Coming off our first annual and very successful D-Tools Users Conference, I was reminded of not just how incredibly specialized our industry truly is, and how uniquely SI is built to serve it. So much so, I actually enlisted the assistance of an AI agent in order to give some scale to this “niche” industry.
According to the data, only 0.3% of the U.S. workforce is actually employed in the AV integration industry. That’s it, a whopping 50% of Integrators interact with our technology every day. That’s a staggering gap, and a reminder that many of us take for granted the advanced technology we use daily. SI is part of that fabric. It was purpose-built as an integrator's design tool, unlike any other software platform available to AV technology integrators like yourself. Let me take a few moments to elaborate.
For those of you who are ready to “get with the program” and upgrade your prior version of SI, please reach out to our Customer Success team. Moreover, for those of you who are still considering the acquisition of D-Tools SI software, please reach out to our Account Management team.
To start this presentation, I thought it would be best to focus on an area that really sets SI apart from the rest – and that is the industry-specific SI Product Library.
The SI Product Library is unlike any other data repository in AV integration software history. With more than 1.9 million product sku’s, this database gives our SI users a unique advantage compared to other platforms in the industry. Some of these more critical ones are as follows:
- Beyond manufacturer and model, many of the items listed in this database include specifications like dimensions and power consumption details.
- Perhaps most importantly, many of the products listed also include input and output values for use in the design environment.
- Complete categorization of all products with an application of the labor effort (Labor Type) and time required to install the item listed.
- Also now included in this massive data set are files and links for SI’s relatively new Submittals feature:
This submittal report feature now gives SI users the ability to include detailed spec sheets and other documentation along with their client reports.
If you’re unfamiliar with all of the offerings of the SI Library, reach out to our team to learn more.
Another standout feature of SI, closely tied to the SI Library data set, is pricing updates through D-Tools Vendor Partners.
For those of you who are not familiar with this feature, allow me to briefly explain. The D-Tools Vendor Partner mechanism allows SI users to register their dealer cost to be updated to the corresponding catalog items. Updates can be set to run automatically or triggered manually as needed.
It is best to review this ever-expanding Vendor list often to see if any new partners become available to connect with for pricing.
Currently, there are 198 vendors that offer dealer pricing for hundreds of different brands of equipment. For those of you who have not explored this functionality within SI, it is strongly recommended that you do.
Not only does this feature eliminate the need to constantly update pricing for the items your team uses, but it also provides reassurance for high-volume dealers that their pricing will be the most accurate available as they generate their project quotes. For teams generating a high number of project quotes, automated pricing updates are a genuine game-changer.
No discussion of SI's specialized nature would be complete without touching on the design environment — after all, D-Tools is, at its core, a design tool. For those who work with Visio and AutoCAD, SI offers a genuinely unique experience that sets it apart from anything else available to AV integrators.
Single-line diagrams, rack elevations, floor plans, wiring schedules, and schematics are all actively linked to your live BOM within the SI project.
Another standout feature: dragging any item into the drawing environment automatically pulls in all associated labor, accessories, and specifications from that item's entry in the SI Catalog — even if it wasn't already in the BOM.
A uniquely powerful feature set — and a real advantage for those who prefer to work from a design engineer's perspective.
A few more highlights are as follows:
- Access to hundreds of industry-standard shapes/blocks to choose from in the design environment.
- Ability to assign custom shapes/blocks to your project items in the design environment.
- Access to default, industry-standard templates along with the ability to use your team’s own custom templates.
- Ability to use the actual size and scale of inserted background drawings for the plotting of shapes in Visio. These can be both CAD backgrounds or PDF’s inserted via D-Tools Cloud convertor mechanism.
- Full control over scalability — whether by cloning items in the design environment or dragging multiple items from the project into the design grid at once.
- Visio users can also save time by pulling prior design drawings directly from a past file into a new one.
Ultimately, the ability to work exclusively within Visio or AutoCAD to complete your SI materials list is one of the primary reasons SI remains the software of choice for AV integrators.
An overarching aspect of SI’s success with integrators in the AV industry is its “end-to-end” tailored workflow structure that focuses on maximizing profit.
From lead creation to final commissioning and beyond, SI gives users the ability to track all steps of progress when their team takes on the challenge of winning a bid opportunity.
