- AIRS Overview
- What is AIRS?
- AIRS Suite Features & Functions
- Overview of AIRS Benefits
- AIRS Suite Datasheet (PDF)
- Alpha Bay White Papers
AIRS provides the full set of features and functions
you’d expect from a best-in-class solution, plus a
number of features not available in most retail
applications.
Customizable Client
Alpha Bay recognizes the uniqueness of every retailer and has therefore developed a powerful architecture that provides unparalleled flexibility in both the graphic user interface and in operational workflows. This flexibility is supported through the SOA object layer, which separates the business logic from workflow and interface. No longer do retailers have to conform their operations to fit the mold of a software vendor’s application.
AIRS supports easy (and often real-time) changes to the GUI and workflows to adapt to the retailer’s process without months or years of expensive consulting services. This allows the addition of functions, features, and workflows that give retailers the benefits of increased productivity and dramatic reductions in training. This greatly reduces the stress of system upgrades and the cost of retraining.
Single User Interface
Typical retail environments today have many different application interfaces based on legacy systems implemented over many years. Analysts report that the average retailer uses between ten and twenty different retail software applications to cobble together an enterprise solution.
The AIRS user interface is consistent throughout all of the AIRS applications. The unique architecture of the AIRS solution provides a consistent Web 2.0 client interface to all users of the system, from customers at in-store kiosks to financial analysts with laptops. This powerful advantage dramatically reduces training and empowers employees to move throughout an organization with ease.
Dashboards and Alerts
The AIRS software fully supports unlimited real-time dashboards and alerts that allow the user to analyze all transaction activity at a glance. From the dashboard, the user can dynamically drill down to the lowest level of data in order to make important decisions. AIRS business intelligence dashboards and alerts use role-based security so each user can have their own dashboard without having to filter out unnecessary data or receive critical information in dynamic alerts sent as emails or SMS messages. AIRS applications are fully integrated with the central database and other AIRS applications, supporting updated reporting in real-time to each individual’s dashboard.
Loss Prevention Agent
AIRS uses a proprietary technology to bring the power of artificial intelligence and computational analysis together through neural networking to recognize, track and report potential theft and fraud. This technology is not a standalone application but is an integrated component of the base transaction architecture.
The loss prevention agents address all areas of threat including: employee theft, customer theft, administrative errors and vendor fraud. While no technology can stop all theft, AIRS can dramatically improve a retailer’s ability to identify the people and processes responsible for the billions of dollars retailers are currently losing every year.
Role-based Security
At sign on, the system determines the rights and privileges of each user. The user’s security level is automatically applied, activating their application environment. With this role-based security model invoked, all the functions, applications and features are customized for that individual, including access rights for read, write, edit and delete.
For example, an executive could log on to a point-of-sale terminal and access HR files and other corporate data, while a clerk would only see the standard point-of sale functionality. Each user in your organization can be defined by the role they play and then in turn be presented information pertinent to that specific role on any computer in your environment.
Integrated Real-time Business Intelligence
Business intelligence (BI) is an integrated design foundation of the AIRS architecture, rather than an afterthought or add-on product. Real-time querying, analysis and reporting support is built in as part of the foundation of the system.
In today’s e-commerce environment, BI must be integrated to provide the real-time reporting, monitoring, tracking, and analysis required to support a successful enterprise. This includes data-driven notifications, alerts, automated reporting, mass report distribution and real-time querying capabilities. For the first time, you can access all the data in your system all the time to see the information you need, when you need it.
Open Database
Many of today’s retail systems store data in multiple proprietary and/or locked databases that do not allow employees to access the necessary data. Often these databases have duplicated and inconsistent data. This results in high maintenance costs and costly time-consuming reporting and analysis to convert data to competitive information.
All AIRS applications are database independent, letting you select from today’s most popular and proven databases, including Oracle, DB2, MSSQL, Netezza, and Teradata. The database-independent design supports a flexible data model where all data, from transactions to warehouse inventory, resides either in a single database for real-time querying and reporting or in a tightly integrated component of a larger data warehouse.
