SA organisations participate in ramp-up, early delivery of SAP's next-generation ERP solution

South African organisations have participated in the ramp-up and delivery ahead of schedule of the definitive version of mySAP ERP 2004, the new-generation enterprise resource planning (ERP) suite of solutions from business solutions giant, SAP, that will permanently change the business applications landscape.

mySAP ERP is based on SAP's advanced integration platform, NetWeaver, and therefore signals the business applications industry's evolution away from simply automating end-to-end processes within an organisation to extending processes beyond the enterprise to its entire ecosystem of customers, suppliers and partners.

Because NetWeaver provides an infrastructure for cross-functional business processes, mySAP ERP is able to provide companies with a single solution that enables companies to both increase efficiency and manage the innovation and growth of the organisation.

In addition, the solution incorporates what SAP calls enterprise services architecture (ESA) - an advance on Web services architecture. Web services architecture integrates technology and software at the level of specific functions within larger business processes. ESA integrates software and technology at the level of business processes themselves. It therefore puts at customers' disposal the full potential of information technology to create operational and strategic synergies.

Enterprise services-enabled processes already embedded in mySAP ERP include invoices in electronic bill presentment and payment; recruiting and enterprise learning; shop floor integration; process collaboration via cFolders; radio frequency identification (RFID) in inventory and warehouse management; document exchange in self-service procurement and requisition; collaborative project management; and supplier collaboration in the area of procurement.

mySAP ERP also incorporates comprehensive analysis, forecasting and reporting tools that support all standard ERP processes such as human capital management, financial operations and corporate services - adding real-time data analysis capabilities to ERP's traditional back-office role.

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And, new role templates provide appropriate applications, information and services to specific user groups - ranging from job-specific ones, such as plant manager, to general roles, such as employee or manager. Apart from making the solution easier to use, they significantly increase user productivity and solution adoption.

Being such a radical advance on old-style business applications, this version of mySAP ERP has been in a ramp-up stage for close on a year, with more than 200 customers worldwide, including Absa, volunteering to help test the product as a quid quo pro for getting early access to its superior flexibility and performance improvement capabilities.

In addition, the Land Bank, another South African bank, an industrial manufacturer and a utility have already signed contracts for the new version of SAP ERP. Globally, more than 1 000 organisations have signed new mySAP ERP contracts.

Says SAP Africa's manufacturing solution manager, Freek Malherbe: "Having 200 customers who want to get involved in ramp-up proves how much demand there is for new-generation ERP functionality. And the fact that ramp-up and shipping were completed a month ahead of schedule - an extraordinarily rare occurrence in the software industry - testifies to mySAP ERP's stability and speed of implementation.

"Having South African companies contribute to the evolution and maturation of ERP with us indicates that businesses in this country are thoroughly alert to the beneficial implications of new business models. They're very much part of an international mindset that is taking business to new levels of efficiency and responsiveness - and that bodes well for the sustained growth of the South African economy."