SUPPORT SERVICES HANDBOOK
Contents Our Commitment to Support... 1 Contact Us... 1 WinEst Software Support Service...... 1 Standard Support vs. Professional Services 1 Support Plan Detail. 2 Support Incidents.... 3 Before Opening a Support Incident... 3 Opening a Support Incident...... 4 Managing and Resolving a Support Incident.... 4 Escalating a Support Incident..... 5 Pre-Scheduled After-Hours Support... 5 WinEst Product Support Lifecycle.... 6 Obtaining Product Updates. 7 Feedback and Questions.. 7 Additional WinEst Services..... 7
Our Commitment to Support There s no time for downtime when you re racing toward a project estimation. To ensure you receive the support that you need and maximize your investment, the well-trained and friendly Support Analysts at WinEstimator are standing by to assist you. Conveniently accessible via telephone or by email, the Support Team delivers fast and effective service. Our mission is to help you realize the maximum potential for your WinEstimator investment and provide you with the technical expertise, customer service, and resources to successfully implement and use our products and services. Contact Us WinEst Technical Support business hours are 5:00am to 5:00pm Pacific Standard Time (PST). Phone Support Main +1 (253) 395-9773 Fax +1 (253) 395-3634 WinEst & Modelogix Email Support: WinEstSupport@Trimble.com If you would like to renew your support contract or check on its current status, please contact WinEstimator Inc. s Sales Department at 1-800-950-2374 or info@winest.com WinEstimator Software Support Service Every customer has unique support requirements. To deliver on our commitment to provide the maximum return on your investment dollars, we re pleased to offer the following support offerings. Whether you re looking for standard end-user support, or a priority, centralized support offering, we have a solution to fit your organization. The foundation of our service offerings provides access to WinEst product upgrades, maintenance releases, and technical resources. It s appropriate for your organization if you re looking for a comprehensive support package, without a lot of extras. Optional service offerings include account reviews, Support Incident reports, and pre-arranged 24-hour support. The following pages describe WinEst s Support offerings. As your organization changes, we ll work with you to realign your support plan so that you receive the most value for your support dollars. Standard Support vs. Professional Services Standard Support Standard Support, that is included with WinEst support plans, focuses on resolving problems related to the functionality of WinEstimator s suite of products. This includes in-depth troubleshooting for operational and installation issues, reporting and tracking of software defects and the handling of product enhancement requests. See the WinEst Support Lifecycle on page 6 for the support levels provided for each phase of our products. Professional Services WinEst s Professional Services Team is available for fee-based engagements on services such as, consulting, implementations, integrations, customizations, report writing, and training. If you would like to learn more about our Professional Services offerings, please see page 7. 1
WinEst Software Support Plan WinEst s software customer technical support team is available to assist you with any questions you may have about our products. Each WinEst software maintenance plan includes: WinEst Support Services Unlimited Support Incident Management - Anyone in your organization designated as a Support Contact can log a Support Incident with us via the most convenient method for the individual telephone or email. We assign each Support Incident a unique tracking number, so that you can quickly and easily check on the status at any time. Telephone Support Support Analysts are available Mon-Fri, 5am to 5pm PST (excluding WinEst holidays). Email Support - Our email technical support allows you to send us your questions any time it's convenient for you and you will get our response within one business day. Software Upgrades - New product releases and updates are made available from WinEst Support as soon as they become available. These releases introduce new features, fixes, and enhancements to existing capabilities. Maintenance Releases - These regularly scheduled releases or service packs (SPs) provide product fixes and minor feature enhancements. WinEst Support website This secure member only site is exclusively for customers and provides all the tools and information that you will need to find answers to common WinEstimator support questions. You ll find the latest information on WinEstimator products, FAQ s, Knowledge Base and documentation. User Group The LinkedIn WinEst Estimating Users Group is used for holding discussions and posting user generated content. It serves the community of experienced WinEstimator solution users and is moderated by WinEstimator Support Services. Quarterly WinEstimator Newsletter This electronic publication provides our user community with the latest information on WinEstimator technology solutions and our services. Training Videos These videos address some of the most common support issues, and are available for viewing for all customers who are current on their WinEst service plan. Optional Support Services * Additional fees may apply. Scheduled Account Reviews At your request, we ll conduct an account review to assess the success of your current support and service levels. We ll discuss any outstanding enhancement