Hi there and welcome to the March edition of thepulse, Gael Ltd’s quarterly Q-Pulse e-mail newsletter.

In this edition of thepulse, we’ve got news of our new user Community and the upcoming launch of our online training Academy, as well as a feature on Version 5.2’s enhanced functionality. We also bring you information on how our implementation service can help you as a new customer get Q-Pulse up and running quickly and easily, and for our customers in Canada and the US, we’ve a call to action for your recommendations for consultants.

We hope you enjoy this edition of thepulse – we’ll be back in June with our next edition, but visit us at www.gaelquality.com for regular news and information about our products and services – or see our Community article below for other ways to get up-to-the-minute news on what we have to offer.

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2007 has been our most exciting year to date here at Gael, and from what we’ve achieved so far this year, 2008 is set to top it as our most successful as well.

With the successful launch of Version 5 in 2007, getting Version 5.2 out on schedule in November was a fantastic achievement for us, and we’re already seeing the return from our work last year, with sales up 90% in 2007. For customers in the Information Security and Life Sciences markets, we also increased our offering with features and services to achieve compliance with ISO 27001 as well as US FDA requirements.

Last year also saw us grow in size, with 20 new staff adding further strength throughout our business, from design, development and test to marketing and professional services. We're proud to welcome all who joined us last year, including our new Chief Operating Officer Ashley Marron and trainers Craig Burns, Paul Hastings and Steven Cespedes.

The seal of approval on a spectacular year of growth was receiving Best International Software Business and being named in the overall Best Scottish Software Company category at the recent Scottish Software Awards, which was only made possible by our staff and their commitment to both our Q-Pulse and MindGenius products.

We’re proud to have been recognised by the Scottish software industry with these awards for our growth internationally and our continuing commitment to increasing the presence of Scottish software in the global marketplace.

‘What we’ve achieved in 2007 is nothing short of stunning,’ said Ashley Marron, Gael's Chief Operating Officer, ‘and we’ll look back on it with enormous pride as the start of something special. It’s relatively easy to get one aspect of any business performing, but our Q-Pulse business is in absolute harmony across the board, which is something very few organisations can claim.’

In 2008, we’ll continue to bring you new solutions and services as part of our ongoing expansion, including the Community and the Academy – for example, our upcoming release of Q-Pulse Version 5.5 gives our customers in the Aviation Safety and Life Sciences markets enhanced functionality to help them meet industry-specific requirements.

With more new faces joining Gael throughout 2008, we’ll be breaking new ground in other ways this year as well, as work begins on expanding our office here in Scotland, adding new offices, meeting and training rooms to ‘the Hill of the Gaels’ to accommodate the influx of new staff. As our headquarters and staff numbers continue to grow, you can be sure that last year was just the foundation on which we’ll be building our success in 2008.

For more information on where Gael and Q-Pulse are going in 2008, visit our website at www.gaelquality.com.

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In avoiding the pitfalls associated with compliance, we’re proud to bring you new services and features to help you adopt the Q-Pulse way of working throughout your organisation and make the most of Q-Pulse as quickly and as easily as possible.

Developed in response to overwhelming customer demand, our new Gael Academy gives you instant access to Q-Pulse training with a wide-ranging series of interactive online courses.

The Academy helps you roll out Q-Pulse throughout your organisation with the minimum of time and effort, taking the strain off your implementation team and helping users to learn at their own pace.

Also developed with our customers in mind, our new Gael Community gives you the chance to share your experience and expertise with Q-Pulse users around the world, and is your number-one source for up-to-the-minute news on what Gael and Q-Pulse has to offer.

Combining blogs, news and forums, the Community lets you read news and information or contribute to discussions whenever you like, wherever you are in the world – just jump on and join in.

A key component in increasing Q-Pulse’s up-take throughout the organisation is the latest version’s release, Version 5.2. Version 5.2 gives you quicker and easier access to Q-Pulse with a secure web interface, single sign-on and go-to messaging to overcome challenges in adopting the Q-Pulse way of working across your organisation.

‘By breaking down the barriers to adoption, the Academy will help organisations to meet roll-out training needs and will help users to learn at their own pace,’ says Paul Callaghan, Gael’s Product Director. ‘‘As well as the Academy and the Community, Version 5.2 is a key component in our holistic approach to developing and delivering our solutions and services.’

