AxizWorkgroup’s Advanced Technologies division has unveiled an Oracle SuperCluster at the vendor’s PartnerHub premises in Woodmead.

Jacques Malherbe, managing executive of Advanced Technologies, says the multi-million rand SuperCluster marks a major investment by the distributor and will be invaluable to its resellers and customers when it comes to demonstrations and POCs (proof of concepts) of just what Oracle systems can achieve for them.

“There has been a lot of talk recently around distribution and where it fits into the value stack,” Malherbe says. “The reality is that AxizWorkgroup has invested in, and built up, Advanced Technologies solely to add value to resellers in terms of what they are trying to achieve – the shortening of sales cycles and the access they require to markets and solutions so that they can clinch crucial deals.

“We have made a significant investment in this SuperCluster and there is very little of the Oracle value stack that we can’t show – from the largest financial solutions all the way down the Oracle stack,” he says. “Advanced Technologies’ tagline is ‘Better Together’ and the key to this is partnerships. We’ve made the investment, Oracle has made the investment and, together with you our partners, we can be faster to market, add better value than our competitors and make money in what is still a depressed market.

“That’s what we’re here to do,” Malherbe adds. “It’s a new way to do business and a new way to interact with a value distributor. “There is a huge and growing pipeline for these solutions and with the switch on of the SuperCluster, we have already got a healthy pipeline of POCs lined up.

“This SuperCluster is a momentous occasion for South Africa,” Malherbe says. “We’re taking a huge step forward and giving the market access to vital technology.”

Abdul Rahman, vice-president of Oracle Middle East and Africa, flew into Johannesburg especially for the launch of the local SuperCluster and praised Advanced Technologies for its commitment to the company.

“It is a pleasure to be associated with AxizWorkgroup and Advanced Technologies in South Africa,” Rahman says. “They are our only Authorised Solutions Centre in South Africa, they have got a great skills set in-country and now we have seen that they are committed to investing with us in order to take the business forward.

“The Solutions Centre, with the new SuperCluster, is there to help partners with POCs and will enable them to show their customers the solutions that Oracle is offering,” he says. “I’m sure it is going to drive huge demand. There is huge potential for our solutions in South Africa and we now have the opportunity to target some key customers with the SuperCluster and future POCs.”