Lawson Rolls Out 64-Bit ERP for Unix, But Not for i5/OS

October 23, 2007 Alex Woodie

Editor’s Note: Please see the follow-up article Lawson S3 Is Already 64-Bit on i5/OS, Like All System i Apps.

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. The company says it does not currently offer 64-bit support for its S3 applications for the i5/OS platform and that it’s working on it.

Two weeks ago, Lawson Software, one of the largest ERP software vendors, announced that its Lawson 9 applications were 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 i5/OS have to wait years for 64-bit support? Lawson didn’t say. But it is committed to offering a 64-bit version of S3 on i5/OS, says Ken Munson, marketing director with Lawson’s public services and technology business.

“The recent releases for HP and IBM were the first supported platforms for S3,” Munson said. “We will be rolling out support for 64-bit applications on the i5/OS, Windows, and Sun Solaris platforms in the future.”

To Lawson’s credit, the company does offer 64-bit support on the M3 side of the house, notes Munson. M3, which stands for “make, move, and manufacture,” is the former Movex ERP application that Lawson obtained in its acquisition of Intentia two years ago.