Lawson Rolls Out 64-Bit ERP for Unix

Published: October 25, 2007

by Alex Woodie

Lawson Software recently announced that a 64-bit version of its S3 ERP application line is now available for IBM AIX and Hewlett-Packard HP-UX operating systems. Its Lawson 9 applications are available in 64-bit versions for IBM's and HP's Unix platforms, enabling the applications to address bigger chunks of memory than they were previously able.

The move was hailed by officials with IBM and HP, including Scott Handy, the vice president of worldwide marketing and strategy for IBM Power Systems division, who said the move "underscores the strength of the relationship between Lawson and IBM."

For Lawson, the delivery of 64-bit applications gives it a decided advantage when selling to AIX and HP-UX customers. Unix and Windows make up the bulk of Lawson 9--also known as S3, which stands for "staff, source, serve"--implementations, and the company has historically rolled out new features in its Unix and Windows versions.

But Lawson also supports a sizable System i customer base with its S3 applications. In the past, Lawson officials have stated that about 20 percent of its S3 installed base runs their applications on iSeries-System i platform. These customers have not always been happy with the fact that they've often had to wait years to get new features that Lawson introduced to its Unix and Windows customers first--a gap that the St. Paul, Minnesota, company has worked to narrow in recent years.

So will Lawson customers running S3 on Solaris have to wait years for 64-bit support? "The recent releases for HP and IBM were the first supported platforms for S3," said Ken Munson, marketing director with Lawson's public services and technology business. "We will be rolling out support for 64-bit applications on the i5/OS, Windows, and Sun Solaris platforms in the future."

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