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Three years in development, the Department of Science and Technology
(DOST) finally rolled out this January its Tests, Analysis, and
Calibration Information System, or TACIS.
The online system shall enable small and medium
enterprises as well as other users, big business included, to more
efficiently and effectively utilize the nationwide network of
laboratories and testing centers in the DOST’s six research and
development institutes and 15 regional offices.
TACIS was launched at the main office of the
DOST’s Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology at the
Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines in Quezon City.
DOST Secretary Estrella Alabastro attended the ceremonies as well as
Commission on Information and Communications Technology Chairman Ray
Anthony Chua 3rd.
TACIS offers two possible long-term consequences
for the Philippines—an enhanced R&D capability for many of the
country’s businesses and a growing acceptance of Open Source for
government computerization projects.
A major part of the DOST’s mandate is to offer
clients scientific testing services in its various laboratories
throughout the country. Those who avail of these are mostly
companies—big, medium-sized and small—which belong to the
Philippine metals, food processing, chemical and industrial
products, nuclear energy, textiles, wood, furniture, construction
and pulp and paper sectors.
A number of other government agencies also use
the services of the DOST’s laboratories. This includes the
Philippine National Police whose Research and Development
Directorate regularly sends to the DOST labs firearms for testing
and calibration.
Thus, the DOST’s various laboratories do an
average of 21,000 testing and calibration jobs yearly to give the
agency an annual income of P29 million.
Programmers at the DOST’s Advanced Science and
Technology Institute developed TACIS to improve access to the
agency’s laboratories. This by reducing processing time for test
requests by 30 percent, data analyses by 50 percent, and report
preparation and release by 35 percent. It is also e-payment ready
even if this functionality still has to undergo testing.
P49 million from the Philippine e-government
fund was used to develop and deploy TACIS, accessible to anyone with
a computer linked to the Internet. Of this amount, 47 percent went
into the purchase of servers, peripherals, and other networking
equipment as well as upgrading of the DOST’s laboratories
nationwide. While 36 percent to develop the TACIS information
system, and the rest for upgrading and extending the agency’s
various local area networks (LANs) that interface with this testing
and calibration system.
TACIS runs on an all Open Source platform
consisting of PHP using Symphony framework, Asynchronous JavaScript
and XML or AJAX, and MySQL. This was done to avoid millions in pesos
more in costs for site licenses and service agreements for
proprietary platforms.
TACIS’ value proposition for Philippine
business is that it enhances the capabilities of Filipino firms to
meet global standards for their products. In other words, to ensure
through proper testing that their products are world-class.
That this was done on Open Source is yet another
blow for its advocates. More of these kinds of systems will develop
greater acceptance of it by Filipinos.
This voluntary choosing of this platform is the
way to go. For Open Source can never be imposed upon Filipinos as
some misguided legislators insist, by decreeing that it be the only
platform for government computerization.
Let Open Source be chosen freely. It does have
its merits.
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