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and provide analytical processing tools that small, produces large quantities of data that
allow users to more effectively analyze need analysis. Operationally, structurally and
such data. This, in turn, permits businesses financially, all companies generate analytical
to more rapidly develop existing and new reports that are often time-consuming, costly
analyses and reports for improved decision- and untimely. BIS applications that rapidly
making power and information dissemina- develop updated analytical reports provide
tion capacity. companies with the necessary tools to iden-
By generating valuable information from tify the best actions and best strategies to
page multiple sources, companies can increase implement.
their competitive edge, provide better ser-
vice, streamline operations and make bet- The most important factors impacting the
ter business decisions for increased profits. costs associated with analysis are:
Business Intelligence Software enables com-
panies to quickly sort through large amounts • The amount of manual labor involved in
of data and use that data to detect trends and producing the analyses: The more manu-
patterns. Business Intelligence Software also al labor is involved, the more room there
provides companies with effective analytical is for improving the process (i.e. replace
modeling tools that more accurately predict manual processes with automated pro-
the financial impact of future actions than cesses).
manually generated projections.
• The number of analysts needed: Good
The economics of managing fuel storage is analysts tend to be a scarce and expen-
a complex business. An end-to-end solution sive resource for most corporations. The
that gathers accurate, timely data and pro- more projects and activities they can be
vides automatic analysis allows managers stretched across, the better; so it makes
to make the best decisions possible while sense to give them the tools to make
utilizing all available information. their work easier and quicker.
F U E L I N G B E T T E R D E C I S I O N S
• The frequency of analysis: The more fre- differences in judgment to clerical errors
quently a periodical or recurring analysis and personal agendas that dictate who in the
is required, the greater the benefits become organization gets information and when. This
that are associated with automating it (i.e. combination of inconsistencies causes indi-
create the supporting work once, the up- viduals to relate to different sets of numbers ─
dates will be automated). hampering effective decision-making.
By utilizing Business Intelligence (BI), com- Good analysts are a rare and expensive re-
panies have the ability to gather and use infor- source. It makes financial sense to give them
mation to maintain their competitive advan- secure and manageable BIS tools to make their
tage in the market place. Business Intelligence work easier, quicker and more reliable, while
Software (BIS) enables companies to quickly assuring automated distribution to all those
gather all the data, analyze the information and with a need to know in the organization.
then make recommendations that are carried
out in a timely manner. This, in turn, helps
management track statistics in order to under- Turning Data into Business Gold
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stand and operate the company more effec-
tively, while promoting growth. Many companies have some automated re-
porting already in place. BIS provides the
Sadly, many businesses continue to produce layer that has been missing from most data
their analytical reports manually. The chal- gathering systems, including Supervisory
lenges associated with manual analysis include Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). BIS
not only the labor costs associated with hir- combines statistical analysis, mathemati-
ing analysts or keeping analysts on staff, but cal modeling and empirical information. It is
also the limitations placed on how often these comparable to a person’s daily decision-mak-
page ing process. BIS, however, is much more than
manual analyses can be performed. Analyses
produced by different personnel are also prone a collection of analytical tools.
to inaccuracies, as each analyst may use a dif-
ferent method to arrive at his conclusion. The In fuels storage applications, for example, BIS
more human calculation is involved in the cur- can analyze individual tanks to model most de-
rent method of analysis, the more companies sirable tank levels, which optimizes deliveries.
will benefit from automating the process. At the location level, BIS allows the profiling
of individual storage tanks and multiple tanks
General Rule of Thumb: The to generate aggregate modeling. BIS can also
more diverse the people are who create geographic modeling, which helps fuel
generate various analytical reports, managers predict trends and better forecast
the greater the chance for error and fuel usage to decrease costs.
inconsistencies to creep in, resulting in
the ‘rogue spreadsheet.’ BIS profiles can then be statistically analyzed
against historical profiles to predict future
fuels usages. BIS-generated profiles can form
Taming the Rouge Spreadsheet
the basis to create ‘what if’ scenarios to ana-
The reign of the rogue spreadsheet is caused lyze the effects of changing storage profiles
by many factors. The reasons can range from at selected locations, as well as perform cost
F U E L I N G B E T T E R D E C I S I O N S
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happening. It’s no secret that the BIS you
choose will impact your profit and loss (P&L)
target and return on investment (ROI).