IOCORE provides SMEs with SAP best practices in 60 days

IOCORE, local IT solutions provider, is partnering with small and medium enterprises (SMEs), adding value to their businesses through SAP hosting, using its application service provider (ASP) model known as the SAP Preconfigured Client as a vehicle.

"SAP R/3 is the world`s leading enterprise resource management software and the choice of Fortune 500 companies," says Gerry Nel, IOCORE General Manager, SAP Solutions. "IOCORE`s implementation of the Preconfigured Client model makes this software available to SMEs and enables them to enjoy the benefits of R/3 for a minimum investment."

SAP`s Preconfigured Client (PCC) offers SMEs the opportunity to run their business processes using SAP R/3 applications, which cover all aspects of their companies` operations, including financial accounting, asset management, investment management, controlling, materials management, sales and distribution, production planning and the project system.

Nel says many SMEs are unable to expand their businesses and diversify their service offerings because they do not have the technical infrastructure, in-house skills and support to do so.

"SMEs are generally using off-the-shelf or home-grown technology that does not provide their companies with a competitive growth path." He says PCC is a mature, tested, fully functional SAP system that can be expanded to suit company growth and process changes.

IOCORE uses PCC as the starting point for a SAP project. "PCC gives a significant head start to any SME that wants to implement SAP by providing a preconfigured, tested SAP environment in which many business processes run out of the box," says Nel. "Clients have to adjust or fit their business processes to those of the PCC, but in most cases they generally modify them to suit those offered by the SAP system during normal implementation and upgrade projects."

According to Nel, PCC reduces the implementation time required by a traditional or Classic SAP ASP roll-out. "The PCC cuts Classic SAP ASP implementation time by 30%, reducing it to an average of two months. It also halves the number of staff required on a project team."

SAP licences under the ASP model are rented from IOCORE for a fixed monthly fee per user. The complete environment and associated support functions are provided on a monthly retainer. As part of IOCORE`s ASP programme, state-of-the-art SAP servers are deployed in a special hosting centre, from where they are linked to the client`s sites via a high-speed wide area network (WAN).

"IOCORE aims the PCC programme at SMEs with 50 users or less, and provides them with ongoing hosting and support services, enabling them to focus on their core business," says Nel.

He says that IOCORE also classifies a SME by its annual turnover, between R50 million and R150 million, and targets SMEs that trade predominantly in consumer products and which specialise in manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and milling.

"IOCORE is focusing on growing its SAP user-base and the PCC offers IOCORE the opportunity to penetrate the local SME market," says Nel. He says although SMEs have had the opportunity to implement SAP ASP solutions in the past 18 months, this is proving to be a challenge.

"SMEs still need to be educated about SAP ASP models, how these work and the associated benefits. This process needs to be practical, hands-on and demonstrated in an actual work environment."

IOCORE is a certified SAP hosting, service and ASP partner, and has been providing SAP R/3 consulting, implementation and hosting services to the South African industry since 1995.

"IOCORE currently hosts and supports over 1 000 SAP users nationally and has been doing SAP hosting longer than any other SAP ASP partner in SA," says Nel.