Sogema uses FOEX to migrate tax management application built in Oracle Forms

Topic

Oracle Forms Migration


Industry

Information Technology

Key points

Sogema was searching for a smooth and easy way to migrate from Oracle Forms

The team needed a RAD tool which allowed them to migrate one of the app’s modules in 3 months or less

The successful proof of concept convinced Sogema to redevelop its entire suite of solutions using FOEX

The Customer

Sogema Technologies is an international organization based in Quebec, Canada and active in over 25 countries worldwide. It specializes in offering consulting and technical assistance for the development, implementation and management of large scale institutional and private sector funded projects.

The company has developed a full range of custom software solutions using Oracle Forms and PL/SQL, that are adapted to each country’s specific requirements.

One such application is the Tax Management System, a tool used by the public finance authority to manage all forms of national taxes within a country. The application comprises of different modules, such as objections management, tax assessment and taxpayer data management, totaling approximately 400 forms.

The Challenge

In order to maintain its competitiveness and provide more accessible solutions, the company made the strategic decision to migrate their existing solutions from Oracle Forms to a newer technology. The process would start with a full proof of concept based on a single module, with an ambitious 3-month timescale to complete.

As the team of existing Oracle Forms and Java developers moved into evaluating the available options, they’ve quickly ruled out Java because of the time constraints.

Sogema Technologies Case Study

Next, Oracle Application Express was taken into consideration due to the reusability of the existing PL/SQL business logic and its rapid development capability, however they soon found out that it was missing some of the key Oracle Forms features, which could not be easily recreated.

The Solution

In their search for sustainable alternatives, Sogema’s team of developers were recommended to test and evaluate the FOEX Plugin Framework by a former manager. Being already familiar with Oracle APEX, the introduction to the FOEX Plugin Framework required little adjustments and a lean learning curve. The framework included many similar rich components, high performance UI elements and a user experience comparable to Oracle Forms.

The team found that working with FOEX was as easy as requesting a workspace on the website and going through the 2-day developer guide. Within the documentation application, developers found working demos of all the FOEX plugins and the team was quickly able to see how the technology is actually used behind each demo.

With a successful proof of concept delivered within their time constraints and budget, Sogema moved from the evaluation phase into fully redeveloping their entire suite of Oracle Forms applications using the FOEX Plugin Framework.

Today, SIGTAS - the application redeveloped using a combination of APEX and FOEX, is used by 12.5 million taxpayers from 26 countries, leading to a 75% productivity improvement for the employees of the government agencies who work with it.

Testimonial

"Working with FOEX proved to be a smoother transition than would have been possible using other technologies or tools. Questions are answered quickly and whenever a specific hot-fix is required, the resolution is swift."

Guillaume Richer (Software Development Manager, Sogema Technologies)

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