Please select a question from the list below:

We already record traceability details on our record sheets. Why should I use ProdTrac?

I’ve bought an accounting software program and already use it to do lots of things that ProdTrac does. I can buy and receive ingredients from suppliers, record production runs and sell products to customers. The program also looks after my payroll, trading histories, tax returns and much more. What am I missing that ProdTrac can do for me?

I have to pay an annual maintenance fee for the other software I use. You say that ProdTrac does not carry any extra charges. What’s the catch?

We don’t actually make anything, we only buy and sell. Why do I need ProdTrac?

I run a restaurant, so my customers eat my products before they leave. I don’t have a traceability problem, do I?

Why don’t you quote a fixed price for the ProdTrac program?

My business has operated this way for years. We record all that we need to; the office secretary is meticulous about filing everything in its place. Every time we are audited and the auditor picks a product at random, we are able to reconstruct a traceability trail that satisfies him. So I don’t need ProdTrac, do I?

All of my records are filed on paper. I know I should be doing things on computer. But I don’t have one and can’t find the time to change. Can you help?

I don’t even have a computer in my office, so I can’t even use ProdTrac though I’d like to. Can you help at all?

I’ve heard there are changes in legislation that mean I have to keep good traceability records. No-one I speak to seems to know much about it. What’s it all about?

What do you mean by “traceability”?

I like the range of reports that come with ProdTrac, but I want to change the layout to give them a new image. Can I do that myself or do I have to pay you for the work?

If I have a problem with the ProdTrac program, how quickly can you respond?

I pay a monthly licence fee to use the program. If I carry on using the program but cancel the payments, what will happen?

I like using the program and I’ve seen an area where I think it could be improved. Can you do that for me?

I have a friend who uses your program in his food business. He says it’s fantastic and that I should look at it for my engineering business. But I don’t need traceability like he does, so what’s the point?


We already record traceability details on our record sheets. Why should I use ProdTrac?

Many responsible companies already use paper records to monitor production activities, and traceability information is part of this. There are three drawbacks that ProdTrac can overcome.
1. The first is that paper records are not an efficient way to keep information that you want to use. If you want to analyse any of the records to look for trends or to calculate reports, the details have to be manually entered into a calculator or computer. This is time-consuming and also quite task-specific. With ProdTrac, all details are already in a computer database and can be manipulated in a multitude of ways to produce valuable technical and general business reports.
2. Paper records can be too easily torn, spoiled, misfiled or mislaid. In addition, over time they can become bulky to file and are then even more daunting to work with or to discard. ProdTrac’s computer records are securely backed up, and as more information is continually added, it helps to add to the value of the system instead of increasing the burden. Eventually files can be archived away, but they never need to be discarded or destroyed.
3. ProdTrac makes traceability almost instantaneous. With paper records, it takes time to piece together a traceability trail when it is required. And it can be almost impossible to account for every use of a batch of an ingredient. In the ProdTrac program, every transaction is recorded and taken into account when the use of any ingredient, packaging or product is queried.
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I’ve bought an accounting software program and already use it to do lots of things that ProdTrac does. I can buy and receive ingredients from suppliers, record production runs and sell products to customers. The program also looks after my payroll, trading histories, tax returns and much more. What am I missing that ProdTrac can do for me?

What accounting software doesn’t do is to consider batch traceability. When a batch of ingredient is received, or when some product is sold, the accounting software adjusts stocks up and down respectively, but doesn’t record those changes against a particular batch, only against the total stock of the relevant material. Similarly, when a batch of product is manufactured, the accounting software can automatically adjust the stocks of ingredients and product involved, but the batch identities are not taken into account. This is where ProdTrac provides the traceability chain. It can work together with the accounting program to ensure that batch identities are recorded at each operation. The accounting package can continue to derive the information needed for its functions, while in the background ProdTrac is taking care of traceability.
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I have to pay an annual maintenance fee for the other software I use. You say that ProdTrac does not carry any extra charges. What’s the catch?

There is no catch because there are no hidden charges. We believe in giving complete customer satisfaction. We want our customers to have the confidence that when we have completed the installation of a ProdTrac business solution, the system will work. Why should we expect that customer to take out an extra cost “insurance” to be able to call on us? We encourage communication with customers, and believe that our low-cost monthly leasing arrangement keeps us in regular contact. So as much as possible is included in the price – free reports and report changes, free call-outs, free program updates. The only occasions where we would quote a price for work is to fix a problem with the ProdTrac program that was clearly not of our making, or when an individual customer requests a significant and exclusive modification to the program. But in general, we welcome customisation requests that would be of general benefit to ProdTrac users; we would not charge for such work.
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We don’t actually make anything, we only buy and sell. Why do I need ProdTrac?

