IBM has launched a platform for small- to medium-sized
businesses (SMBs) adopting Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
applications.
Designed specifically for customers with 100 users or less, the
solution is based on IBM's 'all-in-one' System i business computing
platform, which the company claims delivers a comparable
acquisition cost to analogous Windows-based solutions.
IBM says the System i 520 Solution Edition for Oracle's JD
Edwards EnterpriseOne provides SMBs, for the first time, with a
solution that is similarly priced to a comparable configuration on
Windows-based systems like Dell PowerEdge.
Key functions include asset lifecycle, customer relationship,
financial, human capital, project, supplier and supply chain
management. The platform delivers a combination of integration and
open standards with built-in security, virus resistance, database
and storage as well as systems management.
This means, says the company, that SMBs can run programs to
manage their accounting, supply chain, email, and disaster recovery
all on one system that automatically backs up and helps manage the
data.
"SMBs typically operate in lean environments with little or no
IT personnel and limited resources. Some of these customers have
previously selected Windows-based environments to support their JD
Edwards applications, believing it was the most economical choice,
then found themselves acting as the systems integrators for their
business as they managed multiple servers and added the operating
system and storage they needed to make the solution actually run,"
says Mark Shearer, general manager of IBM System i.
"Today's announcement removes price from the equation, giving
SMBs a simpler ERP solution that requires minimal technical
expertise."
The IBM System i 520 Solution Edition for Oracle's JD Edwards
EnterpriseOne applications will be available from 11 August, with
hardware configurations starting at $21,921 (UK pricing to be
confirmed).