Sophisticated Business Systems, Inc. (SBS) provides fully automated conversion solutions to migrate older applications and databases to up-to-date languages and database management systems. Known for their patent-pending technology called DB-Shuttle™ to manage and automate the conversion process from end to end, SBS conversions support the market’s needs for improving data access, integrating data and applications and reducing IT license costs.

We caught up with and discussed migration and conversion with SBS co-founder and executive vice president, Cindy Howard.

Why convert legacy apps and databases to a Windows environment?

We’re seeing a lot of businesses eager to migrate from their mainframes to a more cost-effective, agile alternative to take advantage of emerging technologies such as Web services that are often constrained by the mainframe. The majority of tools and techniques for implementing these new technologies aren’t being developed for or being pioneered on the mainframe, but developed instead on the more modular, distributed environments designed by vendors to support the Windows Server System.

What are the key benefits based on your experience?

The investment in the legacy system’s design, development and maintenance, as well as the value of the data locked inside legacy applications and databases is huge, creating a powerful incentive to preserve the proven processing capabilities through an automated conversion. Many applications have been designed, customized and tuned over many years, and often contain business processing unique to the organization, which may allow them to continue to remain ahead of their competition.

How can you estimate a project’s timeframe?

A thorough assessment, the first step in estimating a project’s timeframe and its associated costs, is a full research and analysis project that outlines in detail all the mainframe applications and databases that are candidates for conversion. Components are classified and listed in detail, and notes are attached to components that may require special attention during the conversion process. All components are inventoried, classified by language and cross-referenced and missing components are collected and added to the inventory. Duplicate components that reside in multiple customer repositories are eliminated from the inventory. The result is a complete diagnosis of a client’s current processing environment.

Is it difficult today to convert legacy systems using a 100% automated conversion model?

Automated conversion is becoming a preferred model due to its lower risk and associated costs. What used to take months or years can now be completed within a matter of weeks. We find that the longest phase of any conversion project is the testing phase. The collection, assessment and conversion phases require only a few weeks, while the definition and execution of detailed test scripts often requires several months.

Automation adds speed, uniformity, accuracy and repeatability to the conversion process. With automation, the number of technical resources, the conversion lifecycle and the project costs are drastically reduced, plus the technical team members’ skills become far less critical to the project’s success. Program logic isn’t changed, nor is it opened to human interpretation and being a highly advanced process, the timeframe between project conception and integrated testing is a matter of days, not weeks or months or years.

Can you give us a birds-eye view of a migration for one of your insurance customers?

National Life of Vermont. They had been working toward replacing their IDMS applications and databases for nearly 10 years. They came to us to perform an automated conversion of the last five IDMS applications, the backbone of their business. Understandably, replacing them created a great deal of fear, uncertainty and doubt. In addition, they had difficulty finding skilled resources to maintain the aging applications, and they were unable to freely integrate the IDMS databases with their newer relational databases. The older technology was difficult to maintain and the license fees had a big effect on the bottom-line for National Life.

And as I understand it, DB-Shuttle, your automation suite, served them remarkably well?

I’m pleased to say, yes.

For more information, visit http://www.soph.com.