Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Deploying Low-Latency Applications in the Cloud

Cloud has become the preferred deployment option for most categories of enterprise systems. But conventional wisdom is that some systems that require low latency and a high degree of system availability, such as warehouse management systems (WMS) or manufacturing execution systems (MES), are best deployed on-premises.

The argument is that response time over the Internet is never as fast as over a local area network and that such systems cannot tolerate any level of unscheduled downtime inherent in using a cloud application. 

Nevertheless, cloud systems are invading even this category of software. Although still in the minority, there are some vendors providing such low-latency applications as a cloud service. 

One example is Plex Systems.  And, interestingly, it is not a new example. 

Read the rest of this post on the Avasant website: Deploying Low-Latency Applications in the Cloud.  


2 comments:

Matthew King said...

My employer has an ERP which is essentially an overgrown MES (i.e. one system serving both purposes). Our business has two locations in the same country each of which has a separate instance of the system, which was unavoidable given the architecture. Originally there was only one location hence the limitation was not discovered until the second location came into the picture some years later.

We have considered installing a new cloud ERP system across the locations and retaining (integrating) the legacy ERP system for MES purposes at each location (let's call this option 1).

However your post makes me ponder other options. Replace the legacy system with Plex (option 2) or wait and see if the incumbent vendor rearchitects their product for the cloud (option 3). I don't see the latter happening this side of 2030 but I hope I'm wrong. We need to make a move before then.

Frank Scavo said...

Hi Matthew, as you know, it can take a long time for a legacy vendor to rearchitect for the cloud. I agree, that doesn't sound like a good option. The decision otherwise could go either way, depending on how disruptive a complete replacement of the current system would be. On the other hand, if you were to go to cloud ERP, that might be the opportunity to do both ERP and MES at the same time.