ProdTrac can help in several ways. Although it has an in-built production run module, this can be automatically by-passed. So where a material is bought and later sold in an unchanged format, these transactions are still recorded and controlled. Traceability is maintained – you still know the full origins of the batches you bought, and the full details of when and to whom they were sold. And meanwhile, the business functions of ProdTrac are working to improve your information base and efficiencies.
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I run a restaurant, so my customers eat my products before they leave. I don’t have a traceability problem, do I?

Yes you do. Legislation changes mean that all European food businesses – including factory canteens, institutional caterers and restaurants – have to be able to identify from whom they have been supplied with a food, and to have in place systems and procedures to allow for this information to be available on demand. The traceability of food has to be established at all stages of production and processing. But aside from the legal requirements, how else can a restaurant guarantee that individual meals are free from allergens, meat, or whatever the customer demands. In today’s society there are a variety of common allergens, and in the face of a blame culture, it is vital that a restaurant has evidence that everything has been done as it should be. ProdTrac records all key uses of ingredients to provide a complete due diligence defence.
And meanwhile, ProdTrac is continually working to make your business more efficient.
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Why don’t you quote a fixed price for the ProdTrac program?

Every user is different, and we need to tailor the price accordingly. A large multi-user customer will involve us in a more extensive installation programme, and will be more demanding of our resources. At the opposite end of the scale, a small single-user operation is looking for a solution to improve or perhaps introduce business efficiencies. We want to encourage such users to take advantage of the system, and it is important that the price is suitably attractive. Where price is critical to a small user, we may even negotiate a reduced price with an agreed lower level of support service from ourselves. But whatever monthly price is paid, you are clear that there are no hidden extras to surprise you.
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My business has operated this way for years. We record all that we need to; the office secretary is meticulous about filing everything in its place. Every time we are audited and the auditor picks a product at random, we are able to reconstruct a traceability trail that satisfies him. So I don’t need ProdTrac, do I?

First of all, some questions in return. What will you do when the secretary leaves or asks for more money? And if the secretary’s so good, wouldn’t he/she be better employed in something other than filing? A good paper system is invaluable on the day of an audit. And it can be very satisfying to be able to construct a trail that answers the questions asked. But consider if the auditor chose a delivery of an ingredient and asked you to show the full details of every production batch it had been used in. After, all, that’s life – if there’s something wrong with a batch of ingredient, you want to know everywhere it’s been used, not just a single production. This is where ProdTrac gives you all the benefits. In forward or reverse tracing, it shows precisely where ingredient and product movements have taken place. The results can be displayed on screen as a complete trail, or can be printed out in an easy to understand report. The report can even be re-defined to screen out, for example, confidential information about competitors.
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All of my records are filed on paper. I know I should be doing things on computer. But I don’t have one and can’t find the time to change. Can you help?

This is one of the key features of ProdTrac Limited. We are big enough to have the solutions but small enough to care about our users. We realise how daunting it can be for a busy new user to start using an unfamiliar program to spend significant time entering the basic information needed to run the program, such as supplier and customer names and addresses, ingredient and product descriptions, recipes, etc. Of course it is at the customer’s discretion to protect what he regards as confidential information, but as part of the program installation we offer to enter all this basic information. After all, at that point in time we are more familiar with the screen layouts and can do the work more quickly. This means that the user can quickly start using the program in a real way, taking advantage of the menu–selection features to get all of the benefits without the boring set-up. After the system is in use, the customer can easily add new records, using those we have entered as templates and examples.
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I don’t even have a computer in my office, so I can’t even use ProdTrac though I’d like to. Can you help at all?

Certainly. We can provide and install a new computer for you. For a nominal extra monthly lease charge, the computer is yours to use with ProdTrac and any other programs you might want to run. In the unlikely event that you decided to discontinue use of the ProdTrac program, we would either take back the computer or agree a settlement price if you wished to keep it.
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I’ve heard there are changes in legislation that mean I have to keep good traceability records. No-one I speak to seems to know much about it. What’s it all about?

The legislation you’ve heard about is contained in the regulation known as the “General Food Law” – EU Regulation 178/2002. Although it became law in January 2002, and the section on traceability (Article18) became effective on 1 January 2005. This legislation was introduced with the intention of guaranteeing that unsafe food is not placed on the market and to adopt measures aimed at ensuring that systems exist to identify and respond to food safety problems. It was decided that it was necessary to establish a comprehensive system of traceability within food businesses so that targeted and accurate withdrawals could be undertaken or information given to consumers or officials, to avoid the potential for unnecessary wider disruption in the event of food safety problems. It is necessary to ensure that a food business, including an importer, can identify at least the business from which a food has been supplied, to ensure that on investigation, traceability can be assured at all stages.

