NEWS/EVENTS
SAGA IMPLEMENTS PORTAL ACCESS TO MAINFRAME FOR AUSTRIAN TREASURY DEPARTMENT
14,000 Employees will Access Mainframe-Based Applications via Internet
DALLAS, TEXAS (JULY 8, 2003) OpenConnect Systems, Inc., the pioneer of secure mainframe-to-web solutions and SAGA D.C., an independent consulting and development company, today announced that Bundesrechezentrum GmbH is implementing OpenConnect’s WebConnect application to provide a secure connection between company’s mainframes and its business portal. WebConnect enables companies to provide individuals with a secure persistent connection to mainframe information and applications through a web browser. OpenConnect’s patented persistent connection supports tens of thousands of concurrent browser-based users, including customers, partners, and employees.
Approximately 14,000 employees of the Treasury Administration and an additional 4,000 members of the Federal Authorities will use WebConnect and the secure single sign-on functionality provided by SAGA to access various IBM mainframe applications from anywhere, anytime. The Bundesrechezentrum GmbH, a conventional IT service provider for the Austrian Federal Administration, is the technical operator of this new, innovative portal-based business solution. The initial pilot will cost approximately €700,000 and the Treasury Department will be adding additional users in the months ahead as part of a phased rollout. WebConnect will provide Treasury Administration users secure access to critical business applications via a browser, thus enabling them to access vital information more efficiently.
The WebConnect solution deployed by Bundesrechezentrum GmbH includes load balancing functionality called “SAGAM7,” which was developed by SAGA. This load-balancing component is vital to making the solution highly available and fail-proof for the 14,000 users on various platforms.
The Benefits of Secure Portal-Based Access to Mainframe Information
Michael Wickenhauser, product manager of “Portal Austria Services” at Bundesrechezentrum GmbH, sees a number of advantages of deploying the portal-based access solution. These key advantages include: cost reductions; flexible browser-based access for local and mobile users; and secure access to business information.
As a result of deploying WebConnect, Mr. Wickenhauser believes he will see improvements in the working environment of users, enabling them to easily access their personalized application menu without having to remember multiple passwords and addresses. The savings in administration costs will be significant, since new staff can be added and departing staff removed from the system simply by pressing a button.
E-Government as a Guiding Strategy
This project is part of a broader strategy being executed by the Treasury Department to have all future IT solutions integrated into a web portal. Bundesrechezentrum GmbH believes this is being driven by a trend in public administration towards the adoption of task-based processes.
“Task-based processes require an individual to have secure access to a growing number of applications in order to complete a given task,” said Harald Neumann, managing director of applications and IT infrastructure at Bundesrechezentrum GmbH. “Thus, it will be necessary to efficiently authorize and provide users with access to an increasing number of applications. The Single Sign On (SS0) solution and the portal technology we are using are an ideal means by which to accomplish this.”
About OpenConnect Systems, Inc. OpenConnect Systems is a leading supplier of secure solutions that Web-enable host applications. OpenConnect offers a family of scalable software solutions that provide secure, high-performance browser-based access to applications and data. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas the company’s products are distributed in over 60 countries worldwide. For more information on OpenConnect, visit our Website at http://www.oc.com.
About SAGA Founded in 1988, SAGA D.C. GmbH with headquarters in Alzey, Germany is an independent consulting and development company with a focus on systems integration for IBM AS/400 iSeries and mainframe environments. The business focus is on business applications including HR and financial applications as well as e-Business and e-government. Core areas of the company’s integration expertise include web to host implementation, single sign-on, and software and output management. For more information on SAGA, visit our Website at http://www.sagadc.de.