How Epsilon3 is Different Than Other Software Packages

We often get asked what makes Epsilon3 different from other management software applications that are available and being used by so many complex operations teams all over the world. For example, how does Epsilon3 differ from Dassault, Confluence, or even Word? Such a great question, and we’re here to answer all of your questions. Some of these software packages integrate really well with Epsilon3, making your process more streamlined and efficient.

Let’s dive in to see how Epsilon3 can help your team improve timelines and reduce risk in comparison to other software options.

What you’ll read in this article:

• What are Epsilon3’s strengths?

• How Epsilon3 is different than:

• Dassault Systemes

• Windchill

• Jira

• Confluence

• Asana

• Pride Automation

• First Resonance

• Microsoft Word

Epsilon3’s Strengths: why we built our complex operations software and how it works differently than others

• Procedures and tracking tests

• Data collection and traceability

• Multiple operator sign-off

• User-friendly

• Integrative and Streamlined

The Difference Between Dassault Systemes and Epsilon3 

Dassault is often used as a database of parts and product design early on in the lifecycle of a project. It tracks designs, CAD drawings, and their associated tests. It’s a useful PLM (product lifecycle management) software application that’s basic and familiar to many complex operations teams. 

However, it is not a procedure checklist software and lacks an integrative solution for streamlining communications throughout the entire lifecycle of a mission, nor does it collect data in a comprehensive way. Epsilon3’s checklist software design and approach can be integrated with teams already using Dassault to ensure no critical steps or data get missed, and prevents failures with intelligent error and checking automation. 

Some of our clients integrate Epsilon3 with Dassault, while others have found that Epsilon3 encompasses all of their integration and streamlining needs for creating procedures, collecting data, and integrating the entire process all in one place.

How is Epsilon3 Different from Jira: Project Management Tracking Software

Jira is a task and project management software tool designed for engineering teams that are used for one-off tasks, design or non-conformance type ticketing.. While it’s great at helping teams track singular tasks that need to be completed prior to a build being completed or a mission ready to fly.

Jira works well enough for development and engineering, but that only addresses part of an entire mission life cycle. Epsilon3 is designed to integrate procedures at every stage throughout every department on your team, and includes a critical multiple-operator sign-off feature that project management tools like Jira don’t have. 

Epsilon3’s user-friendly design also allows every team member, whether part of the engineering team or not, to intuitively use Epsilon3 for implementing repeatable tasks in a way that is natural and doesn’t impede progress in any way. If your team isn’t quite ready to ditch Jira, Epsilon3 can be integrated with Jira to help amplify and simplify your team’s capacity to reduce risk and errors.

What’s the Difference Between Epsilon3 and Confluence: Collaboration Tools

This software platform is free and accessible for small teams of up to 10 people and 3 “agents.” Its wiki-style approach is designed for basic knowledge sharing that allows users to collaboratively add information. While free sounds good, we all know you get what you pay for. 

Confluence is a simple flat file that only uses text with no real way to collect data or enforce that the right steps happen at the right time. It’s best used as a wiki where information can be gathered about a certain part or team members can make notes and share about a specific meeting.  It’s extensible and supportive with the other atlassian tools, such as Jira, but once a team needs great traceability for operations, the team needs to expand into a tool designed purposefully for operations. 

We’ve all heard stories how even NASA is prone to human error where someone skipped a critical step which resulted in needing to rebuild hardware all over again, costing them hundreds of thousands of dollars in parts and engineer/technician time and delays. 

These simple collaboration tools don’t have any conditional notifications that alert team members when a step is completed, nor do they have sign-off capabilities. You can share all the info you want, but if it gets lost in the weeds, that ends up costing a small team a lot of time and money that they can’t recover quickly.

How Epsilon3 and Windchill (PLM) Are Different

Windchill is a product lifecycle management (PLM) that allows users to sign off and approve part revisions and releases. Its review process enables teams to give feedback and improve products. However, Epsilon3 does all of this with a more fine-grained focus. Beyond tracking product evolution, Epsilon3 helps with test tracking and improves the overall procedure process. 

One of our largest customers is currently using Windchill  to track changes and releases for their content, but will move away from using the platform completely in favor of keeping everything integrated and in one place with Epsilon3. So if your team is still relying on Windchill, you should move off of this platform for your operational procedures.

The Big Difference Between Asana and Other Project Management Tools

Software platforms like Asana are generic project management tools that do help teams collaborate in basic and useful ways, but they don’t have the capacity to manage complex mission procedures that require data collection, multiple-operator sign-offs, repeated runs, or traceability. 

We often see clients trying to string together multiple software platforms to fill in the gaps where one is lacking. This ends up creating a lot of friction and confusion as each team member has to remember to look in every place to make sure nothing was missed. This takes up a lot of time and can have costly effects. 

Epsilon3’s integrative nature keeps everything in one place so teams don’t have to be signed into multiple platforms to make sure they’ve got every step covered before they move on to the next stage of production and testing. 

Pride Automation (TracLabs) and How Epsilon3 Is Different

A few teams have been using Pride Automation to track procedures for some time, and it worked well enough when there wasn’t much else on the market. Think of Epsilon3 as a more user-friendly and updated platform as an integrative solution for your team to replace Pride Automation. 

Every person on your team will intuitively know how to use Epsilon3–engineers and beyond! We designed it to be user friendly from day one. And our team is here to support you every step of your journey and on every mission.

The Difference Between Epsilon3 and First Resonance 

First Resonance is a manufacturing execution system (MES) which has a different use case than Epsilon3. It tracks work instructions, provides inventory management, helps with production planning and forecasting. As a manufacturing-focused platform, its greatest strength is step-by-step tracking builds/assemblies end-to-end along with parts and inventory. First Resonance and Epsilon3 can work together and complement each other’s strengths. Using Epsilon3 can amplify First Resonance’s abilities and reduce risk and error overall. We are supporting several customers that are using both effectively for different needs side by side.

FR is stronger for one phase of a program life cycle. However, Epsilon3 is designed to integrate every phase of a program life cycle with features that allow all team members to work collaboratively and in real time. This integrative and streamlined design helps our clients reduce risk.

Beyond Paper: Epsilon3 vs. Microsoft Word

We work with some brilliant minds who have been literally launching rockets using paper procedures and Word documents. It’s incredibly impressive. 

However, we’d rather see that brain power working on more and more innovation rather than holding all that organizing and strategizing in their heads. Complex mission checklist software frees up talent to not only innovate and reduce risk but to simply sleep better at night. No more worrying if you did indeed complete that task or wondering when/if your colleague will wrap their bit up so you can carry on with your bit.

We love your brilliant minds. Let us help you save time, money, reduce risk, and get more sleep.

Think of Epsilon3 as the next generation procedure software that can amplify what you’re already using or replace it completely to help you and your team have a more streamlined process that ensures the success of your mission every time.