Frequently Asked Questions

Astérion Solutions inc. is an ecosystem of applications for Quebec's manufacturing industry: dimensional inspection reports (Asterion Report), ISO 9001 quality management system (Asterion QMS) and measuring instrument fleet management (Asterion Gage). More applications are added progressively. All are accessible via a single account (SSO) and share common data.

Asterion is designed primarily for Quebec and Canadian machining and manufacturing SMEs (10-50 employees): precision machining shops, ISO 9001 certified companies, metal fabrication shops, and independent inspectors. Our tools support over 100 international standards (ISO, ASME, AWS, ASTM, API, CSA).

All Asterion applications are fully bilingual French/English.

Yes, Astérion Solutions inc. is a Quebec company based in Sainte-Victoire-de-Sorel (Sorel-Tracy region). Our servers are hosted on Google Cloud (Firebase) in the Montreal (Canada) data center, where AI processing also takes place. The company is operated as a solopreneur, which guarantees agility and affordable prices for SMEs.

Astérion Solutions inc. uses Firebase Auth as a centralized authentication system. Once logged into the Hub, you automatically access all applications your organization is subscribed to. Permissions are managed via Custom Claims that define your role and access.

Yes, Asterion QMS covers 14 of the 25 main clauses of ISO 9001:2015, including: risk management (6.1), quality objectives (6.2), resources and competencies (7.1-7.2), document control (7.5), customer requirements (8.2), supplier control (8.4), non-conformities (8.7, 10.2), internal audits (9.2), management review (9.3), and continual improvement (10.3).

The QMS is structured around 5 pillars aligned with ISO 9001: REACT (red) - non-conformities, CAPA, OHS events; ANTICIPATE (orange) - risk analysis, preventive actions; IMPROVE (green) - opportunities, improvement projects; PILOT (blue) - KPIs, audits, management review; CONTROL (teal) - personnel, training, suppliers, metrology, DMS.

The NC workflow includes 6 statuses: OPEN (detection), IN_ANALYSIS (root cause analysis with 5 Whys or Ishikawa), ACTION_PLANNED (corrective actions planned), IN_CORRECTION (implementation), PENDING_VERIFICATION (effectiveness verification), CLOSED (closure). NCs can be created from QMS or Report.

The ISO audit cockpit guides preparation in 4 phases: PREPARATION (-12 to -8 weeks) - procedure review and mapping; INTERNAL AUDIT (-8 to -4 weeks) - audit program, checklists, findings; MANAGEMENT REVIEW (-4 to 0 weeks) - agenda, input data, decisions; FOLLOW-UP (+0 to +8 weeks) - action progress and effectiveness verification.

Risk analysis uses the RPN (Risk Priority Number) method: RPN = Severity × Occurrence × Detection. Each factor is rated from 1 to 10. The risk workflow follows statuses: IDENTIFIED → IN_PROGRESS → MITIGATED → ACCEPTED → CLOSED. Preventive actions are automatically linked to identified risks.

Asterion Report is a dimensional inspection report generation tool with high-performance automatic extraction. 95% dimension detection and 88% perfect without any correction — tested on 1000+ reports in real production. It automatically extracts dimensions, tolerances and GD&T symbols from your technical drawings and generates professional reports.

Our automatic extraction achieves 95% detection rate for dimensions and tolerances, and 88% are perfect without any correction. These performance metrics were measured on 1000+ reports in real production at a reference client (machining shop, 30 machinists). The 2-step validation process enables near 100% final accuracy.

Asterion Report recognizes the 14 GD&T symbols of the ASME Y14.5 standard: flatness, straightness, circularity, cylindricity, line profile, surface profile, parallelism, perpendicularity, angularity, position, concentricity, symmetry, circular runout, and total runout.

Extraction analyzes your technical drawings in 2 steps: 1) Automatic recognition of dimension areas with 95% detection, 2) Interpretation of tolerances and GD&T symbols. The system offers 2-step validation (supervisor then admin) to ensure accuracy before generating the final report.

Yes. Multiple users can work simultaneously on the same report, see changes in real time and leave comments.

