Applications and ERP managers who are sick of changing brand names in the wake of acquisitions can breathe a sigh of relief, with Oracle coming good on its promise not to kill off the JD Edwards (JDE) brand name.
Oracle Australia claims it will "re-launch the JD Edwards brand and lead its manufacturing and distribution go-to-market strategy with industry standard, JD Edwards EnterpriseOne" as part of its plans to eventually integrate the popular ERP applications suite into its own software base under the guise of a project named Fusion.
Known for their fiercely independent stand, the JD Edwards user community caused considerable heartache for PeopleSoft after the acquisitive vendor announced plans to retire the JDE brand and dissolve its independent user groups such as Quest in favour of its own entities.
However, having watched PeopleSoft endure the wrath of loyal customers, Oracle executives have wasted no time in sounding the retreat and assuring delegates to Australia's largest supply chain conference, Smart 2005 that JDE is here to stay - at least until Fusion is completed.
Indeed, Oracle Australia general manager of applications, Scott Dawes went to new lengths to emphasize just how much Larry Ellison, Oracle's CEO, is really prepared to embrace JDE customers.
Citing "latent demand" and "the sheer magnitude of the JD Edwards economy in Australia", Dawes said Oracle "decided to re-launch this brand much to the delight of our customer base."
However, the JDE accolades did not stop there.
"The suite has one of the oldest, most dedicated followings in manufacturing and distribution and we intend to protect and grow this community. We are focusing a significant amount of development and field resources to this product set," Dawes continued.
One JDE module understood to be under development in South Australia is a vertical-specific winery applications suite, with a view to potential exports to other wineries around the world.
JD Edwards customers in Australia include the Yalumba and Brown Brothers wineries, Coopers Breweries, Berri fruit juices, Blackmores healthcare products, lawn mower maker Victa, Smorgon Steel and News Ltd.