Germanys' orientation towards functional productionIT - A new paradigm for upcoming APC solutions

New federative IT Infrastructures (i.e. Platform-as-a-Service) allow an extremely cheap distribution & deployment process for lean APC systems which open new business opportunities. With Virtual Fort Knox Fraunhofer IPA has developed (and is hosting) a federative platform for functional productionIT services. Based on service-oriented architecture this cloud-based platform enables a break-down of traditional IT systems in separate functional blocks. XETICS MES and Tracking solution are described exemplary as a successful transformation of specific IT functionalities in Apps. They illustrate the market opportunity for APC vendors very clearly as the tracking system is offered a lot cheaper than traditional solutions (approx. factor 20), installed within a day and still profitable for the vendor.