Leading cloud CTRM vendor Aspect launched the most powerful version yet of its AspectCTRM trade and risk management platform incorporating key new functionality for metals and concentrates. The new functionality complements AspectCTRM’s base metals and steel capabilities and features specific to the London Metals Exchange.

New concentrates functionality in version 15.1 of the AspectCTRM solution includes:

Support for moisture content and tracking of wet and dry quantities.
Ability to capture and track multiple payable metals contained in the concentrate, allowing each metal to be valued and marked to market using separate price curves and quote periods.
Support for anticipated and real assays.
Ability to record and track treatment charges and value them against their own forward curve, including price participation functionality
Management of complex pricing and penalties.
Mark to market for treatment charges, refining charges, penalties and more.
Drill down into P&L reports to identify changes in P&L.
In addition to concentrates functionality the new release includes a total of 72 major improvements and enhancements including refinery nominations, new agricultural and grains functionality, simplified price curve reporting and field level access control for custom fields.

Other significant elements of the upgrade are support for iron ore and related moisture levels as well as an enhanced logistics module, improved reporting and mapping capabilities, an ability to track P&L and logistics costs through the supply chain, a new Russian language user interface, and a fully customizable menu structure for ease of use.

Many of the usability improvements are the result of Aspect’s AESthetics program which creates a streamlined, multi-commodity, scalable trading and risk platform that can be configured and deployed without highly specialist industry knowledge. Unique to Aspect, AESthetics is in contrast to other solutions which require implementation either by the vendor’s own team, or by large and expensive consultancy firms.

The new version 15.1 comes as Aspect enters its 15th year. The company pioneered ETRM in the cloud in year 2000, initially in the energy sector. It has since moved into metals, softs, biofuels and agriculturals, gone on to gain some 500 customer organizations in 90 countries and has won a cluster of industry awards for its technology. In 2014 it celebrated its strongest ever financial year, taking more business than any other vendor in the trade and risk space.