requests, your product usage, product direction and your overall satisfaction. A WinEst representative will document these meetings and assign and track action items to closure with the responsible WinEst team members. Support Account Manager - This individual understands your WinEst implementation and your business objectives, for technical support questions or issues, including escalations, account reviews and more. They will involve other WinEst staff, as necessary, to address your specific needs Support Incident Reports At your request, we will provide Support Incident reports, which summarize active Support Incidents and provide a historical recap on items closed. Pre-Scheduled After-Hours Support If you re planning a product installation or upgrade and need support assistance outside of our regular business hours, you can request to have WinEst Support available. With advanced scheduling, we ll designate a member of our Support Team to be available during the needed time 2
Support Incidents When you encounter a challenging situation or have a question that requires WinEst assistance, our Support Services Team is ready to help. Read on to learn: What steps to take before opening a Support Incident. How to open a Support Incident. How WinEst manages Support Incidents and determines resolution. How to obtain support outside regular Support hours. Escalation Process Before Opening a Support Incident If you encounter an issue with product installation or operation, your first resource for assistance should be the WinEst Support website - the password-protected support extranet exclusively for WinEst customers. Here you ll find valuable tools and resources to help answer your support questions, including: Knowledge Base - A collection of technical support material, including solutions and workarounds to commonly reported and known issues. Frequently Asked Questions - An extensive collection of the most commonly asked product-related questions. Training Videos & Material - These Videos & Quick Start materials address some of the most common support issues. If you re unable to find a solution to your issue on the WinEst Support website, your next step is to log a Support Incident. Our highly skilled professionals will work with you to address and resolve inquiries as quickly as possible. In order for them to provide you the highest quality and efficient service, they ll ask you to clearly identify the problem you re experiencing. This will help them narrow the possibilities of what is causing your issue. To expedite the resolution of your Support Incident, please make note of the following before contacting Support Services to open a Support Incident: Record or take a screenshot of any error messages received. Eliminate the possibility of user error. If you can recreate the problem, note the exact steps you used to reproduce it. Note if the problem exists in other projects. Log into the application as another user or as the administrator, and note whether or not the problem still exists. If the error occurs repeatedly, note any changes made to the machine or the network since the last time you accessed the software. Sometimes a simple change can have unexpected side effects. Consider whether upgrades to your network, operating system or database were made, along with server configurations, security settings, or any other changes. See if a newer version of the WinEst software available fixes the problem. 3
Opening a Support Incident We re committed to offering timely, thorough and efficient resolutions to issues that you experience with your WinEst product. Our technical staff is available to assist you Monday through Friday, 5am to 5pm PST (excluding WinEst holidays). To log a Support Incident, clients with a current support services contract can contact WinEst by referring to the contact information listed on page 1. When logging an incident, please be prepared to provide: Your contact information. The WinEst product and version that you re using. Information regarding your operating environment (for example: Windows 7 Server or Windows 2008), database (for example: SQL or Oracle), and information regarding your operating configuration (for example: CITRIX, standalone, or networked). A description of the issue, including any steps you ve taken to reproduce the problem and any resources already consulted. After logging your incident, you ll receive a Support Incident number. Please keep this number available and reference it during any future communication with the Support staff or to check on the status. Managing and Resolving Support Incidents To ensure you experience minimal interruption using your WinEst applications, we adhere to consistent procedures for quickly and efficiently managing Support Incidents. This section outlines what you can expect from WinEst Support Representatives once you log an incident. Working Priority When we receive a Support Incident, we first establish a working priority. This is based on how the incident affects your ability to successfully use our products in your environment. We practice these industry-standard definitions to determine this priority: Priority 1 (Critical) Priority 2 (High) Priority 3 (Medium) Priority 4 (Low) Loss of service or critical functionality restricted with no available workaround. Limitations or defects that severely limit the successful use of the application. Items that minimally limit non-critical application functionality. A workaround exists, but may not be practical for all customers. How-to or enhancement requests that