Key Information Systems, an IT systems integrator and Premier IBM Business Partner, today announced at the IBM Information on Demand conference in Las Vegas the long-awaited Smart i Appliance for business intelligence.
Smart i Appliance is the result of a collaboration between integrator Key Information Systems, implementer Systech Solutions, open source provider Talend with its extract transform and load (ETL) software, and IBM, provider of DB2 Web Query software and the hardware appliance that contains the stand-alone BI product.
The Smart i Appliance is a plug-and-play business intelligence appliance that runs on all models of IBM's System i product group and new Power Systems. It is BI that works in a simple, affordable, open source business intelligence appliance.
Key is showing the product today in Booth 96 at the IOD Expo Solution Center in the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. Key, Systech, Talend and IBM representatives are on hand to explain the new Smart i architecture, show how it works, and demonstrate the kind of BI analysis and reporting that can be achieved.
Pete Elliot, director of Marketing at Key, said, "Business intelligence has long been a frustrating and messy experience--like organizing a plate of spaghetti. Historically, BI has presented the user with a bunch of parts they are left to assemble. It's been expensive, hard to use, with hard-to-measure results. Frankly, it usually ends up just another IT project dumped in the IT department's lap.
"Smart i sets a different standard," says Elliot. "We've integrated all the parts of a successful BI solution around IBM's powerful new Power Systems server. Our secret sauce contains Talend, the powerful open source ETL tool, and IBM's DB2 Web Query. We've also included Systech USA for generous amounts of data cube services and hands-on training. This solution brings the workload back onto the System i.
"The entire BI solution is delivered as a hardware appliance. It's been fully integrated by Key and priced under $50,000 with a projected break-even of three to six months in the first year. It's an easy-to-use, off-the-shelf solution built to get results and deliver reports when and where you need them. Smart i was designed to make our users champs," says Elliot. "It's BI that works."
Components
Smart i comes complete with the following tightly integrated components:
1. Appliance Basic Configuration
- IBM System i 8203-E4A 1core Power6 System with IBM i/OS V5R4 or IBM i 6.1 operating system
- 280GB disk storage upgradable to 840GB
- 4GB RDIMM memory main storage upgradable to 16GB
2. Software
- Powerful IBM DB2 Web Query with Developer Workbench and Runtime Options
- IBM DB2 database, WebSphere, iSeries Access, and Web Enablement
- Talend Integration Suite--Team Edition
3. Services by Systech Solutions
- Implementation and training
- Two-week "quick-start" installation and training; includes one data mart, three reports
- Complete BI and data warehouse consulting and development services
Why Stand-Alone Server?
Several specific benefits accrue from packaging a software and services solution in a stand-alone server, the company says. These include the following:
- Security-Secures Smart i on a separate platform to better protect production systems from external attack.
- Isolation-Isolate the entire BI application from the production machine for ease of management
- Performance-Offload BI analytics cycles and disk I/O from production machine
- Optimization-Tune the appliance server to the specific processing requirements of the BI application
- Systems Assurance-Facilitates keeping all software and firmware patches current
- Integration - Eliminates the need to integrate all the separate components, read manuals, load/test software and tune
- Hardware Costs-Small server versus a share of much more costly larger server
- Software Costs-Take advantage of lower software licensing costs by CPU model
Scalability
Smart i scales from IBM's entry-level System i 515 or Power Systems up to the high end of these server families. Both hardware and software are upgradable. Disk scales from 350GB to the multi-terabyte range. Processing speeds increase with server model upgrades.
Portability
Existing IBM Query/400 programs can be easily ported to the Smart i Appliance, protecting existing investments in query logic.
Data Protection
The basic Smart i appliance configuration includes a 4mm 36/72GB tape drive for backup. The System can be used as a disaster recovery machine when it is not being used for BI operations.
Security
The isolation of Smart i on a separate platform protects Smart i from malware. It uses the proven security functionality of IBM iOS V5R4M5 or IBM i 6.1 operating systems.
Compliance
The isolation of data marts on the separate system appliance of Smart i facilitates the management of tighter controls to meet regulatory requirements. This function addresses compliance regulations that stipulate protection for medical, financial, personnel, and legal records. Access to data is restricted across the developers and users. The data mart further limits the data fields a person can access.
Openness
Talend, offers the first open source data integration software in the industry. It adheres to the Open Source Definition to make data integration available to all types of organizations, regardless of their size, level of expertise, or budgetary considerations. Talend Open Studio is an Open Source project for data integration based on Eclipse RCP.
Support
Technical support is free for the first three months, ensuring a smooth implementation and accelerated user learning. After the first three months, a technical support contract is available from Key Information Systems. This covers hardware, operating system, DB2 database, IBM WebSphere, DB2 Web Query and Talend Integration Suite--Team Edition ETL software.
Pricing
Initial pricing starts under $50,000. This includes the entry-level Smart i Appliance with 350GB of disk storage on an entry level System i or Power System. The price also includes all software and the Systech Solutions Quick Start services.
Lief Morin, CEO at Key, said "Our customers are telling us they don't want pieces they have to assemble. They want a bundled, low-cost BI appliance, including training and cube implementation that plugs seamlessly into databases. Also, they want to leverage their existing investments in DB2 and their System i. So we designed an attractive low-cost, load-and-go Business Intelligence appliance for immediate use. It makes BI accessible for every company."
Al Saavedra, sales director at Systech, says, "Smart i provides an affordable BI alternative for companies with System i based ERPs that would normally have to implement business intelligence and data warehouse infrastructures by integrating expensive ETL and reporting tools on non-System i platforms. Instead, it all comes already integrated, tested, and packaged on an IBM i group server or new IBM Power System."
Doug Mack, IBM's Power Systems marketing manager, says, "DB2 Web Query and the Smart i Appliance are really designed to leverage what customers have come to love about their IBM i based systems (AS/400, iSeries, System i, Power Systems): delivering business value with simplicity, flexibility, and minimal management requirements. With Smart i, customers can quickly and cost effectively implement a true business intelligence solution that reduces complexity and risk and keeps it simple!"
Vincent Pineau, Talend's vice president and general manager, Americas, says, "The Smart i Appliance is a Godsend to thousands of AS/400 users worldwide and Talend is very pleased to be part of the solution. Because our product is being preinstalled natively on each iSeries box, we enable data integration/ETL to be faster, more scalable and more cost-effective for users of the appliance everywhere."
A free BI needs assessment and executive overview of Smart i are available through any member of the Smart i Alliance, consisting of:
- Key Information Systems - Premier IBM Business Partner and systems integrator
- Systech Solutions - Leading business intelligence systems integrator
- Talend - Leading open source data integrator providing ETL tools plus migration of data from any platform to a System i
- IBM Corporation - A leader in servers, storage, and systems software
To learn more, see the Smart i web page or contact Pete Elliot, Key Information Systems, Inc., 21700 Oxnard St., Suite 250, Woodland Hills, CA 91367, USA, email
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