Not 100% — and that is not its purpose. OCR reads handwriting to save you transcription time, but it can make mistakes, omit values or invent incorrect ones. Its accuracy depends directly on scan quality, handwriting legibility and the number of pages submitted. Every value read must be verified by a human. Asterion is designed first and foremost for direct entry by the operator or inspector; handwritten import is only an aid to ease the rollout of digital tools on the shop floor.

On import, each page of your sheet is converted to an image and analyzed independently by an AI model, which reads the handwritten values and places them back into the correct inspection table using the printed row numbers and specifications on the form. We ran dozens of tests to arrive at this architecture (page-by-page processing, content anchoring), which limits errors and prevents the system from inventing rows that are not on paper. This reduces the risk without eliminating it: human verification of every value remains essential.

Each application offers a 60-day free trial, with no volume restriction and no credit card, so you can test with your real drawings. At the end of the trial, nothing is billed automatically: you choose to subscribe, or your data remains exportable for 90 days.

Our prices are public on the Pricing page: Gage $99, QMS $199, Report $299, Suite Atelier $449 and Praxis $599 per month, unlimited users. No quote to request: you know what it costs before you write to us.

Our prices are before taxes. Billing automatically calculates taxes according to your province: GST+QST in Quebec (14.975%), HST in Ontario (13%), GST+PST in BC (12%), etc. Billing is managed via Stripe.

COMPANY is for organizations with multiple users and role hierarchy. INDEPENDENT is a solo mode for consultants/freelancers/independent inspectors. An independent can upgrade to COMPANY if they need to add collaborators.

Yes, each application is independent but they share common data through a single account (SSO). Non-conformities detected in Report are automatically visible in QMS. You build your ecosystem according to your needs.

Common data (clients, products, drawings, personnel, non-conformities) is automatically shared between all Asterion applications. Non-conformities created in Report are automatically visible in QMS for the complete workflow.

Yes, each module allows data export in CSV or PDF. Inspection reports generate professional PDFs. A complete export (backup) feature is available for administrators.

API access is available on request for main applications. Contact us to discuss your integration needs.

Asterion uses a 6-level hierarchy: PLATFORM_ADMIN (global SuperAdmin), ORG_OWNER (organization owner), ORG_ADMIN (administrator), EMPLOYEE (employee), SUPPLIER (multi-org supplier), CLIENT (read-only client). Each application can have additional roles (INSPECTOR, AUDITOR, MANAGER).

Yes, the multi-tenant architecture guarantees complete isolation. Each piece of data is associated with your organization. The system systematically verifies that the user belongs to the organization before authorizing access.

Yes, Asterion respects GDPR principles and Quebec's Law 25: data minimization, right to erasure, data portability, and explicit consent. Data is hosted on Google Cloud in Montreal. Our privacy policy details the processing of personal data.

Firebase Firestore performs continuous automatic backups. In case of subscription cancellation, data is retained for 90 days (grace period) before permanent deletion, with the possibility of export.

Asterion Report uses proprietary technologies for dimension extraction. Processing is designed according to the data minimization principle: only areas selected by the user are processed, without the overall drawing context. Data is not retained after processing and is never used to improve external systems.

The user is responsible for the data they submit. For automated processing functions, they must comply with the usage rules: never submit an entire drawing, never include nomenclatures, title blocks, client names or part numbers. Only areas containing dimensional data should be selected.

Automated processing results are provided for informational purposes. Human verification is mandatory before any use. The user remains responsible for the final validation of any automatically extracted data. Astérion Solutions inc. cannot be held liable for errors not verified by the user.

I answer personally — by email and phone, usually the same day. No three-tier ticket system: you write, I reply. Documentation and tutorials are included for everyone.

By email: contact@solutions-asterion.com. Support is available in French and English. For Premium and Enterprise customers, live chat is accessible from the application.

Yes, we offer complete PDF documentation for each application. In-person training in Quebec is also possible for organizations that wish it. The QMS includes a training management module for your team.

Use the contact form in the application or send an email to support. Feature suggestions are evaluated monthly and the most requested are integrated into our roadmap.