In-Depth

The goal: Automating policies, procedures

• By Lana Gates
• December 1, 2004

Logical Apps’ flagship product, AppsRules, integrates with the business rules engine in Oracle E-business Suite. From an architectural standpoint, the product sits on top of each of the elements of the Oracle applications technology stack, according to Chris Capdevila, LA’s CEO and co-founder..

AppsRules uses business rules technology to automatically enforce policies and procedures. It keeps business logic separate from application code, allowing IT to immediately deploy rule changes without having to modify the underlying code. AppsRules dynamically generates the code.

AppsRules consists of four modules and a content library, which offers pre-configured solutions to problems many companies contend with. The modules are:

* AppsForm implements changes to any Oracle form through rapid configuration rather than customization. * AppsFlow reduces dependency on specialized resources to develop and maintain workflows. * AppsAudit creates audit controls for critical and sensitive transactions and to meet internal and external audit requirements. * AppsAccount defines rules needed to generate accounts for key financial transactions.

An average implementation of AppsRules on the Oracle platform runs $75,000 to $80,000. Despite that high upfront cost, the product pays for itself by dramatically lowering maintenance costs, Capdevila says. “The integration cost to the customer is essentially zero, which means the ROI is almost instantaneous,” he claims.