Some of the critical feature sets available in SI that make this possible are listed here for your consideration.
Workflow Rules: This application allows users to set rules of dependency of certain actions to alert other team members to critical updates as the process of bid assessment unfolds.
Available for Projects, Purchase Orders, Tasks, Service Orders, and Service Plans, these offer SI users the ability to rely on multiple data point considerations for criteria and triggering, along with control of the details of the message received.
Speed of Project creation: Whether one uses design software in conjunction with SI or not, users can save time with the bid creation by using some specific techniques within SI.
- Project Templates – Any prior SI Project can be saved as a basis for future projects. These templates can be organized around market sectors, specific clients, Price Types, Labor Types, Location/System lists, or any other practical project structure that needs to be repeated.
- Project Cloning - This execution allows users to copy any prior SI Project in order to get a head start on the next one. All prior project details and data will load into the newly created or cloned one.
- Data importation – Another practical timesaving approach for quickly adding items to an SI Project is the use of a CSV importation to populate an items list. This could be for a number of reasons, so suffice it to say, if a parts list exists outside of SI (perhaps from a vendor or prior bid software) it can be imported into the Project.
Project Management: Once the job is won, users can then take the project through its entire lifespan within the parameters of the SI platform.
- Project Status designations keep everyone informed of where a job stands, while Workflow Rules automatically alert the right people when action is needed.
- Procurement team members can create and submit PO’s directly in the software, with all related details automatically fed back into the project for the benefit of other users.
- Deployment managers and schedulers can rely on SI’s Gantt View to not only create the field tasks necessary to deliver the client’s desired outcome, but also to project the workload and necessary materials going forward in order to complete the job.
- Once the job is completed, SI users now have the ability to analyze their profit success effort via the Job Cost module.
What’s really unique about this presentation is that users can review the data by phase or by labor type. Also, multiple projects can be selected for inclusion in this display, making the review of any specific estimators’ jobs or any jobs in a specific time range.
As long as Procurement and Time Sheets are being utilized in SI, our users can get a real understanding of their overall project profit analysis.
All in all, SI has proven itself to be the software of choice for specialists in an industry that touches the lives of the majority of consumers – yet employs just 0.3% of the U.S. workforce. The work this industry does is more essential than ever to the way the modern world uses and depends on technology.
D-Tools SI was specifically created by integrators, for integrators, and this is exemplified in every project our users create. That’s why over 7,000 firms trust us more than ever before to help them boost revenue, cut costs, and win more complex integration, AV, and security jobs.
Well, there it is! A brief look into a few aspects of the specialized world of D-Tools SI v23. Nevertheless, as always, there is much more than just these features to keep in mind for your team’s usage, so please reach out to our account team for more information on all of the above and more!
Looking Ahead: SI V23 and beyond
The last few years have seen tremendous updates and enhancements to the System Integrator platform. With each successive development and addition, D-Tools has shown itself to be fully engaged in bringing to market one of the most effective software platforms available.
Further, the updates in v23 (and prior recent releases) reflect our commitment to addressing the real-world challenges faced by system integrators. In addition, what’s to come will not disappoint.
With that in mind, D-Tools System Integrator v23 is more than just a software update—it’s a strategic partner for AV integrators navigating a complex and hectic industry landscape. By combining robust multi-office settings with seamless data synchronization, v23, not only empowers businesses to operate with unprecedented efficiency, but also offers the flexibility most teams need to craft a custom software environment to suit their needs.
Are you ready to experience SI v23? Then visit the D-Tools’ website to request a demonstration of these features or explore the full range of utilization with our PSG training and implementation team. With V23, as your ally, your business will be poised for a brighter and more profitable future.
Be sure to tune back in here for future installments on SI’s v23 and beyond.
Our team is continually evaluating ways to improve and enhance your team’s usage of and experience with our SI platform. Therefore, it behooves you and your team to explore these (and other features) as well by securing time with our Professional Services Group of SI and integration industry veterans in order to maximize your team’s ability to succeed with the software.
In closing…
For more information on these and other features of SI, please see this link: D-Tools v23. You can also review our other videos and our usual support documentation.
You can also get more detailed information about v23 via our upcoming webinars and by enrolling in SI training with our PSG team.
And don’t forget, that’s why we are here…to ensure your success with our product! Be sure to check back here next time for more on v23!!!