provide an alternative means of doing something. Cosmetic defects are also included. Recovery Goal We strive to achieve response or recovery for reported Priority 1 and Priority 2 incidences as quickly as possible. When immediate recovery cannot be accomplished, we ll provide a workaround that enables continued use of the application while escalating the reported item to others within WinEst to address a permanent solution. When development resources are required to accomplish recovery, we ll communicate the action plan and the anticipated resolution timeframe. In every instance, rapid recovery depends on a mutual commitment from the WinEst Support staff and you. For more rapid resolution of Priority 1 and Priority 2 incidents, it s important we have access to the appropriate persons in your organization who can help troubleshoot and isolate the source of the problem. This may include database, network, IT staff, or others as required. We also may require access to your systems either directly or via secondary means, such as GoToMeeting services to aid in collecting information needed to resolve the reported problem. In turn, we ll engage the necessary staff to collaborate with you and correct any issues as soon as possible. 4
Incident Resolution Criteria The resolution of a reported item is achieved when WinEst delivers a permanent solution or communicates an action plan. We consider Support Incidents resolved when any of the following conditions are met: The Analyst successfully troubleshoots the problem, identifying the root cause of the problem and provides you with the solution. The Analyst cannot resolve the problem, and escalates it as a defect or an enhancement. The problem cannot be reproduced at WinEst, and the Analyst is unable to collect additional information from you, or if you decline access to additional resources or your environment. If a workaround or information is provided, the Analyst will leave the Support Incident open for approximately one week so that you can confirm that the solution provided addresses the problem. Incident Resolution Timeline The actual timeline to achieve resolution will vary, based on the item reported, and what is required to correct it. The table below provides the general timeline we work against when you log a Support Incident. Support Services Resolution Timeline Definitions Priority 1 (Critical) - Complete loss of service or software causes data corruption; critical functionality restricted with no workaround. Priority 2 (High) - Application severely limited or impacts large number of users; WinEstimator Support or Development assistance needed for workaround. Customer Response Goal Recovery Goal Resolution or Action Plan Goal 1-2x daily 1-2 Days 1-3 Days 1-2 days 5-10 Days Next maintenance release Priority 3 (Medium) - Workaround is available; application slightly limited As needed until closed 10-30 days As communicated Priority 4 (Low) - Informational inquiries / Enhancement Requests As needed until closed N/A N/A Escalating a Support Incident WinEstimator, Inc. strives to offer the highest level of service for our customers. If at any time you require the assistance of a Support Manager in the handling of your Support Incident(s), please send an email to supportmanagement@trimble.com with the following information: Your Support Incident Number Summary of the Issue Your Contact Information Pre-Scheduled After-Hours Support If you have an upcoming upgrade or maintenance that is schedule to take place outside of WinEst support hours (Monday Friday, 5am 5pm PST) and you feel you may need WinEst support to assist, our team of after-hours Technical Support Specialists are available for pre-scheduled support service. Clients only need to contact the WinEst/Modelogix support team and arrangements can be made to have a support analyst on stand-by during your maintenance window. Licensee must be on a current Software Subscription and Maintenance support plan and appointments must be scheduled 48 hours in advance. 5
WinEstimator Support Lifecycle The table below defines the phases of the lifecycle of WinEst products. It provides a definition of each phase, as well as the duration and level of support that you can expect during that time. To determine the phase that your WinEst product falls under, please login to The WinEst Support website and view the WinEst Product and Support Lifecycle chart at http://support.winest.com/ The WinEstimator Support Life Cycle Phase 1 Current Release Phase 2 Maintenance Phase 3 Mature Phase 4 Discontinued Phase Definition A new product release that is generally available to all customers. Products in the Maintenance release have been superseded by a current release. Support is provided during this phase excluding defect fixes. Product releases that are more than 12 months from their General Release date are considered mature products. There is limited support during this phase. Product releases that are 3 or more release back from the current released version. Available Support from WinEst In-depth troubleshooting for installation, operation, and defect isolation Reporting and tracking of software defects Identification and prioritization of fixes for critical defects Tracking of product enhancement requests Release of product updates to correct priority defects In-depth troubleshooting will be performed using the current release version Reporting and tracking of software defects that are not fixed in the current release. Tracking of product enhancement requests that are not addressed in the current release