What to Look for in Materials Testing Software? Five Critical Capabilities
Software is critical in getting the most out of your investments in materials and component testing equipment. From a simplified user experience, to streamlined ERP integration, to built-in testing standards, the right software can dramatically enhance the value of a testing system. As testing operations increasingly seek to leverage automation, traditional processes (such as manually keying in test results into a spreadsheet) will only become more hard-pressed to keep up with the speed, throughput, and traceability demands of modern testing solutions.
In this blog, we examine five of the most important capabilities to consider when evaluating materials testing software.
The Right Software is an Essential Foundation for Optimizing Materials and Component Testing Processes
Virtually every aspect of materials and component testing can be optimized by software. From configuring the appropriate testing standard, to reporting results, to aggregating and storing data, the right software capabilities directly impact both efficiency and testing quality. Evaluation of system-integrated software should be part of any testing organization’s calculations when considering investing in testing equipment.
Based on ZwickRoell’s experience in working to solve customer testing challenges across 20+ industries, we outline some of the most important capabilities for testing software below. ZwickRoell’s testXpert III software, developed over 800 years of collective labor time and rooted in our decades of experience in materials and component testing, is seamlessly integrated with all of our testing solutions. Under each capability discussed below, we use testXpert III features as concrete examples.
testXpert III Capabilities
- Capability One: Fully Traceable, Standard-Compliant Test Results
Materials testing operations perform tests according to a wide variety of industry standards. In many cases, testing equipment must easily adapt to different standard requirements within the same working day. Testing professionals benefit from the ability to switch between testing types with a few clicks, reducing the time needed to configure new tests without increasing the risk of compliance errors. Full data traceability is also instrumental for protecting data quality (and cutting down on the risk of issues like testing fraud).
Ideally, testing software should include 100% standard-compliant testing procedures right out of the box. For example, ZwickRoell’s testXpert III software offers over 600 standard test programs, guaranteed compliant with international standards such as ISO, ASTM, DIN, JIS, and more. Learn more about standard-compliant testing and why it’s so important.
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Capability Two: Boost Testing Efficiency Through Automation
Automated testing capabilities and centralized data analysis can dramatically improve the efficiency of the end-to-end testing process while freeing up time for highly skilled testing professionals. Today, automated testing solutions are no longer confined to large assembly lines—flexible, automated testing solutions can fit on a laboratory workbench—opening up new possibilities across a wide variety of testing environments.
The right software capabilities are crucial for enabling an effective automation strategy. For example, testXpert III’s event-controlled speed switching can help reduce cycle times by up to 30%. For a deeper look at how the right materials testing capabilities can improve efficiency and boost throughput, please see our white paper here.
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Capability Three: Simple, Intuitive Operation
Effective testing software should offer a streamlined, user-friendly interface that allows non-expert users to quickly find and execute pre-configured test routines. A logical, thoughtfully crafted user experience can also help limit user errors.
For example, testXpert III can proactively guide users through the entire testing process, allowing users without previous experience to conduct tests. A built-in, automated plausibility check can even help filter out data entry errors. And built-in user management features make it easy to customize each user’s view to the relevant work. Learn more about how testXpert provides an intuitive, workflow-based user experience.
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Capability Four: Flexible Integration Options
Testing software should be able to fit seamlessly into broader organizational workflows and systems. Direct ERP integration can help automate data storage, aggregation, and analysis while making it easy to share test results with stakeholders throughout the organization.
For example, testXpert III is ready to be integrated with a broad array of LIM, SAP, and ERP software. Learn more about testXpert III’s automated data import and export functionality here.
- Capability Five: Future-Proof Design
Investments in quality testing solutions should continue generating returns for years to come, and future-proofed software is a critical part of ensuring that a system can continue to deliver value over the entire life-cycle of the system. Operating systems change every few years, and it is essential to ensure that vendors will continue to support software as the technological environment changes around it.
With testXpert III, centralized real-time test data collection and intelligent analysis functions ensure that clients will be prepared for the future of testing, including big data integration and beyond. ZwickRoell has continued to support and upgrade testXpert since the Windows 95 era, and our customers can rest assured that their testing software will continue to be updated with the times.
Learn More About testXpert III
Whether employed for static or dynamic test methods, testXpert provides a solution that is purpose-built to address some of the biggest challenges in materials and component testing. As the capabilities discussed above demonstrate, this testing software is much more than a visualization tool for test data. testXpert is the software platform for reliable test performance and intelligent data management, making it the core of any testing system. You can learn more here.
Or, if you would like to discuss how testXpert can help with your testing challenges, we encourage you to reach out to our team using the button below.