Server brings SAP to Web-ready mobile devices

By Andrew R. Hickey, News Writer 15 Feb 2006 | SearchMobileComputing.com

SAP news, tips and expert advice Digg This!     StumbleUpon     Del.icio.us

With the growing number of mobile professionals, it's only fitting that they be able to make more critical business decisions from their mobile devices.

Just because an engineer is out in the field or a manager is on the road does not mean that work has to stop.  Alon Raskin Principal,  3i Consulting

And SAP, a widely popular maker of client- and server-based business software, specifically enterprise resource planning software, can now be as close as a cell phone.

3i Consulting Group has rolled out the Mobile Workplace Server, which extends the SAP Business Workplace to any web-enabled mobile device from BlackBerry, Palm, Pocket PC to a host of others. SAP users can access SAP Workflow to execute any decision-based task from anywhere, including purchase orders, requisition releases, invoice approvals and quality notification reviews. Users receive an e-mail on their device and make the decision there. The information is immediately sent to the SAP server for processing once a decision is made.

Alon Raskin, principal for 3i Consulting, said extending untethered SAP access fills a void in a market where several key business applications are already pushed to mobile devices.

"This allows people to use their BlackBerry or Palm to make critical decisions right on their device," he said.

With mobile SAP, Raskin said, an out-of-town manager can make an invoice payment in real-time, which could mean the difference between paying a higher or lower price.

"With Mobile Workplace, users can now review and approve [or] reject almost anything, whenever they want and wherever they are," he said. "Just because an engineer is out in the field or a manager is on the road does not mean that work has to stop."

More on this topic: Mobile SAP 101 Mobile SAP: Where's ROI

Right now, the Mobile Workplace Server is in pilot testing in North America and is available for sale. The cost will vary by the number of users.

Raskin said using SAP requires entering a username and password, then scrolling to the specific application. There is a small amount of difference in the screen appearance, he said.

The server requires minor configuration on the SAP server side and has to be run on a 32-bit Windows machine, Raskin said.

Tags: SAP and enterprise service oriented architecture,  VIEW ALL TAGS

Digg This!     StumbleUpon     Del.icio.us

RELATED CONTENT SAP and enterprise service oriented architecture In an upgrade to SAP ECC 6.0, when do integrated apps get upgraded? NetWeaver PI 7.1 easier to implement than earlier versions, SAP says Resolving app server connectivity problems for remote users Bucking the economic trend, HSBC embarks on NetWeaver PI project SAP NetWeaver training tutorial SAP NetWeaver Implementation Learning More About SAP NetWeaver SAP NetWeaver Configuration and Customization Baylor College of Medicine goes wireless with NetWeaver Mobile 7.1 SOA-backed spell check wins SAP Demo Jam

RELATED GLOSSARY TERMS Terms from Whatis.com − the technology online dictionary Enterprise Services Architecture  (SearchSAP.com) NetWeaver  (SearchSAP.com)

RELATED RESOURCES 2020software.com, trial software downloads for accounting software, ERP software, CRM software and business software systems Search Bitpipe.com for the latest white papers and business webcasts Whatis.com, the online computer dictionary