Identification and prioritization of fixes for critical defects that are not fixed in the current release. Release of product updates to current release to correct Severity 1 critical defects. Product Upgrade support In-depth troubleshooting will be performed using the current release version Reporting and tracking of software defects that are not fixed in the current release. Tracking of product enhancement requests that are not addressed in the current release Identification and prioritization of fixes for critical defects that are not fixed in the current release. Release of product updates to current release to correct Severity 1 critical defects. Product Upgrade support Upgrade Support to current released version only. Phase Duration Six to twelve months Minimum of three months Minimum of 12 months; maximum of 24 months from general availability Indefinite Obtaining Product Updates Customers who maintain a current support contract with WinEstimator Inc. are eligible for updates for their licensed software. These updates may include new releases, upgrades, and hot fixes. Customers who have email addresses in our system will automatically receive our quarterly newsletter, which lists each of the current major product releases along with other company news. Clients are also encouraged to visit the WinEst support website for information related to the latest released product versions To obtain an installation DVD of a specific build, please contact WinEstimator, Inc. Sales Department at 1-800- 950-2374 or e-mail info@winest.com. WinEst Pro, Plus, eteam and Modelogix release builds must be obtained from WinEst Sales. 6
Feedback and Questions It s important to us that your experience with the WinEst Support Team is a positive one. As part of our ongoing initiative for excellent customer satisfaction, we may send you a survey after you ve contacted our Support Team - asking for feedback on your experience. We ll ask you to rate your overall experience with WinEst Support. We d also like to obtain feedback on the specific Analyst with which you worked, such as his/her professionalism, technical skills and quality of support received. If you have general questions about our support services offerings, or the policies and procedures included in this document, please contact WinEst Support Services at supportmanagement@trimble.com. Additional WinEst Services Professional Services WinEst Professional Services can work with your team to define a solution tailored to your business needs that leverage and extend WinEst products. Our team of industry professionals are skilled in our products and technology to guide implementations to successful production deployments. Services include requirements/process analysis, installation, product configuration, solution customization, system integrations, education, and continued solution support. Education Services We offer a variety of courses and delivery methods designed to educate you and your staff on WinEst products. Choose the learning format that works best for your organization: instructor-led classroom gatherings or ondemand, self-paced courses. Product and discipline certifications are also available through our education services. For more information about WinEst Professional and Education services, please call 1-800-950-2374. 7
Disclaimer The information in this handbook is accurate as of the time that it was assembled. WinEstimator, Inc. reserves the right to make changes to this handbook and to the policies included within it at any time to improve or enhance the support provided to our clients. At its discretion, WinEstimator Inc. will make updates to this manual and make available to customers via The WinEst Support website or by email. Information regarding resolution timelines and fixes should be considered as working guidelines. In many instances the timeframes indicated will yield an action plan, with interim workarounds put in place if identified until a permanent fix is available. Determining whether a request or fix is incorporated into a future release of any WinEstimator product is solely at the discretion of WinEstimator representatives. WinEstimator reserves the right to make the final determination on the priority level of a Support Incident. We may downgrade the priority of a Support Incident and notify the client of this action if any of the following conditions apply: o A workaround is provided. o WinEstimator Support isn t able to reproduce the reported problem and the customer isn t able to support additional troubleshooting efforts through accessible persons or resources, including access to the customer s environment Customers who designate named Support Contacts are highly encouraged to train their staff in the use of WinEstimator products and support processes. WinEstimator will take commercially reasonable care to ensure that all software it delivers is virus-free. Because updates are made available via the Internet, WinEstimator cannot guarantee that updates are virus-free. As such, WinEstimator strongly recommends that you follow accepted best practices for the computing industry and run virus-checking procedures on any software prior to installation. 19451 68th Avenue South Kent Washington 98032 USA 800.950.2374 2013 Win Estimator, Inc. All rights reserved. WinEst Virtual Takeoff, WinEst Knowledge Base Manager, WinEst Pro Plus, WinEst Small Business Estimator, WinEst Small Business Contractors, WinEst Pro, WinEst, Modelogix, WinEst Eteam 2000 and the WinEst logo are registered trademarks of WinEstimator, Inc.