Workgroup is IBM's sole distributor of Universe and Unidata (U2) databases in SA and is therefore in a good position to offer Informer, a reporting solution designed specifically for use with U2 systems.

Informer is a Web-based reporting tool that aims to allow end-users to securely access data directly from IBM U2 databases and view the data in HTML, Excel, or PDF formats

"Many of our customers have expressed the strong need to intuitively pull data out of their U2 databases," says Kurt Neumann, U2 business unit manager at Workgroup. "With Informer, our customers can securely access their data from anywhere using their browser.

"They can logically display the data in HTML format; drop it into Excel, PDF, or e-mails. Informer's report scheduling feature is also very popular. We expect that our Independent Software Providers will embrace the Informer Community feature, allowing them to easily distribute reports among their customer base."

The partnership is intended to extend Entrinsik's sales and support arm to a continent which it would have otherwise had difficulty reaching. "With Workgroup's market presence and professional support staff, we identified an opportunity to reach organisations in need of Informer in this country," says Doug Leupen, president and CEO of Entrinsik.