IBM purchases service provider on integration of cloud applicaions

Now many companies aim at reduction of complexity and cost reduction for increase in flexibility and dynamism of their business. For this purpose many enterprises use key business applications according to the SaaS model and using cloud-Wednesday. According to forecasts of IBM company, the world market of technologies of cloud computing will grow from 47 billion dollars in 2008 to 126 billion dollars by 2012.

The main problem which the companies face, using delivery patterns on the basis of technologies of cloud computing, consists in integration of the systems working in their data processing centers into new cloud applicaions. Earlier it required labor-consuming programming. Technologies of Cast Iron Systems company allow IBM to integrate quickly the applications of clients run in "cloud" environments with their systems unrolled directly in the organizations. Besides, this acquisition expands possibilities of IBM in use of hybrid model of cloud computing which allows to approve data of internal applications with data from the public and private cloud-systems.

Expanding the portfolio with technologies Cast Iron Systems, IBM will be able to offer clients the full-function platform for integration of cloud applicaions from such suppliers as Salesforce.com, Amazon, NetSuite and ADP with traditional business applications from such vendors as SAP and JD Edwards. Use of the solutions Cast Iron Systems with hundreds of the built-in templates in combination with its professional services will give to clients the chance to appear from custom programming within integration projects and will allow to execute integration of cloud-applications in days, but not in weeks or months.

According to Craig Heymen (Craig Hayman), the general product manager of IBM WebSphere, integration problems which solution is proposed by Cast Iron Systems are critical for clients who look for ways of implementation of alternative delivery patterns for management of the businesses. Consolidation of opportunities of IBM and Cast Iron Systems will promote application integration simplification and irrespective of where these applications are unrolled. It will give to clients big flexibility, dynamism and speed of adaptation, and, as a result, will improve aggregate financial results.

So, for example, using Cast Iron Systems technologies the distributor of pharmaceutical products of Amerisource Bergen Specialty Group connected the business system by Salesforce of CRM with the corporate data warehouse unrolled in the company. The solution of this task allowed to provide to customer service access to the reliable operational information necessary for service improvement and also to achieve annual economy of costs in the amount of 250 thousand dollars.

Similarly, the division of Alliaze Cast Iron Systems company which is engaged in corporate insurance integrated a business system of Salesforce of CRM with internal applications for underwriting to give to the staff of service of sales an opportunity of operating control over process of prolongation of contracts, and to the management of service – information on key performance indicators.

According to Ken of Komi (Ken Comee), the president and the chief executive officer of Cast Iron Systems, having become a part of IBM, the Cast iron Systems company will be able to offer clients broader spectrum of the software, services and hardware for support of their environments of cloud computing and other IT initiatives.

Cast Iron Systems, private company from Mountain View, the State of California, implemented thousands of projects of application integration and services of cloud computing for clients from the sphere of financial services, media, show business and retail worldwide. Among clients of Cast Iron Systems there are such companies and the organizations as Allianz, NEC, Peet's Coffee & Tea, Dow Jones, Schumacher Group, ShoreTel, Sports Authority, Time Warner, Westmont University and others.

IBM is going to develop Cast Iron Systems technologies and to support her clients, at the same time giving them opportunities uses of an extensive product portfolio and services of IBM. About 75 employees of Cast Iron Systems will be a part of IBM. Since 2003 the division of IBM Software Group purchased over 55 companies.