Special technology report
Cloud/Software as a Service
Bright outlook Manufacturing & Logistics IT spoke with a number of leading players within the Cloud/Software as a Service solutions and services arena about recent developments within this increasingly talked about and embraced deployment model.
t doesn’t seem so long ago when the terms
“SaaS is quickly scalable; you can add users
software on each
Cloud and Software as a Service (SaaS) were
and functionality in seconds,” he said. “Because
workstation, even at
fresh off the press and, to a large extent, not
it is based on a standard environment, the
home. Additionally,
fully understood by many prospective end
management is easy and cheaper than on-
Hughes comments
users in various vertical marketplaces. Things
premise environments. SaaS enables you to free
that SaaS offers
have certainly changed considerably over the
up local resources to concentrate on your
greater ease of use as
past two or three years. Now there is a growing
business rather than the IT management of
customers are paying
portfolio of solutions available in the Cloud, and
complicated platforms to run your critical
for a service and
an increasingly widespread group of users are
business systems. You are leaving it to the
receive updates
becoming more aware of the benefits the
experts to manage. It also takes care of a large
automatically.
Cloud/SaaS deployment model can offer their
chunk of your disaster recovery plan with very
businesses. Indeed, many are becoming
little further effort as essentially you have
Gavin Clark,
increasingly confident about embracing it as a
outsourced your critical, complex and
commercial director at
core element within their IT methodologies. But,
complicated-to-manage systems. This is not only
Snapfulfil, maintains that SaaS allows companies
as with any area of valuable and widely utilised
in terms of management but also geography, as
to utilise highly sophisticated software solutions
technology, developments continue apace. To
access to your system is no longer governed by
within their operations, deployed from ‘state of
plot many of these recent changes and
a location.”
the art’ data centres, with first-class levels of
I
Charlie Pesti, country manager,
response and support – and all delivered in a
enhancements, we spoke with some of the
condensed timeframe and at a cost effective
leading vendors and service providers within the Cloud/SaaS space to discuss everything from
Ease of use
subscription. He adds that accessing this level of
current benefits for the manufacturing and
And what of the financial benefits? Charlie Pesti,
resiliency and security for a single system is
logistics sectors, to remaining concerns and
country manager at Transporeon, makes the
usually only available to the major corporate
reservations, as well as a look into the near future
point that the SaaS model can offer a
businesses. “In some cases, when the SaaS
and what further developments and resultant
significantly quicker return on investment.
deployment model is fully embraced by the
benefits might await readers of this journal.
“Everyone pays as they go,” he said. Pesti
vendor and the implementation services are
added that business conditions change faster
provided as part of the monthly subscription,
But, to begin, let’s
each year, and this scenario requires more
then the removal of cost barriers makes for an
consider what our
mobility, flexibility and up-to-date information.
even greater benefit,” he said. Clark also
commentators
“Users need to get access to global information
commented that cash flow and borrowing
consider to be the key
and need to be able to edit those regardless of
difficulties are major factors for small- to medium-
benefits of the
their geographical locations, regardless of the
sized businesses at the moment and can
Software as a service
spoken language and regardless of the device
prevent many businesses from accessing the
(SaaS) deployment
they actually have on hand,” he remarked. Again
systems they need to drive growth. “SaaS helps
model. Mark Breeden,
focusing on the financial benefits, Johnny
to break this ‘Catch 22’ for all sizes of
general manager at
Hughes, commercial manager at Ortec, makes
operations,” he commented.
Qurius, considers that
the point that the SaaS model eliminates the
the main advantages
need for large, upfront investments. Furthermore,
Division of responsibility
are flexibility,
he adds that the total costs of ownership (TCO)
Are there any notable pitfalls or constraints
scalability and pricing.
are lower as there is no need to install the
associated with SaaS deployment? Breeden
Gavin Clark, commercial director,
10
IT
MANUFACTURING
&LOGISTICS
December 2012
www.logisticsit.com