started with successful software.

VisualAnalysis Succeeds
IES was VisualAnalysis in 1994. Sure we had AnalysisGroup, but it was the success of VisualAnalysis that secured our place in the market. This software was actually two years old when it was introduced commercially and contained some novel concepts, but it really was not that much different internally than most products it was competing with.

The user-interface is what set it apart. Here are a few features that made the VisualAnalysis experience pleasant for customers:

In fact, still today these things are driving some of the success of our products.

Experienced Customers
Of course the other primary ingredient to our successful business venture has been smart customers. Within a year of launching IES, we conducted a survey of customers. What we found was rather surprising. The typical IES customer had 8-10 years of experience, had used 4 structural analysis programs in the past, and became productive with VisualAnalysis within 8 hours of using it.

Customers were also not shy about telling us what was right and what was wrong with our tools. Given their level of expertise and there past experiences with software, we made it a core feature of our business model to regularly ask and to always listen for customer ideas and suggestions. We encourage customers to let us know not only when something goes wrong, but even if something is just confusing or slightly annoying!

The Feedback Loop
It is the combination of useful tools and listening to experienced customers that forms the successful foundation at IES. We write down and try to address customer ideas promptly. We try to write our software so that it does not require any documentation or technical support. And then we try to provide the best of both.

Fortunately (for us) we have not yet attained the goal of perfect software. We are successful entirely because our software is very good and yet always needs some improvement. Because the improvements are those that customers have requested, they are valuable enough for purchase when they arrive. Customers remain loyal by choice, not by any coercion.

Thanks Customers!
So, IES is celebrating 10 years in the structural software business this June. As we have seen, it is in large measure that we owe our success to loyal customers. Next month we will express our appreciation in a more direct way...

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Extra License Sale

Too Many Engineers, Not Enough Software?

Add Extra User Licenses!

Only a few days remain in the extra license sale. If somebody in your office would also like to use IES tools, there is no better time than now to purchase those additional licenses! Start running as a team.

Additional licenses are normally discounted, but during the month of May 2004, the discount is 75%! Take advantage of prices that may never be this low again! Note: Because this newsletter is late, the extra license sale extends through June 2004!