01 Dec An OpenEdge Cloud Migration Success Story: The Case of proALPHA ray
The digitalization trend is hard to miss: More and more companies are migrating their business processes into the cloud. proALPHA has acknowledged this trend as well: the provider of one of the leading ERP solutions for the SME sector in Germany was facing the challenge of having to migrate an existing and rich software architecture into the cloud. But how to migrate a complex software, that has been growing steadily since the 1990s, into the cloud while avoiding the pitfalls of significant reprogramming costs and difficult adaptions for users?
To meet this challenge, proALPHA turned to us. Thanks to our our innovative SkinClient, we were able to make a crucial contribution to migrating proALPHA to the cloud. The result is called proALPHA ray, and it was gradually rolled out this year. On their website, proALPHA calls their new product a „real breakthrough“ and „technological milestone.“
With ray, users can access their company's proALPHA from any location, in a familiar environment and without major changes or losses in efficiency. In light oft he novel context, the user interface has been modernized, yet remains familiar, relying on proven patterns. There are no changes to the software's structure: No user needs to adapt, and there is no need for special training sessions.
proALPHA ray runs on HTML5 and is thus compatible with all common web browsers. Users gain in flexibility and mobility. At the same time, the effort required for updates is significantly reduced. Additionally, companies can scale without significant additional investments. They can either host the software and database on their own server, or outsource hosting entirely to proALPHA, simplifying management to individual workstations.
How did proALPHA meet this challenge?
One important component of this "technological milestone" is our SkinClient, which enables innovative interaction between proALPHA and common web browsers, resulting in a completely new user experience. The SkinClient essentially replicates the familiar proALPHA interface within the web browser. It thus ensures the smooth communication of data and events between this new frontend and the traditional proALPHA backend.
Complex installation procedures on new workstations are no longer necessary, time-consuming software updates are eliminated. Customers are also able to reduce expenses in technical administration and licensing. Users enjoy more flexibility and mobility without having to adapt to a new software environment. Despite the migration to the cloud, the familiar logic is retained – even business-specific software customizations can be retained. There is thus no need for an additional alignment of in-house processes with proALPHA ray - the onboarding process is kept short. Thanks to the SkinClient, migrating to the cloud is a smooth process for proALPHA users. On the other side, as a cloud software, proALPHA ray benefits from a new level of connectivity to online services and tools, and it stands out for its technological openness to innovations.
The challenge of migrating a complex and well-established software like proALPHA to the cloud was immense. We at IAP are very proud of our contribution to this remarkable success story.
If you'd like to learn more about the SkinClient and its innovative potential, feel free to use our contact formula or send us an e-mail! We also offer webinars on this and other products.
About proALPHA
For more than three decades, proALPHA has been the digital sparring partner for SMEs at 65 locations worldwide. The powerful ERP core and add-on solutions from proALPHA and its partners form the digital backbone of the entire value chain of more than 9,700 customers worldwide - companies from industrial manufacturing, wholesale and other industries. You can find more information on the proALPHA website.
About IAP
IAP GmbH has been a reliable partner for consulting and solving technical tasks since 1992. The focus of our work is on OpenEdge, whether in the proALPHA environment or with numerous customers. With our 45 employees, we are a leading partner of Progress in the area of OpenEdge. Further information can be found here.
Alexander Siemann, 29.11.2023