MHC Strengthens AI with Progress Hybrid Data Pipeline for ERP Access
MHC, a prominent provider of document automation solutions, found itself at a critical juncture as it expanded its NorthStar platform into the cloud. Serving over 1,000 customers across diverse sectors—including financial services, healthcare, government, manufacturing, and retail—MHC had to contend with a complex tapestry of enterprise resource planning (ERP) environments, ranging from on-premises installations to cloud-based systems. The initial vision for their cloud application was straightforward: a seamless cloud-to-cloud interaction. However, as development progressed, a significant challenge emerged.
“Our thinking was our cloud application could talk to their ERP cloud application and everybody would be happy,” explained Tom McMahon, Senior Architect for MHC’s NorthStar Platform. "As we got further along in the process, we realized a lot of our existing customers were going to want to move to our cloud platform, but they weren’t necessarily going to move their ERPs to the ERP equivalent. So, we needed a way to get access to their on-premises data.” This realization underscored the necessity for a robust data connectivity solution that could bridge the gap between MHC’s cloud infrastructure and its customers’ varied on-premises ERP data sources.
MHC initially considered developing an in-house agent, drawing parallels to a smaller-scale cloud printing solution project where they had successfully built their own on-premises data access agent. However, the complexities involved in creating a comprehensive data access agent for diverse ERP systems far outweighed the simplicity of the print solution. “Our first thought was we’ll just make an agent to get access to the databases,” McMahon recalled. “But when we started looking into the challenges involved compared to the relatively simple print agent, we started looking into other solutions.” The team embarked on a thorough due diligence process, even conducting a proof-of-concept with another vendor that ultimately yielded unsatisfactory results.
Their search eventually led them to the Progress DataDirect Hybrid Data Pipeline connectivity solution. The product’s robust integration capabilities immediately caught their attention, prompting a dedicated proof-of-concept. The experience was overwhelmingly positive. McMahon noted, "It was straightforward to set up and get it up and running. It looked like it would address many requirements without a lot of work on our side to integrate into our system—and that’s when we decided to move forward with Progress.”
More than three years post-deployment, MHC’s confidence in their decision remains unwavering. A key advantage of the Hybrid Data Pipeline has been its containerized cloud-native architecture, which significantly streamlined deployment. David Huynh, DevOps Manager at MHC, affirmed, "We were able to implement everything directly in our existing workflows and pipelines with minimal effort. Additionally, the amount of documentation and recommendations provided by Progress made it easy to monitor the platform.”
Beyond simplified deployment, the solution’s powerful user interface (UI) has delivered substantial operational benefits. “The UI allows us to manage the integration setup without a lot of development required on our side,” Huynh added. "We just had to do a small amount of development to facilitate a couple of infrastructure types of issues.” This intuitive interface has also empowered MHC’s professional services team, enabling them to quickly master the solution and streamline the customer onboarding process. McMahon highlighted this efficiency: "I was able to sit down with a couple of folks on the customer support and professional services team and get them set up without any formal training. It’s intuitive enough that they were able to get the hang of it and figure it out themselves—and now they are experts with it.”
Furthermore, the responsiveness and quality of the Progress Hybrid Data Pipeline support team have been a consistent highlight. “Whenever there is a problem, and there haven’t been many, the support folks at Progress have been great,” McMahon stated. "They provide immediate help, we don’t have to wait 24 hours to get an answer, the responses are comprehensive and meaningful.”
As MHC continues to push the boundaries of innovation for its NorthStar solution, particularly through the integration of artificial intelligence and other transformative technologies, the Hybrid Data Pipeline solution stands as a vital component of its core infrastructure. It provides the essential data connectivity that underpins MHC’s ability to evolve and deliver cutting-edge capabilities to its diverse customer base, ensuring seamless interaction regardless of underlying data environments.