Interview of TAdviser with the CEO of Advanced Systems of Self-service (ASSS) company Ilyyoy Knyazev

Ilya Knyazev: When we only began to develop given software, we were faced by an applied task of equipment of Moscow Metro 1200 booking terminals. Within this project it was necessary to make, first of all, the client software for terminals. And it was in the long term going to create the server software for condition monitoring of the park of terminals and management of it. Each self-service terminal is the whole complex of devices with the logic of work, exchange protocols of data which needed be "coordinated" in the single working system. A task which we set for ourselves at once: software should be the most flexible and configured, the Excel type afterwards it could be replicated on other projects, to use for the solution similar, but, at the same time, other tasks. The universality of a software platform on the basis of which it is possible to create a set of application solutions in the different industries and became the main idea. As technology base the solution stack of Microsoft was selected.

Ilya Knyazev: Initially we staked on flexibility, and understanding where still perhaps effective use of our development came over time. Irrespective of the industry in many management systems there is a park of peripheral devices, collected or in a terminal form factor, or any other. The self-service terminal consists of a set of devices: LED illumination, controllers, the monitor, the specialized equipment on work with cash, the system unit and some other components. Having learned to manage the terminal, we had an opportunity to manage also other devices. What is the lighting cabinet working in a management system for city lighting? It is the controller connected to columns and the managing director of light.

Every time we should go to specifics of work with a certain equipment, but, considering that methods of work with peripheral equipment are universal, we need only to add an interaction interface with a specific object. As a last resort – to write the special driver for an object. Thus, we were convinced that the solution created by us "PSS. The platform" – it is universal.

Ilya Knyazev: Core "PSS. Platforms", first, the module of monitoring and object management, secondly – the sales management module, with maintaining the directory of goods and services includes for today. Creation of the module of management of lifecycle of the transaction – for projects within which sale of the service living some period is performed is planned. An example of such service – the ticket for the public transport purchased in a certain place, on a certain rate, the operating certain period. Besides, the module of management of pricing and a universal subsystem of analytics and the reporting are provided in a core.

Ilya Knyazev: In general and. Only representations for different control objects can change.

Ilya Knyazev: Technology there are no such restrictions. Nevertheless, there are certain industries in which problems of technical monitoring of devices of self-service and are successfully solved long ago. First of all, it is about monitoring systems of bank payment terminals and ATMs. On these systems de facto industry standards were already established. Respectively, it is just economically inexpedient to enter competitive struggle in this specialized segment for us. Also there is a separate class of devices which for reasons, security, for example, works only offline and therefore online monitoring is not applicable to such control objects.

Ilya Knyazev: To us as to developers of the traditional systems of self-service, representatives of the industries where there is a mass customer service show interest first of all. It is transport, retail, the sphere of entertainments – movie theaters, parks of rest. Historically so it developed that come generally for self-service terminals of varying complexity, but already require also software – both terminal software, and software for monitoring systems and management of terminal network. Now we actively try to come also to other segments of economy – for example, management of road economy or city infrastructure in the context of "The smart city". We look for the industries where there is a big structure of the distributed objects which need to be managed and where until recently automation was not too strongly developed.

Ilya Knyazev: From the point of view of "PSS. Platforms" as platforms of Internet of Things of housing and public utilities for us – an ideal market niche. And today our software product is a platform of Internet of Things. Moreover, in addition to technical monitoring of diverse technology objects we implement functionality of operational monitoring with automatic formation of the reporting under payments. Thus, to the organizations in the field of housing and public utilities we could propose the complete solution. Nevertheless, the current level of a maturity it the market does not allow us to make the unambiguous decision on investments into the corresponding developments. So far we think.

Ilya Knyazev: Crisis influenced our business interestingly. At the time of the collapse of ruble at the end of 2014 we positioned ourselves as manufacturing company and equipment supplier for the systems of self-service. As the price of the equipment is defined by a currency component of the majority of the functional parts made abroad, at some point we understood that the equipment became very expensive, and total cost of ownership (TSO) – too high that was especially critical in the conditions of fall of income of our customers. And then we put powerful emphasis on software therefore, literally for the last one and a half years, we significantly expanded functionality "with PSS. Platforms". For the same one and a half years the share of developments for our customers on the basis of the platform among all executed PSS of projects approached hundred percent.

