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J.D. Edwards & Co. last week announced three software and service bundles for IBMs eServer iSeries that are intended to help businesses expedite implementation of JDE software.
The trio of preintegrated applications covering manufacturing, distribution and financials will enable businesses to install the latest JDE 5 collaborative enterprise software up to 50 percent faster on IBM eServer iSeries computers, officials said.
JDE 5 is enterprise resource planning software that includes customer relationship management, supply chain management, supplier relationship management and business intelligence applications.
The three new bundles for manufacturing, distribution and financials include a preconfigured setup, collaborative computing in a single-server environment, and consulting and education services.
The preconfigured setups are geared toward alleviating configuration errors. At the same time, the bundles also take advantage of IBMs Capacity Upgrade on Demand offering, which lets users activate one or more central processors of an iSeries when they need them—and turn them off when they dont.
“It looks like [a JDE-IBM bundle] would save implementation time, and thats one of the things we struggle with,” said Lou Ann Poe, IT manager at Meggitt Safety Systems Inc. The Simi Valley, Calif., company has a combined JDE and IBM shop. “The software is not really the costly or prohibitive part. Its the implementation and the upgrade. It costs a lot to have someone come in and implement.”
Poe said she doesnt think her company would buy the bundle because it already owns enough servers to do a software upgrade. However, she said it would be attractive to a company that is switching to JDE software.
The software and service bundles are the next step in a long-term relationship between JDE, of Denver, and IBM, of Armonk, N.Y.
The JDE 5 software and service bundles are planned for general availability in March, with a phased rollout starting in North America. Other technology platforms are planned for rollout this year and next year.