COFCO International Strategically Upgrades SunSystems with Eclipse

Eclipse, a leading Infor Gold Partner with considerable international financial management experience, successfully implements an extensive SunSystems upgrade for COFCO International, a prominent agribusiness entity headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

A subsidiary of China's COFCO Corporation and with operations spanning over 35 countries, COFCO International stands as a key player in the global agricultural commodities and food ingredients industry, holding a pivotal role in the global food supply chain. As one of Asia’s largest agribusiness groups, the organisation also has one of the biggest SunSystems userbases worldwide.

Eclipse has upgraded COFCO International’s Infor SunSystems financial management solution to version 6.4 to enable the organisation to leverage new features, enhance system performance, and ensure compatibility with evolving business needs. Associated solutions were also upgraded to ensure seamless integration and optimal functionality including, Professional Advantage products, BankLinks for Business (B4B) and Bank Reconciliation, a custom integration piece between COFCO International’s in-house developed Master Data Management system (MDM), and Infor Query & Analysis (Infor Q&A/Vision). Eclipse has also migrated/rewritten a substantial number of reports which were unique to users from different geographical locations.

During the project, Eclipse collaborated with COFCO International's IT for interface modifications, upgrade/add-on products compatibility, user training, and to ensure system readiness by mid-2023. Eclipse navigated COFCO International’s very sophisticated setup for Infor SunSystems and related software spread across 15+ servers and dedicated UAT and DEV environments. There were multiple integration points connecting via SunSystems Connect (SSC) and custom applications running off SunSystems SQL databases. The upgrade ensured all the integration points worked seamlessly as before, but with improved performance and elimination of a few bugs reported with the previous version.

Optimal stakeholder engagement emerged as a pivotal factor in achieving success for the project. A collaborative and communicative approach not only optimised project management but also cultivated an environment of mutual understanding. It stands as a testament to the effectiveness of stakeholder engagement in navigating the intricacies of a comprehensive upgrade.

Inevitably, a project of this scale presented numerous challenges, but the meticulous requirement gathering, and detailed planning phases ensured appropriate measures and multiple solutions were in place. Following the successful implementation of the upgrade, the client has reported significant achievements and key benefits. These range from, enhanced performance across the SunSystems application and Infor Q&A reporting, to a successful load balancer setup resolution, which seamlessly integrates with the standard Azure Load Balancer (ALB), ensuring optimal performance and adherence to IT policies, aligning with COFCO International’s broader business application and integration needs. Furthermore, challenges related to integration data volume and timeout issues (SSC) which were encountered with previous versions have been successfully resolved, providing a more stable and reliable environment for data integration and exchange. Finally, COFCO International has successfully transitioned to the latest operating system, Infor OS, and latest on-premise SunSystems release, ensuring compatibility with contemporary technologies and security standards, as well as access to enhanced features, functionalities, and ongoing support from the software provider.

Following the successful delivery of the upgrade, Eclipse extended its commitment to post-implementation support by offering a comprehensive hypercare support package during the critical post go-live phase. This tailored support package encompassed 24x7 assistance, ensuring an immediate and dedicated response to any incidents related to SunSystems and its associated components. This commitment to post-implementation support not only underscores the dedication to client success but also solidifies the partnership between Eclipse and COFCO International in maintaining a robust and reliable IT infrastructure.

In summary, the successful upgrade has not only addressed existing challenges, but has also positioned the client on a technologically advanced and optimised foundation, translating into improved operational efficiency and a more robust IT infrastructure.

For further information please call +44 (0)203 866 8800, or email enquiries@eclgrp.com