Software solutions for the new Europe
March 1999
A decade after its founding in Karlsruhe, Germany. Industrial
Application Software GmbH (IAS) looks to be hitting its stride.
The German software house boasts a range of cost-effective,
functional and flexible software for enterprises active in
the food, machine-building, chemical and textile industries.
These solutions are winning over customers not only in the
domestic market, but also in Turkey an the USA. Within the
next five ears, IAS expects to grow fivefold.
Late last year, the Karlsruhe-based enterprise changed its
name from IAS Unternehmensberatung GmbH to Industrial Application
Software GmbH (IAS). The change reflects its transition from
a consulting company into a ERP software specialist. The strategy
is paying off: IAS posted turnover of USD 6,5 million and
its payroll exceeded 100 last year.
The man behind the successful firm is founder Hakan Karabiber,
a university-educated industrial engineer. "Our goal from the
beginning was to develop integrated computer solutions regardless
of the branch", explains Mr. Karabiber, who serves as the company's
managing director.
Since then, IAS has carried out more than 170 projects, creating
more than 4,500 users. The flexibility of its solutions means
that they can accommodate anywhere between 10 and 300 users
per company. IAS's software delivers results regardless of the
hardware or operating system. The Karlsruhe-based software house
features four modular core products: IAS Finance, IAS Production,
Planning and Control System (PPC), IAS Logistics and IAS Maintenance.
Drawing on its roots as a consulting company, IAS provides comprehensive
computer consulting and training in order to minimize Implementation
time.
Mr. Karabiber, a native of Turkey, instrumented IAS's first
foray into foreign markets in late 1993, aggressively seeking
new projects at Turkish textile mills. This activity has brought
the company a windfall of new business. Since then, activities
in Turkey have become a cornerstone of the computer software
house's strategy. In fact, only 40 of its 100 employees work
at its Karlsruhe headquarters. By using software developers
in Turkey to develop as much as 90% of the software solutions,
IAS is able to keep costs extremely competitive. These cost
savings are already playing a role in the potentially huge American
market. Mr. Karabiber sees now as the time to take a bigger
stake in the market. "We are looking to both acquisitions and
organic growth to bolster our position. This will help us capitalise
on the euro and European integration." Still, from a financial
standpoint, expansion requires 'deep pockets'. In the last few
years, IAS has built up its cash reserves in order to finance
most of these activities in house. At the same time, he believes
the time is ripe to bring new products into its programme to
complement its four core products. "We want to be single-source
system provider.
Competence in a range of fields and a entrepreneurial-approach
to management have resulted in large gains at IAS. |
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