ALcon Pharmaceuticals Selects Plateau to Deliver Training Around the Globe
ARLINGTON, VA, January 7, 2002 – Plateau Systems, a provider of enterprise-class
software that manages learning and knowledge processes for organizations, announced
today that Alcon has selected the Plateau Learning Management System (LMS) to
manage Web-based and classroom instruction for up to 12,000 employees at 14
manufacturing plants around the world.
The Plateau LMS will schedule, deliver and manage all of Alcon’s live and asynchronous
learning events, from Web-based distance learning to instructor-led laboratory
work. A $2.8 billion international pharmaceutical company with offices in 75
countries, Alcon also will use Plateau LMS to manage a variety of soft skills
training, career planning and succession planning, enabling administrators to
select the best person for a given job and allowing employees to reach their
professional goals.
Alcon’s manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, TX has used Plateau’s LMS since
the mid-1990s to manage training for its employees. Based in large part on the
success of that program, Alcon selected the Plateau LMS to validate its training
program across the enterprise with the Food and Drug Administration and other
international regulators. Alcon must comply with a variety of stringent guidelines
on the management of electronic records, including FDA 21 CFR Part 11, FDA Good
Management Practices, and international ISO 9000 quality standards.
Plateau is helping more than a dozen global pharmaceutical and health care
companies validate their training programs with these regulations, including
Bristol-Myers Squibb, ALZA, AstraZeneca, Genzyme and Zimmer. Plateau LMS tracks
changes in individual training histories as a series of unique, time-stamped
events, allowing organizations to create comprehensive audit trails. Plateau
LMS also guarantees the validity and security of training records by developing
frequently updated PIN-based electronic signatures for all users.
Plateau’s best-in-class configuration management features have produced significant
Returns on Investment (ROI) for pharmaceutical companies by automating one of
the most complex business requirements in the industry – version control of
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Each month, pharmaceutical companies update
hundreds of SOPs for manufacturing and quality control. Plateau LMS automatically
finds all employees affected by each of these revisions, alerting them by e-mail
that they must be retrained to keep their qualification for a given task.
Automating this process has saved companies millions of dollars in training
costs, reduced the learning cycle for employees, and allowed products to go
faster to market with stronger quality control.
"Plateau is the proven leader in developing learning and knowledge process
solutions that solve complex business problems for the pharmaceutical industry,"
said Paul Sparta, Plateau’s CEO and Chairman. "After several years of work
with one of Alcon’s manufacturing facilities, we are proud the company has selected
us to create a program for the entire enterprise that provides its employees
with anytime, anywhere education."
About Plateau
Plateau manages learning and knowledge processes for organizations, improving
their business operations by integrating and delivering the knowledge employees,
customers and partners require to excel. Plateau 4 Learning Management System
(LMS) is built on open, J2EE/EJB architecture, and is being used by clients
across the globe, including Motorola University, Federal Express, Bristol Myers-Squibb
and the U.S. Air Force. The company was founded in 1996, and is headquartered
in Arlington, Virginia. Plateau’s news releases, electronic press kits, media
and sales contacts and other important information are available at amyler@sheahedges.com
Ashley Myler
The SheaHedges Group
6845 Elm Street, Suite 700
McLean, VA 22101
PLEASE NOTE NEW PHONE NUMBERS:
Phone: 703.287.7823
Cell: 703.362.4204
Fax: 703. 287.7801
