Product Frequently Asked Questions Page

Q. What is included in the ACEIT software suite?

Q. Is ACEIT a cost model that will give me answers?

Q. Who can get ACEIT?

Q. How does a U.S. Federal Government Agency get ACEIT?

Q. How does a U.S. Corporation, U.S. Institution, or U.S. Non-Federal Government Agency get ACEIT?

Q. How does a U.S. Government Support Contractor get ACEIT?

Q. Is there an export version of ACEIT available for use in international travel?

Q. How does a Foreign Corporation, Foreign Institution, or Foreign Government Agency get ACEIT?

Q. What is an ACEIT license?

Q. In terms of a site license, what is an ACEIT seat?

Q. What is an ACEIT site?

Q. What is a Multi-Organizational Complex ACEIT Site?

Q. Are there discounts for multiple-site licenses?

Q. What products are included in the ACEIT desktop application suite?

A. ACE, POST, ACDB, CO$TAT, CO$TAT Classic, ACE Exective, Inflation Editor, Inflation Utility, ACE Information Manager, and ACEIT Admin.

Q. Is ACEIT a cost model that will give me answers?

A. ACEIT is not a closed (black-box) model or estimating tool.  It is an open suite of applications to help you build models/estimates. ACEIT's cost model-building platform, ACE, has been designed to provide rapid answers to what-if questions, i.e., you can have an unlimited number of side-by-side estimates resulting from a different combination of input values or requirements. Pick your favorite excursion, and use the built-in time phasing, risk analysis, and documentation engines to ensure the annual budgets are achievable at some confidence level, and the rationale is fully-documented.

Q. Who can get ACEIT?

A. Anyone can obtain the ACEIT software suite.

There are four specific categories of ACEIT customers with different rules for each customer type. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT .

The ACEIT Customer Types are as follows:

• U.S. Federal Government Agencies
• U.S. Corporations, U.S. Institutions, and U.S. Non-Federal Government Agencies
• U.S. Government Support Contractors
• Foreign Corporations, Foreign Institutions, and Foreign Government Agencies

Q. How does a U.S. Federal Government Agency get ACEIT?

A. Since the U.S. Government has perpetual rights to the software, there are no license fees to use the software. However, to initially obtain the software; get bugs fixed; receive patches and improved versions, user's guides, updated libraries of estimating methodologies, updated inflation indices; and receive ACEIT Technical Support, they must pay an annual distribution, maintenance, and support (DMS) fee. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT.

Q. How does a U.S. Corporation, U.S. Institution, or U.S. Non-Federal Government Agency get ACEIT?

A. To obtain the ACEIT software, these customers must purchase an ACEIT software "use" license. Pricing for an ACEIT license depends on the number of users (seats) at a single site or the number of site licenses (for unlimited users) purchased by a corporation. A license entitles all users at that site to receive distribution of software, documentation, and data updates; telephone support; and software/data maintenance (patches, etc.) for one year. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT.

Q. How does a U.S. Government Support Contractor get ACEIT?

A. There are two ways to obtain and use ACEIT software and materials: buy a license, or request that a US Government Organization sponsor your site as a Government Support Contractor.

Purchasing a license allows the site to use ACEIT for any purpose, subject to copyright limitations. The annual license fee includes technical support and updates of software, data, and documentation for a one-year period.

Obtaining the software as a Government Support Contractor places tight constraints on how the software can be used. The contractor will be able to use the software only for the project, contract, and time period specified by the Government agency that sponsors the support contractor. This time period becomes the approved length of time for which the contractor can obtain the ACEIT software as a Government Support Contractor. Additionally, unless the sponsoring agency has an ACEIT support contract with Tecolote to cover all of their Government Support Contractors, the contractor must pay an annual distribution, maintenance, and support (DMS) fee. Failure to pay the annual DMS fee will cause the contractor to not receive updated software, documents, nor obtain ACEIT Technical Support. More importantly, the contractor will not be able to use their version of the software as their "use" rights are based on an annual renewable basis and this date coincides with their DMS expiration date. Renewal of the annual DMS extends the "use" rights for another year. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT.

Q. Is there an export version of ACEIT available for use in international travel?

A. Currently we will allow Companies to use an export version of ACEIT outside of the US and/or with "foreign persons" as defined in the International Traffic In Arms Regulations as long as they are doing work for a NATO or Major Non-NATO Ally. As long as the Company has a valid ACEIT License we will provide them a copy of the export version to use in cases like this.

The domestic version of ACEIT includes the Cost Estimating Relationship (CER) Library which is subject to the provisions of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. Recipient acknowledges that these regulations impose restrictions on import, export and transfer to third countries of certain categories of data, and that licenses from the U.S. Department of State may be required before such data can be disclosed hereunder, and that such licenses may impose further restrictions on use and further disclosure of such data.

Q. How does a Foreign Corporation, Foreign Institution, or Foreign Government Agency get ACEIT?

A. To obtain the ACEIT software, these customers must purchase an ACEIT software license. Pricing for ACEIT licenses depends on the number of users at a single site or the number of individual site licenses purchased by a larger organization. A license entitles all users at that site to receive distribution of software, documentation, and data updates; telephone support; and software/data maintenance (patches, corrections, etc.) for one year.

This customer type will receive the export version of the software. It is identical to the normal version of the software except for one thing: ACE will have only a demonstration CER library included. This is because the US Government owners of the CER libraries have instructed us to provide the CER libraries only to US agencies, organizations, or individuals. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT.

International Distribution Policy

Q. What is an ACEIT license?

A. A license entitles a site/user to install and use the software for an annual (and renewable) time period according to the terms (number of users and number of sites) agreed to in the license contract. The following link provides more information on how to obtain ACEIT.

Q. In terms of a site license, what is an ACEIT seat?

A. A seat is not a user. A seat is either a PC (workstation or laptop) with ACEIT installed, OR a LAN with ACEIT installed on a file server but allowing ACEIT to be accessed by only a single PC. If ACEIT is installed on 3 PCs (or can be accessed by 3 PCs over a LAN/WAN), then that correlates to 3 seats, even if only one person uses the ACEIT software at any one time.

ACEIT does not sell "concurrent" user licenses. A 2-user concurrent user license means a company can make the software available to as many PCs as it wishes, but only two people can use it simultaneously. In the terms of an ACEIT seat, this would be an unlimited seat license with no constraints on the amount of users or seats.

It is the responsibility of the licensee to ensure full compliance with this license condition by limiting access to LAN-based systems or limiting the number of installations on stand-alone computers.

Q. What is an ACEIT site?

A. A single worksite and operating division within a single geographic location consisting of a part of a building, a building, or a group of buildings. A single ACEIT Site is equivalent to a single organization at a single location. For example,

• One major operational division in one location is considered one site.
• One major operational division in two locations is considered two sites.
• Two major operational divisions located in one physical site is two sites.

An ACEIT Site which purchases a license for an unlimited number of users (seats), may service any number of ACEIT users at their site. An ACEIT Site using the "per seat mode" which purchases a license for a limited number of users (seats), may service only the number of users identified within the license agreement.

Q. What is a Multi-Organizational Complex ACEIT Site?

A. Your site may obtain ACEIT as a Multi-Organizational Complex Site US Government Organization, which entitles you to install ACEIT on an unlimited number of workstations (seats) at multiple sites within your geographic location. If you would like ACEIT to be installed at more than one geographic location, then each site needs to request ACEIT separately.

Q. Are there discounts for multiple-site licenses?

A. Yes. There is a price list for organizations who purchase unlimited user licenses for multiple sites under a Corporate License.