Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/528936
44 WINES&VINES July 2015 TECHNOLOGY rected, the user has the ability to step through all transactions per- manently embedded in the data- base so an auditor can track the updates to any given transaction. Winemaker's Database has a one- click function to backtrack to pri- mary records of a wine lot. Error correction As important as the audit trail is for compliance, users do not want the method of undoing and correction of erroneous results to be cumber- some. All of the vendors have vari- ous ways of undoing and correcting data. An important difficulty hap- pens when errors occur across re- porting periods. In such cases the reporting period needs to be re- opened, corrected and then closed to ensure data integrity. Orion has functions that allow this to happen in a straightforward manner. Wine- maker's Database and Vintegrate implement an error-correction func- tion that does not require backing out the erroneous data and then inserting the corrected data; the software then updates all the re- lated fields that are impacted by the change in the data records and per- manently notes the changes in the database. Vendors pay particular atten- tion to data integrity. You can imagine the cascade of corrections that could be needed in the course of repairing a record. The system must guard against the possibility of a wine being moved into a tank that already contained a different wine. This function requires a great deal of expertise from your software vendor. Vendors also build in access controls so that only users with sufficient authority can change records. Going forward Some of these software providers have been in the business for more than 30 years. The software they started with those many years ago pales in comparison to the offer- ings available today. If anything, the change and expansion of func- tions is accelerating. Innovation in digital tools keeps on driving these companies to increase functionality. It prob- ably won't be much longer before the majority of wineries discon- tinue use of the client/server model of software in favor of cloud-based data storage. For rural wineries this may become an issue of access to the services needed, but even that problem will most likely be solved as the digital infrastructure grows into the fabric of business life. To be sure this change is driv- ing all of these vendors' innova- tion and capability. Most of them are working on significant changes to their software packages. If a winery signs up with one of the cloud-based SaaS products, it won't require drastic upgrades. Changes will "automatically" ap- pear, providing new functional- ities from one day to the next. Dr. Richard Carey is president of Vitis Wine Center and winemaker for Ta- manend Winery in Lancaster, Pa. He has written numerous articles about new technologies for the grape and wine in- dustry as well as a series of articles on laboratory analyses. Orion features a central system called The Blend, which covers winemaking, vineyard operations and packaging. 2015 WINES & VINES DIRECTORY/BUYER'S GUIDE The most current and comprehensive guide to the wine and grape industry professionals, products and services in North America. In print with online access. ORDER TODAY winesandvines.com/order