BI Platform Replaces Several Systems to Deliver Relevant Data Throughout Organization

NEW YORK, NY (October 26, 2009) –

Bunn-O-Matic Corporation is keeping its staff better informed, thanks to a new business intelligence (BI) environment from Information Builders that delivers relevant data throughout its organization. Nearly 100 staff members are currently using WebFOCUS, the pervasive BI platform that is putting fact-based insights directly into the hands of people who need it, when they need it.

Bunn-O-Matic relies on an ERP system to run a Lean Manufacturing operation that involves the production, sale, and distribution of industrial and retail beverage equipment. WebFOCUS was chosen to replace several tools used for reporting purposes, including Cognos ReportNet. Bunn-O-Matic’s IT team was impressed by the scope, power, and flexibility of the WebFOCUS platform to enhance their management reporting. The use of parameter-driven reports allows users to be more self-sufficient.

Bunn-O-Matic purchased WebFOCUS and enlisted Information Builders Professional Services to train a few key developers. The team quickly replicated some essential reports and then set out to create new reporting capabilities by combining data stored in disparate DB2 and SQL Server databases. Since Bunn-O-Matic’s ERP data in DB2 was on an AS/400 iSeries computer and its service systems data was in Microsoft SQL Server on a Windows server, combining data into unified reports had been nearly impossible with the old reporting system. Thanks to WebFOCUS and the iWay DB2/400 adapter, it is now possible to join information from these dissimilar data storage systems.

One of the most decisive breakthroughs involved WebFOCUS Active Reports, which combines data and interactive capabilities in a single file. Accessible via a user’s desktop or mobile computer, this tool enables Bunn-O-Matic’s sales staff to run reports and perform their own sorting, filtering, configuring, and charting of data – without the help of the IT team.

Bunn-O-Matic uses WebFOCUS DataMigrator to pull data out of the ERP system and convert it into a useful reporting format every night. The sales team receives up-to-date sales statistics each morning. Embedded access restrictions keep them from viewing each other’s information. WebFOCUS enforces segregation of the data without limiting the visibility of critical information. Parameterized reports meet the unique needs of a variety of users, even though they are all running the same basic reports.

Bunn-O-Matic also uses WebFOCUS ReportCaster to e-mail reports to both customers and internal users. Reports are set to run on schedules, so recipients know when to expect them daily, weekly or monthly; some reports go out as frequently as two or three times a day.

“With WebFOCUS, Bunn-O-Matic has put enhanced reporting capabilities into the hands of the people who need it most without straining their IT department beyond its means,” said Gerald Cohen, president and CEO of Information Builders. “WebFOCUS lets each user find information through parameterized reports more quickly than ever before.”
About Bunn-O-Matic

Bunn-O-Matic Corporation designs and manufactures innovations in commercial beverage equipment and home coffee brewers. Headquartered in Springfield, Illinois, the organization has been helping customers create the perfect cup of coffee since 1957.
About Information Builders

Information Builders’ award-winning combination of business intelligence and enterprise integration software has been providing innovative solutions to more than 12,000 customers for the past 30 years. WebFOCUS is the world’s most widely utilized business intelligence platform. It provides the security, scalability, and flexibility needed at every level of global extended enterprises. Its simplicity helps create executive, analytical, and operational applications that reach dozens to millions of users. Information Builders’ iWay Software suite provides state of the art, multi-purpose, pre-built integration components that address all SOA, application, data and information management requirements. Its integration adapters have been adopted by the leading software platform providers. Information Builders also offers solutions in the performance management, business activity monitoring, and enterprise search markets. The company’s comprehensive enterprise product offerings give Information Builders’ customers the ability to grow and innovate according to their needs.

Information Builders’ customers include most of the Fortune 100 and U.S. federal government agencies. Headquartered in New York City with 90 offices worldwide, the company employs 1,450 people and has more than 350 business partners. .

Source: Information Builders