SAP has released version seven of its business applications software suite aimed at enterprises.
According to the vendor, SAP Business Suite 7, which is enabled by service-oriented architecture (SOA), offers 2800 enterprise services for flexible, modular development of processes. These allow customers to create industry-specific end-to-end processes that cut across application boundaries; ease upgrades and reduce IT costs with SAP enhancement packages; and capture growth opportunities through embedded analytics tools.
There are 150 functional enhancements and additions to SAP Business Suite 7 including new process collaboration and shared services capabilities to help organisations manage complex financial and supply chain processes more easily.
Other key features include: Enhancement packages allowing customers to select the functionality they need without having to upgrade; harmonised user interfaces to deliver a consistent user experience over multiple applications; embedded analytics tools across demand, production, inventory, sales and supplier activities; and improved software lifecycle management through integration with the SAP NetWeaver technology platform.
SAP’s Solution manager application also gives administrators tools to implement content changes to SAP Business Suite applications, which reduces downtime, accelerates implementations and reduces the total cost of ownership of the IT landscape, the vendor claims. The suite also has a Value Scenarios focus to address industry-specific business issues, and expanded industry-specific processes to deal with critical business requirements across supply chain and warehousing, logistics, manufacturing and trading. For example, SAP Business Suite 7 offers investigative case management, tax and revenue management for public sector organisations, as well as advanced metering infrastructure compliance tools for the utility sector.
In a statement, SAP said more than 300 customers across 37 countries and various industries participated in the six-month ramp-up program for SAP Business Suite 7. As a result, several customers are already using the software offering in live production environments.
