GAS MANager
The purpose of the GAS MANager program is to
generate gas bills based on the amount of gas consumed, either
actual or estimated, over a billing period. Although it was initially developed for use by natural gas
co-ops, GAS MANager can be used as a billing system for any metered
consumption based utility, such as water.
Since the initial
release of GAS MANager in 1997, the software has been expanded to
allow for the management of additional information that is not
directly required in the preparation of gas bills, but is important
in the operation of a natural gas co-op. While many of these enhancements have been bundled into the program
for the benefit of all GAS MANager users, some enhancements have
been implemented as add-on modules. This allows GAS MANager
users to choose those features that they wish to use while keeping
the cost of GAS MANager as low as possible. The
available add-on modules include:
-
An interface for users of the automated meter reading
system from Itron. See the GAS MANager AMR User's Guide
for more information.
-
An option to send bills to customers as an attachment to an email message. This add-on module dramatically reduces postage and handling
costs for accounts that choose the EBill option. See
the GAS MANager EBill User's Guide for more information.
-
An option to export financial data from GAS
MANager to several of the most popular accounting systems. See the GAS MANager GL Export User's Guide for more
information.
-
A facility for adding notes and reminders to
customer accounts. While the notes can be used for almost
any purpose, they are most often used to document communication
with customers over unpaid accounts. The reminders can be
used to trigger events such as seasonal lock-offs, service
calls, disconnections, or any other task that can be associated
with a specific date. See the Account Diary section of the GAS MANager User's
Guide for more information.
-
An option to perform database maintenance
tasks such as changing a customers account number or changing
the number of a meter, and replicating these changes throughout
the database, including historical records. See the GAS MANager Maintenance User's Guide for more
information.
In 2010, GAS MANager was enhanced with the ability to employ
password security. This means that if the computer containing your
GAS MANager database was to be stolen, or a copy of your backup
media was to be stolen or lost, your customer’s privacy would still
be protected if you had chosen to employ GAS MANager’s password
protection feature.
GAS MANager’s password protection goes beyond a simple sign-on
password that is used by everybody in your office. Instead, you have
the ability to implement layers of security in GAS MANager that go
beyond just protecting your customer’s privacy. GAS MANager's
security feature allows you to implement none, some, or all of the 4
security levels described below:
- Allows read-only access to the database. This user can view
and print the contents of the database but all other menu
selections are disabled.
- Allows full access to the GAS MANager program, but denies
access to the Billing, EBilling, Maintenance, and G/L Export
programs.
- Allows full access to the GAS MANager, Billing, EBilling,
Maintenance, and G/L Export programs.
- The Supervisor security level allows level 3 access to GAS
MANager programs, provides the ability to enable/disable
security, and set passwords for all 4 security levels.
GAS MANager
Version 6
(released in 2011)
introduces
Custom Data Centre’s Automatic Update feature to GAS MANager users.
By
employing our automatic software update feature you can be assured
that your computers are always running the most recent version of
GAS MANager.
By enabling this feature, GAS MANager users will have program
updates delivered to their computer by the GAS MANager Automatic
Update agent. Once the
program update has been downloaded, the user will be notified that
an update is ready to be installed.
The user may then choose either to proceed with the installation of
the update, or postpone the installation
until a more convenient time.
Organizations that license GAS MANager for use on multiple
computers in a networked environment can select a computer to act as
the Update Server. This
computer is then configured with the path to a shared network
folder. The Update
Server will then download program updates from our web site and
deposit them into this folder.
When configured with this shared network folder as their
Update Location, all other GAS MANager users on the network will
retrieve their updates from the shared network folder.
This reduces the volume of Internet traffic on the
organizations network because all GAS MANager users will be updating
their software from a single download.
The best way to learn about GAS MANager is to work with an evaluation
version of the software. An evaluation version of GAS MANager is
available, free of charge. This version of the software will operate
only for a limited time, but any changes made to the database can be retained in the event that you decide to purchase
the software. The evaluation version of GAS MANager is fully
functional and has not had any features disabled. To obtain an evaluation version of
GAS MANager, send us a completed order
form and indicate "Evaluation" as the desired version.
If you are unable to complete your evaluation of GAS MANager within the
time provided, simply send us an
email requesting a
GAS MANager evaluation license extension.
If you would prefer to get more information about the software
before trying it, then browse through the GAS MANager Features Sheet.
For a more detailed explanation of the software, a review of the GAS
MANager User's Guides
will provide all of the information that is necessary to begin
using GAS MANager and the optional add-on modules.
The GAS MANager Features Sheet and the GAS MANager User's Guides are in PDF format so you will need a PDF reader
in order to view these documents. If you don't already have a PDF
reader installed, you can download a free reader from any of the
software vendors listed
here.
Another way to learn about GAS MANager is to request an online or
an onsite demonstration. An online demonstration is
accomplished by means of a remote control session between a computer
in our office and a computer in your office. An online
demonstration requires a high-speed Internet connection for the
video component and a telephone for the audio component.
Onsite demonstrations of GAS MANager can also be provided at your
office. Onsite demonstrations make it easier for co-op
administrative staff, co-op management, and directors to participate
in the demonstration.