Manhattan Associates Publicizes System i Successes

Published: January 27, 2009

by Alex Woodie

Manhattan Associates' System i-based warehouse management system (WMS) has been the standard of the distribution industry for over a decade. In recent years, the company has been heavily promoting its Windows- and .NET-based WMS and transportation solutions--to the detriment of its System i marketing. But as a cache of recently published case studies show, ManH's i-based WMS still rules the roost.

Between July 2008 and January 2009, Manhattan Associates published more than 50 case studies showcasing some of its largest customers, which can be found in the library at www.manh.com/library/case_studies.html. A quick read of the studies shows the software vendor was dutifully committed to documenting the server platform involved in the installation, which is rare and commendable for an enterprise software vendor targeting multiple platforms.

Of the 50 or so case studies, more than half of them (26 to be exact) involved the System i and the i OS-based versions of Manhattan's products. The company's Windows-based products were documented in about 19 of the stories, and System p came in third in the tally with just three stories.

But a look at the names of Manhattan's i OS customers reveals that the i OS WMS is still the go-to product when rock-solid stability and extensive scalability are required. Successful companies such as Columbia, Canon, New Balance, Cabela's, Urban Outfitters, DHL, HoMedics, Healthcare Logistics, and Ingram Book Group are all System i shops that use Manhattan products.

Manhattan Associates doesn't talk a lot about its industry-leading, i OS-based solutions. That is not surprising, considering the poor example provided by IBM and its lack of marketing for the platform. But from the unexpected batch of case studies recently published, it's evident that the company receives a good chunk of its revenue from customers that utilize the platform, and that is a good thing.

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