TSI Software's Mercator for R/3 Certified by SAP for EDI and Data Migration Interfaces

Business Wire, Oct 21, 1997

WILTON, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--October 21, 1997--

New Certifications Expand the Role of Mercator for R/3

In Reducing Cost of R/3 Implementation

TSI International Software Ltd. (NASDAQ:TSFW), a leading provider of application integration solutions for SAP(TM) R/3(TM) and other business environments, announced today that SAP AG has certified its Mercator(R) for R/3 product for both EDI and Data Migration (DMI) interfaces to R/3. These new certifications expand the role Mercator for R/3 plays in assisting customers reduce the time, cost and effort of R/3 implementation. TSI Software was previously certified for SAP's Application Link Enabling (ALE) interface, making it the first company to be certified by SAP for all three interfaces (ALE, EDI and DMI).

TSI Software's multiple certifications for R/3 interfaces support the integration objectives of SAP's Business Framework. The Business Framework is an integrated, open, component-based architecture that encompasses R/3 enterprise applications, legacy systems, and third-party products. Mercator for R/3 addresses a core requirement within this framework by enabling the transformation of "application content" between R/3 and other systems without writing programs. The net result is reduced reliance on ABAP and other programming languages, faster R/3 implementation, and reduced cost for ongoing interface maintenance.

This core requirement to transform application content, and the savings that can accrue from using Mercator for R/3, apply to all three SAP interfaces. ALE is a message-based architecture for R/3 co-existence with other applications within the enterprise. EDI provides connectivity to partner applications outside the enterprise. DMI supports the initial transfer of large volumes of data into an R/3 system.

"The ability to leverage a single tool, such as Mercator for R/3, across multiple interface and data conversion requirements means a greater return on customer investment in R/3 as a business and technology infrastructure," stated Rick Pitts, director of SAP America's Complementary Software Program. "TSI Software has clearly proven its ability to address the integration needs of our customers with respect to ALE. As we open R/3's architecture to accommodate integration with other applications and data formats, multi-purpose tools such as Mercator for R/3 take on added value."

Mercator for R/3 is in use at more than fifty R/3 customer sites including Eastman Kodak, Hoechst, Lucent Technologies and Nestle. It has been selected by SAP for R/3 compliance with the integration standards of the Open Applications Group (OAG), and by Price Waterhouse as its tool of choice for R/3 interface and data conversion projects. Mercator for R/3 has also been selected by a number of best-of-breed application vendors to integrate their offerings with R/3, including American Express Purchasing Card Division, Catalyst, Citibank, CrossRoads Software, IBM Retail, Logility, Software Mobility and others.

"EDI and DMI certification for Mercator for R/3 is further recognition of the strength of the core Mercator technology on which our R/3 offering is based," noted Connie Galley, president and CEO of TSI Software. "Mercator's capabilities as a true `any to any' mapping tool makes it an ideal fit with the R/3 environment where there are multiple approaches to interfacing and data conversion. It is a perfect complement to SAP's AcceleratedSAPV(TM) rapid implementation program and other initiatives designed to speed R/3 implementation."

Mercator for R/3 features a graphical mapping environment that provides a cost-effective alternative to writing or generating data conversion and interface programs. It provides an open technical environment that allows it be used in combination with file-based, database, or message based integration architectures. A variety of data sources and destinations can be interfaced directly to R/3 including flat files of any format, relational databases, application program buffers, and message queuing systems such as IBM's MQSeries and Microsoft MQ.

For ALE and EDI interfaces, integration is enabled through SAP Intermediate Documents (IDocs), a standard format for the exchange of R/3 data. For DMI interfaces, data is passed to R/3 using Data Transfer Object (DXOB) format. Mercator for R/3 automatically creates complete graphical descriptions of IDoc and DXOB formats, substantially reducing the time and effort of map creation.

ALE is SAP's strategic architecture for "loose coupling" of R/3 with legacy and third-party applications and is a key element of the Business Framework. ALE provides a message-based architecture for asynchronous integration of Business Framework components including Business Components, Business Objects and BAPIs. EDI interfaces are file-based connections to R/3 which support basic EDI requirements of R/3 customers. DMI interfaces support customer requirements for batch transfer of large files of legacy data into an R/3 system during initial implementation.