Scalability and Clustering
AIRS can support retailers from the largest Tier 1 retailers to the typical entrepreneurial SMB retailers without any change in code. Tier 3 retailers and some Tier 2 retailers will choose to use AIRS either through a software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering, where the server will reside at a hardened data center managed by Alpha Bay professional services, or choose to install on a single, low cost server located in their store.
Larger Tier 1 and Tier 2 retailers may implement an enterprise based server farm in either a single corporate datacenter or in a distributed multi-tier server farm where servers reside in stores and at corporate headquarters. AIRS can support a broad range of implementation scenarios due to its flexible distributed architecture.
AIRS has been engineered to support full scalability across multiple servers and multiple databases or to run on a centralized multi-processor server. Server farms support clustering to guarantee 99.999% uptime where required.
An additional benefit of the AIRS architecture is that retailers automatically gain load balancing between the multiple servers, which provides both increased performance and reliability. When properly implemented, there is sufficient power at the server level to take down a server with complete transparency, including no appreciable reduction in performance. This design supports anytime maintenance and resiliency to hardware, software and OS failures.
Flexible Implementation Models
The AIRS distributed architecture allows the retailer the benefit of multiple implementation scenarios. The retailer may choose to implement a single AIRS application tightly integrated with their legacy systems at the store or enterprise level.
A more aggressive implementation will allow a retailer to deploy a new enterprise solution to replace their existing products while having the comfort of doing full system testing, trial go-live testing, and parallel production. Because AIRS has an open, standards-based architecture, a phased approach to implementation from single store to worldwide enterprise is possible.
Proven Technology
AIRS is a 21st century solution proven in many industries, not just patched-together software from a variety of vendors. The AIRS technology is capable of handling millions of transactions per hour, billions of individual items, thousands of simultaneous users, and hundreds of remote locations on a single distributed enterprise system.
The technology is completely independent of database or hardware and provides the highest availability and performance. AIRS is built using J2EE, J2SE, JMS, JDBC, JMX, Java, ARTS, IX Retail, SOA, ESB, AJAX and other leading industry technology standards.
Find out how an Alpha Bay AIRS implementation can reduce costs and improve revenues for your retail enterprise. Call us at 801-838-7600.
Customizable Client
Alpha Bay recognizes the uniqueness of every retailer and has therefore developed a powerful architecture that provides unparalleled flexibility in both the graphic user interface and in operational workflows. This flexibility is supported through the SOA object layer, which separates the business logic from workflow and interface. No longer do retailers have to conform their operations to fit the mold of a software vendor’s application.
AIRS supports easy (and often real-time) changes to the GUI and workflows to adapt to the retailer’s process without months or years of expensive consulting services. This allows the addition of functions, features, and workflows that give retailers the benefits of increased productivity and dramatic reductions in training. This greatly reduces the stress of system upgrades and the cost of retraining.
Single User Interface
Typical retail environments today have many different application interfaces based on legacy systems implemented over many years. Analysts report that the average retailer uses between ten and twenty different retail software applications to cobble together an enterprise solution.
The AIRS user interface is consistent throughout all of the AIRS applications. The unique architecture of the AIRS solution provides a consistent Web 2.0 client interface to all users of the system, from customers at in-store kiosks to financial analysts with laptops. This powerful advantage dramatically reduces training and empowers employees to move throughout an organization with ease.
Dashboards and Alerts
The AIRS software fully supports unlimited real-time dashboards and alerts that allow the user to analyze all transaction activity at a glance. From the dashboard, the user can dynamically drill down to the lowest level of data in order to make important decisions. AIRS business intelligence dashboards and alerts use role-based security so each user can have their own dashboard without having to filter out unnecessary data or receive critical information in dynamic alerts sent as emails or SMS messages. AIRS applications are fully integrated with the central database and other AIRS applications, supporting updated reporting in real-time to each individual’s dashboard.
Loss Prevention Agent
AIRS uses a proprietary technology to bring the power of artificial intelligence and computational analysis together through neural networking to recognize, track and report potential theft and fraud. This technology is not a standalone application but is an integrated component of the base transaction architecture.
