Extend, modernise and mobilise your IBM i ERP system

At the core of the majority of IBM i-based manufacturing businesses is an enterprise resourcing planning (ERP) application. Sadly, a large number of these applications are still accessed by green screens and can be seen by users and senior management as outdated.

Modernising and extending your IBM i ERP system can be a cost-effective way to maximise your investment in the IBM i – and stay on the platform.

BCD Software (now Fresche Solutions) provide a number of IBM i development and modernisation tools for your existing green screen ERP system, as well as any other green screen in your organisation.

They have recorded a webinar which is now available on-demand entitled ‘Extend, modernise and mobilise your IBM i ERP system’, which provides real-world examples of what can be achieved with these tools, including:

• A customer facing order entry application that extends the internal ERP
• A modern, intuitive web GUI for existing ERP green screens
• Mobile applications that improve workflows
• Dashboards that visually display real-time ERP data
• Form overlays and web access for spool files

BCD Software also include a wide range of case study examples of ERP systems that have been modernised using tools such as Presto and WebSmart on their website.

For example, US-based Quest Medical used Presto to web-enable all their green screens without changing a single line of RPG or DDS code. Quest Medical’s IT Manager, Jim Underwood said they used Presto to “web-enable over 2,000 IBM i green screens within our ERP system”. The project included globally converting all their customized menus and subfile navigation keys into clickable links and buttons.

Instead of Presto, Mitsubishi Fuso decided to use WebSmart to develop web applications that tightly integrated with their ERP system. WebSmart enabled them to deliver real-time data and transactions when dealers inquire on the availability of trucks or parts, buy trucks and spare parts, and manage warranty claims. Mitsubishi Fuso is able to present information on the complete life cycle of a truck from the time it is ordered from the factory to when the dealers sell it to an end-user.

Proximity themselves, have also developed an application called Stream (which incidentally takes advantage of BCD Software’s WebSmart PHP and Clover tools as well as Zend Server) that uses the existing data and business logic from your IBM i ERP application and extends it to deliver modern and intuitive web-based sales order management.

This particular functionality has been used by AB World Foods for their Infor BPCS application.