The traceability requirements of Regulation 178/2002 have been emphasised further by the changed Food Hygiene Regulations – 852/2004, 853/2004 and 854/2004 - implemented on 1 January 2006. These highlight the importance of traceability of foodstuffs and feeding stuffs through the food chain as an element of food safety, and make frequent references to the obligations on food businesses under Regulation 178/2002.
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What do you mean by “traceability”?

In law, traceability means ‘the ability to trace and follow a food, feed, food-producing animal or substance intended to be, or expected to be incorporated into a food or feed, through all stages of production, processing and distribution’. What this means in practice is that every “batch” of an ingredient or product can be uniquely identified, and that its identity is recorded every time it is involved in a transaction. A “batch” can be whatever you decide it to be. It could be a full pallet of an ingredient, or it could be an individual box on that pallet (though if the supplier has marked all boxes with exactly the same details there is little point in keeping them separate). Or on a continuous production line, a batch may be the product made in one hour. The point to bear in mind is that the batch size determines how accurately you will be able to identify and segregate a suspect ingredient or product in the event of a query. So if you decide that your traceability batch sizes are to be very small, you will have many batches but your accuracy in identification will be good. On the other hand, if you decide that your batch size is to be large (say a whole day’s production), in the event of a problem the full day’s production would have to be segregated as suspect. The decision has to be based on risk assessment: how much regular time and effort can you give to collecting and recording traceability information as an insurance against a wide-ranging product recall in the event of an incident. But whatever reasonable decision you make on traceability batch sizes, ProdTrac will help you collect, store and manage the information.
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I like the range of reports that come with ProdTrac, but I want to change the layout to give them a new image. Can I do that myself or do I have to pay you for the work?

We will do the work for free. Every company wants some individuality in its reports. We think that the standard suite of reports that are supplied with the ProdTrac program is a comprehensive range, and considerable thought has gone into their design and content. So it is unlikely that you will want a completely different set of reports, but if you do, we will also do that work at no cost to yourself. It’s more likely that you may want a few new reports, or your company logo added or changed on reports. In the same way, we carry out the work quickly and at no charge.
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If I have a problem with the ProdTrac program, how quickly can you respond?

The ProdTrac program has been fully tested in a real production environment to minimise the chance that problems will arise. Nevertheless, we understand that ProdTrac is a vital part of our clients’ operations, and that time is critical in the event of a problem. We assure you of an immediate response by telephone to identify and correct the cause of any problem, but if a call-out is needed, we will action that within 24 hours. Our goal is complete customer satisfaction.
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I pay a monthly licence fee to use the program. If I carry on using the program but cancel the payments, what will happen?

The ProdTrac program is supplied in a time-limited form, and needs regular updating by us. Updates are provided to all clients paying the monthly licence fee. Any client deciding for whatever reason to cancel the licence fee payments can continue to use the program to enter and analyse data, but when the time limit is reached the program will cease to function. If we agree a mutual termination of the ProdTrac licence with you, we can ensure that you will still have access to all stored information, but you will be unable to enter any new records.
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I like using the program and I’ve seen an area where I think it could be improved. Can you do that for me?

Of course. We welcome all suggestions for improvements. Generally the suggestions are of value to all clients, and this is one way of continually developing and enhancing the ProdTrac program. And because of this, we do not pass on any costs of making the improvements. The advantage to you in making the suggestion is that we would seek to involve you during the change process to make sure it meets your expectations. You would therefore have the first opportunity to use the enhanced program, before it is released to all clients. Very occasionally, a client asks for an exclusive modification that is not of general benefit to other clients. In such circumstances we may quote and agree a development cost with that single client, since the modification would not be shared and we would become involved in the maintenance of a non-standard program.
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I have a friend who uses your program in his food business. He says it’s fantastic and that I should look at it for my engineering business. But I don’t need traceability like he does, so what’s the point?

The ProdTrac program was originally developed for use in the food industry, based on the particular requirements for traceability. But from the first stages of development we have deliberately kept the program presentations as generic as possible to be of equal benefit in non-food applications. Many industries use the principles of traceability without referring to it as such. Engineering or motor manufacturing businesses are examples of operations where components are assembled and it can be useful or even vital to know precisely where a particular batch of components have been used. In the event of component weakness or failure, a product recall can be accurately and professionally managed with minimal disruption to the business and its customers.
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