‘Version 5.2 reaffirms our commitment to Q-Pulse’s continual improvement since Version 5’s release last year. The new features build on Version 5’s robust foundation to make it easier for users to get the most out of Q-Pulse, encouraging users to take more ownership of their system and assuring organisations that regulatory requirements continue to be satisfied.’

For more information on how we’re working with you to bring the Q-Pulse way of working to your business, check out the product roadmap in the Customer Zone at www.gaelquality.com, or contact us now on +44 (0) 1355 593400 or at info@gaelquality.com.

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Launching the new Gael Academy

Maintaining a skilled, trained Q-Pulse user base is an ongoing process that requires a significant amount of time, effort and resource. Without regular, periodic re-enforcement of the role Q-Pulse has to play in maintaining compliance within your organisation, you run the risk of poor employee adoption, ultimately undermining your overall good governance goals and objectives.

Our new Gael Academy is designed to meet this need and give your user base the training support it requires, when it needs it. The Academy offers on-demand access to Q-Pulse training direct to your desktop, giving you the freedom to learn at your own pace at a time and in a place that’s convenient for you.

Launching in April 2008, the Academy offers a wide range of online courses on the Q-Pulse modules, with interactive quizzes to test your knowledge, and, along with our implementation service, will help you to roll out Q-Pulse more quickly throughout your organisation.

With instant access to professionally-developed Q-Pulse training courses, users can take part in compliance activities quickly and easily, take greater ownership of their compliance actions and get more involved with the compliance management system. Importantly, this can be achieved without the input of the Q-Pulse administration team, leaving you free to focus your efforts on your core project priorities.

The Academy is also ideal for occasional Q-Pulse users who don’t need the in-depth knowledge given in our onsite training courses, or as ‘top-up’ training for users who have already attended Q-Pulse training courses but who would benefit from refresher training.

‘As a small stem cell processing lab, we process products for 3 major hospitals and our staff keep very busy,’ says Andrew Havens, Quality Assurance Manager at the University of Utah’s Cell Therapy Facility. ‘It’s almost impossible to get people together in one place and time for training of any sort, so having a self-paced learning tool available online, 24 hours a day, is a huge benefit. It’ll also help me to train new staff and increase the knowledge of existing staff, allowing them to learn at their own pace.

The Community doors are now open!

We are delighted to announce the launch of the new Gael Community. The Community is your ‘go-to’ place for you to get even more out of Q-Pulse, as well as to keep up-to-date with the latest news about Gael. Much like any other, the Community will grow over time and we’ll be adding new features as it does so.

Combining a Gael news blog, industry-specific news, a community blog in which you can post articles and discussion forums, the Community is also your number-one source for up-to-the-minute news on our products, as well as giving you the chance to have your say about Q-Pulse’s future development.

The Community is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – read news and information or contribute to discussions whenever you like. No matter where you are in the world, as long as you've got an internet connection, you can join in.

Whether you’re new to Q-Pulse, a Q-Pulse guru or just want to find out more about what Gael and Q-Pulse has to offer, you have something to offer – and the Community has something to offer you.

The Community gives you the chance to become part of a network of Q-Pulse users around the world, to share your experience and expertise with the rest of the community, or just to come for a chat, talk to Gael staff and find out what other users think about Q-Pulse.

The Community belongs to you, the user. Go to www.gaelcommunity.com now or email us at community@gaelquality.com to find out how you can become a part of it.

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At Gael, we try to put our strategic vision for compliance management at the heart of everything we do. This is very evident in the recent Version 5.2 release, which contains a whole series of functionality designed specifically to aid compliance adoption within your organisation.

Q-Pulse Version 5.2’s new web interface offers users a web-based front-end for CA/PA, Audit and Escalation through Internet Explorer and an internet connection – without the need for a Q-Pulse client. IT staff can also email the URL of the web interface to occasional or off-site users, instead of requiring installation on client PCs, saving time and storage space.

Our new single sign-on lets you log into Q-Pulse more easily by allowing for one authentication when you log onto your system, meaning fewer passwords to remember and quicker and easier access to your system.

Another time-saving feature is one-click go-to messaging. Previous versions of Q-Pulse sent email notification of compliance management activities and actions, but to log into Q-Pulse and find the event related to the email message could be time consuming. In Q-Pulse Version 5.2, clicking a link in your notification email takes you directly to its related record.

In addition, Version 5.2 helps organisations in the Life Sciences sector to comply with the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) 21 CFR Part 11 requirements for electronic records and electronic signatures, with optional detailed audit traceability and electronic record and signature management.

