Lawson Puts M3 Portal on iPad

Published: January 25, 2011

by Alex Woodie

Lawson Software has completed testing its M3 Supplier Portal application running on the Apple Safari Web browser, which means it is ready to run on the iPad. The move, announced last week, is designed to make it even easier for Lawson customers to review and update orders.

Lawson's M3 Supplier Portal is an optional component of the M3 ERP suite that's aimed at enabling more effective communication between suppliers and their customers, primarily those in the fashion industry. The Web-based application provides a quick and easy way for either party to view and confirm key details of an order, such as quantities, dates, and prices.

Support for features like Advanced Ship Notices (ASN) means the portal can function as an alternative to traditional EDI, which Lawson says can be cumbersome and expensive. The portal can also improve order accuracy compared to using faxes, e-mails, or spreadsheets, the vendor says.

Making the M3 Supplier Portal available on the Apple iPad gives the application a little extra panache, and opens the software up to a class of clothing industry executives who will access the portal while on the go.

"We're making it possible for our customers and their suppliers to access Supplier Portal whether they're at their desk using their traditional laptop or PC or on the go with their iPad," says Frédéric Champalbert, Lawson's general manager for Consumer Products.

Lawson says the delivery of an iPad-supported application shows its devotion to "innovation, choice, and platform openness." While the M3 suite was ported from RPG to Java about 10 years ago (when it was owned by Intentia and called Movex), many M3 customers continue to run the software on IBM Power Systems servers running the IBM i OS.

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