The loss prevention agents address all areas of threat including: employee theft, customer theft, administrative errors and vendor fraud. While no technology can stop all theft, AIRS can dramatically improve a retailer’s ability to identify the people and processes responsible for the billions of dollars retailers are currently losing every year.
Role-based Security
At sign on, the system determines the rights and privileges of each user. The user’s security level is automatically applied, activating their application environment. With this role-based security model invoked, all the functions, applications and features are customized for that individual, including access rights for read, write, edit and delete.
For example, an executive could log on to a point-of-sale terminal and access HR files and other corporate data, while a clerk would only see the standard point-of sale functionality. Each user in your organization can be defined by the role they play and then in turn be presented information pertinent to that specific role on any computer in your environment.
Integrated Real-time Business Intelligence
Business intelligence (BI) is an integrated design foundation of the AIRS architecture, rather than an afterthought or add-on product. Real-time querying, analysis and reporting support is built in as part of the foundation of the system.
In today’s e-commerce environment, BI must be integrated to provide the real-time reporting, monitoring, tracking, and analysis required to support a successful enterprise. This includes data-driven notifications, alerts, automated reporting, mass report distribution and real-time querying capabilities. For the first time, you can access all the data in your system all the time to see the information you need, when you need it.
Open Database
Many of today’s retail systems store data in multiple proprietary and/or locked databases that do not allow employees to access the necessary data. Often these databases have duplicated and inconsistent data. This results in high maintenance costs and costly time-consuming reporting and analysis to convert data to competitive information.
All AIRS applications are database independent, letting you select from today’s most popular and proven databases, including Oracle, DB2, MSSQL, Netezza, and Teradata. The database-independent design supports a flexible data model where all data, from transactions to warehouse inventory, resides either in a single database for real-time querying and reporting or in a tightly integrated component of a larger data warehouse.
Scalability and Clustering
AIRS can support retailers from the largest Tier 1 retailers to the typical entrepreneurial SMB retailers without any change in code. Tier 3 retailers and some Tier 2 retailers will choose to use AIRS either through a software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering, where the server will reside at a hardened data center managed by Alpha Bay professional services, or choose to install on a single, low cost server located in their store.
Larger Tier 1 and Tier 2 retailers may implement an enterprise based server farm in either a single corporate datacenter or in a distributed multi-tier server farm where servers reside in stores and at corporate headquarters. AIRS can support a broad range of implementation scenarios due to its flexible distributed architecture.
AIRS has been engineered to support full scalability across multiple servers and multiple databases or to run on a centralized multi-processor server. Server farms support clustering to guarantee 99.999% uptime where required.
An additional benefit of the AIRS architecture is that retailers automatically gain load balancing between the multiple servers, which provides both increased performance and reliability. When properly implemented, there is sufficient power at the server level to take down a server with complete transparency, including no appreciable reduction in performance. This design supports anytime maintenance and resiliency to hardware, software and OS failures.
Flexible Implementation Models
The AIRS distributed architecture allows the retailer the benefit of multiple implementation scenarios. The retailer may choose to implement a single AIRS application tightly integrated with their legacy systems at the store or enterprise level.
A more aggressive implementation will allow a retailer to deploy a new enterprise solution to replace their existing products while having the comfort of doing full system testing, trial go-live testing, and parallel production. Because AIRS has an open, standards-based architecture, a phased approach to implementation from single store to worldwide enterprise is possible.
Proven Technology
AIRS is a 21st century solution proven in many industries, not just patched-together software from a variety of vendors. The AIRS technology is capable of handling millions of transactions per hour, billions of individual items, thousands of simultaneous users, and hundreds of remote locations on a single distributed enterprise system.
The technology is completely independent of database or hardware and provides the highest availability and performance. AIRS is built using J2EE, J2SE, JMS, JDBC, JMX, Java, ARTS, IX Retail, SOA, ESB, AJAX and other leading industry technology standards.
Find out how an Alpha Bay AIRS implementation can reduce costs and improve revenues for your retail enterprise. Call us at 801-838-7600.