'One of the key planks of our Q-Pulse strategy is to encourage ownership of and interaction with the compliance function throughout the organisation,’ says Gael's Sales & Marketing Director, Martin Bowman. ‘Version 5.2, with its secure web interface, closer email integration, and enhanced messaging and notification, makes sure we're continuing to make progress towards that objective.'

You can download a copy of our recorded presentation on Version 5.2’s new features, as well as a guidance document that details Version 5.2’s technical requirements from the Customer Zone of our website.

If you’re using Q-Pulse Versions 4.2 or 5.1, you can upgrade directly to Version 5.2. Complete the form below to request your copy now:

http://www.qpulse.com/V52Upgrade.asp

To discuss your upgrade to Version 5.2, contact your Account Manager today:

• Kevin McSharry, for customers in the north of the UK
• Gregor McCall, for customers in the south of the UK
• Alan Hiddleston, for customers outwith the UK

For further details of Version 5.2, contact us now on +44 (0) 1355 593400 or at info@gaelquality.com and experience the new functionality for yourself today.

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Putting it all in place – the Q-Pulse Version 5 Implementation Service

At Gael, we are very conscious of the amount of time, effort and resource required to deliver a successful Version 5 implementation.

As well as maintaining your existing management system, you have to make sure that your Version 5 installation goes according to plan. However, a lack of time could mean that your implementation has to be forced through, which could increase the risk of system-related issues when the system goes live. Limited resources could also mean that the implementation has to be split amongst your staff, taking much longer than planned.

In response to these issues, we launched our Q-Pulse implementation service in June 2006, which we developed to help customers get Version 5 up and running quickly and easily. Now, with more than 250 successful project implementations completed since its launch, our service takes the work out of your implementation by configuring and populating your installation to your requirements.

‘Gael’s experience and expertise were invaluable in getting our project off to a flying start,’ explains Eric Anderson, Group Director of Quality, Simclar Group Ltd. ‘Without their help, our implementation team would have faced a much larger commitment, which would then have impacted elsewhere for us in terms of time, effort and cost.’

‘‘The service helped us to put Q-Pulse in place with the minimum risk,’ adds Eric ‘which made sure that we could manage all tasks required by the project and that the system could be rolled out throughout the company quickly and easily within our specified timeframe.’

The implementation service provides data import and system configuration, importing and formatting your existing system data for use in Q-Pulse, as well as customising your Q-Pulse database to meet the needs of your organisation. On completion of the service, you'll have your data and documentation ready for use in Q-Pulse, configured in your customised database.

Our service helps you both to cut the cost of your implementation and to release resources that can then be reinvested in other areas of your business. By taking the work out of your Version 5 implementation, our service gives your staff more time to get to know the system, giving you more opportunity to improve your business.

In response to these issues, we launched our Q-Pulse implementation service in June 2006, which we developed to help customers get Version 5 up and running quickly and easily. Now, with more than 250 successful project implementations completed since its launch, our service takes the work out of your implementation by configuring and populating your installation to your requirements.

For more information, get in touch with us on +44 (0) 1355 593400 or at info@gaelquality.com, and let us take the work out of your implementation today.

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As you may have noticed from our introduction, business at Gael is very much on the up. With business growth, however, comes the operational challenge of scaling to meet the needs of an expanding customer base.

One area of significant growth within Gael is our involvement in the North American marketplace. As a result, we’re currently seeking business partners with experience in Quality/ISO/Compliance management to enhance our support for customers in Canada and US.

If you or your organisation is based in Canada or the US and can recommend consultants in North America whom you’ve used and to whom you’d be willing to introduce us, we’d love to hear from you. We’re particularly interested to hear from consulting firms with experience in ISO9001, FDA Compliance, Aviation and Information Security.

As well as all the benefits of partnering with Gael, we provide complete professional training in our implementation methodology to make sure that we can work together with consultancy partners in helping our customers throughout North America to implement Q-Pulse.

Contact us now on 0044 1355 593400 or at info@gaelquality.com and give us your recommendations.

For our existing current Gael business partners in North America, visit our website at www.gaelquality.com.

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That's all for this edition of thepulse and we hope you've enjoyed reading. E-mail us at thepulse@gaelquality.com to tell us what you think or to receive more information on any of our featured articles. We’ll be back in June with our next edition, but for regular news and information about the products and services offered by Gael Ltd, visit us at www.gaelquality.com, or join the Community at www.gaelcommunity.com.

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