Ilya Knyazev: In respect of the organization of development process we did not think up anything new. Rather successfully we practice Agile. As a development environment we use the CMMI template based on Microsoft TFS (Team Foundation Server), we keep the knowledge base in the Alfresco system and the other technologies helping to build up competent development processes of software. At the same time essentially the fact that our organization of development processes allows to issue the qualitative product conforming to the set requirements and expectations of the customer. Besides, as a rule, we manage to maintain also planned dates taking into account possible risks. Also we successfully solved an interchangeability problem in development team when there is no affection of this or that program development for the specific person.

Ilya Knyazev: So far we continue to work in conditions when the most part of income forms still deliverable contracts for the equipment. But, first, any more there is no contract under which we supply only the equipment – always together with the equipment there is a software requiring support and service. And, secondly, in a portfolio of PSS already whole pool of projects within which only software is delivered. And now our software "is unhooked" from a paradigm of self-service terminals, goes to the sphere of automation of various processes. The same "PSS. The platform" as a software platform of Internet of Things, will allow us to solve the whole range of problems for "the smart cities", managements of road infrastructure, "smart agriculture", "smart production", etc.

Ilya Knyazev: The project with Mosgortrans within which there were, first, deliveries of the difficult, specially designed automatic machines for sale of the tickets of city land transport intended for work in the temperature range from-50 to +50 degrees Celsius with wide feature set. Secondly, it was set difficult, multifunction terminal to software. Thirdly, our server part – also works with a broad set of functionality on monitoring of terminal network, including reading of the code of errors, reporting, requests in service division and many other things. Besides, I want to note the project on software development and the controller for the automated control system for outside illumination of Unilight of Smart City corp company. These are, just, those projects thanks to which "PSS. The platform" also took place as the full-fledged platform of Internet of Things.

Ilya Knyazev: At a stage of commercial operation and gradual commissioning of new terminals. In total it was delivered 121 ticket machines, a half of which already in commercial operation, on the others balancing and commissioning is conducted. Also on a home straight there is system implementation of management of the park of devices of self-service which will provide to Service of income operational online monitoring with automatic formation of the reporting under sales and the movement of material values. The operating and customer services will have a possibility of the centralized administration and monitoring of technical condition of all distributed park of booking terminals.

Ilya Knyazev: Certainly, we will continue the development as the company of the developer and software provider as in the markets of mass service, traditional for us, and in the markets of specialized solutions for automation different production, in a broad sense this word, processes and management of different infrastructure. Respectively for providing the above-stated vector of development we will continue investments into development "PSS. Platforms" as versatile and convenient tool of industrial Internet of Things.

If to speak about a product line based on "PSS. Platforms", today already took shape three directions of application software solutions: "Systems of self-service"; "Systems of sales of goods and services"; "Management systems for devices".

The first direction – a stack of client-server solutions for the organization of high-quality and profitable services on the basis of the geographically distributed park of devices of self-service in different segments of retail and the service industry: passenger traffic; sales of goods and also other commercial and public services for the population.

The second direction – a number of the solutions of high degree of readiness connected with sales of goods and services through the catalog menu. Solutions at the same time have as the configured client part, and back-end in the form of a management system for the directory of goods and services with a possibility of the accelerated integration into different external reference books of nomenclature positions and tariff menus. For example, within this direction we created a local booking system on transport. By the way, implementation of such system now, just happens in one of the CIS countries – the project on automation of sale of tickets for the suburban directions of the railway message is implemented. Also projects in retail on system implementation of sales of goods and services through the electronic directory as one of sales channels within the concept of Omni Channel are implemented. Many requests for similar solutions come also from the organizations of the cultural and mass sector.

And, at last, the third direction is connected only with development of monitoring systems which on a set of functionality are much wider, than the classical systems. Actually, it is the universal systems of centralized operation by diverse technology objects within the concept of Internet of Things. Here we have also potentially big field in respect of scopes of application for "PSS. Platforms" since, in fact, it is about creation of centralized systems of monitoring and management of diverse technology objects from different producers. In the long term we think of automation of productions on segments, separate, auxiliary in relation to a basic process, – for example, management of the machine park in respect of timely maintenance, delivery of supplies, etc.

Generally, "PSS. The platform" significantly expanded our technological capabilities for automation of the different industries of business. Today we already become, and in it we will only become stronger, full participants, I will not be afraid it of a word, digital transformation of business of our customers and partners.