Client: MiX Telematics (formerly Matrix Vehicle Tracking)
Industry: Vehicle tracking and recovery services
Task: Delphi to .NET migration
Background
MiX Telematics, formerly known as Matrix Vehicle Tracking, has provided leading vehicle tracking and recovery services in South Africa since 1996. In 2007, the company merged with Omnibridge, an international fleet management business, adding distribution capability in over 75 countries to its portfolio.
The company was re-branded MiX Telematics in October 2008, although the Matrix Vehicle Tracking brand has been retained in South Africa for the consumer market.
Business issue
Matrix Vehicle Tracking is a technology-focused business, operating off an ERM system custom-developed by several different vendors around a Microsoft Dynamics General Ledger. One of the elements of this technology, a debtor's system that handles invoicing, debit orders and other debtor tasks for the subscriber base, was originally developed by KRS in Delphi. During 2007 Matrix decided, as part of its broader IT development strategy, to upgrade the system to Microsoft's .NET Framework.
“We have a long-term vision to integrate all our disparate systems into a single platform,” says Quinton Pienaar CIO at Mix Telematics. “We identified .NET as a popular, future-proof platform, used by a large amount of software developers worldwide, so there is also a huge pool of available resources.”
Solution
As the original developers and maintainers of the system, KRS was the obvious choice when it came to redeveloping the debtors' system for .NET. “We've always been happy with their services,” says Pienaar, “and unlike many software developers they have a strong financial background; it's one of their great strengths.” The company's unique dual strength in Delphi and .NET development also means they were able to take on the job of conversion with confidence.
“The .NET framework is well known and widely accepted, with strong support from Microsoft and a good reputation,” says Stewart Scott of KRS. “It's also been designed for integration - it's easy for multiple developers and suppliers to share and re-use code. Because of this, there's is also a clear future path for upgrades and migrations - we know we won't be pushing ourselves or our clients into a corner.”
The project was not a complete redevelopment of the debtors' system, says Pienaar: “The system was re-implementing into a new framework. Even so, it was a significant project, about eight months from start to completion.”
Scott says the architecture of the original Delphi system helped to ensure a smooth migration. “Our design philosophy has always been to keep the business layer and the presentation layer of a system separate - so with this system, we had a business layer in SQL Server that could remain essentially untouched, while we moved the presentation layer from Delphi to .NET. This made the project far less risky for the client.”
The technology refresh has not only laid the groundwork for future development and integration, it has also offered a range of new functionality. “What's in .NET by default makes for a much simpler, more streamlined and user-friendly interface,” says Scott.
“Apart from a few teething issues, the process has been pretty trouble-free for us,” says Pienaar. “We've successfully moved a business-critical system to a new technology platform without any disruption, which is a significant achievement.”
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