Building a next-generation digital platform for the printing industry
ColorBase Exchange is a new cloud-based platform that connects printing material manufacturers to resellers like never before. This new platform revolutionizes how users do business, streamlining data exchange, procurement, the sales process, customer acquisition, payments, and logistics.
Their challenges
- ColorBase provides large-format print manufacturers like HP, Canon, 3M, and print shops with smart functionality that indicates which printers, inks, raster image processing software, and materials are compatible. The solution is positioned as the largest database of printer profiles globally.
- ColorBase has gained momentum to expand in the value chain with a digital platform that delivers a cloud-based marketplace facilitating the purchase and sale of print materials between manufacturers and resellers. This marketplace is branded as ColorBase Exchange.
- However, the previous IT infrastructure was not ready for it, and ColorBase needed to move quickly to an infrastructure and next-generation platform that was robust, scalable, agile, and ready to deliver the expected functionality.
- Previously, all of Colorbases’ application infrastructure was hosted on AWS, where its PHP applications and MySQL database were running on virtual machines that served multiple purposes. Since it was designed as a monolithic system with many interdependencies, information was fragmented in different systems and difficult to maintain and operate.
Our solutions
- Design a cloud-native architecture and build a digital pipeline to launch an ecosystem of software services.
- Restructure data in one aggregated database and rebuild the platform with the latest technologies based on a microservices
architecture that is much more flexible to maintain and operate. - Develop the platform rapidly with Rappit Developer, prototyping, and code generation tool to rebuild existing functionality and extend with new features.
- Build on Google Cloud, using Google App Engine (GAE) and Docker, for speed, flexibility and innovation.
- Integrate the platform with ERP and CRM back-end systems.
- Deliver a secure penetration-tested solution for enterprise-grade use.
Results
- Delivered rapidly: a ten-year-old application was rebuilt and extended with new modules and functionality in less than ten months (as per the schedule).
- Future-proofed: a highly scalable and secure platform built cloud natively and easily extendable with new functionalities which
can be configured as per the needs of the customers. - Seamless migration: migrated ten years of data from 120.000 users and 1.1 million printer profiles from AWS (traditional VMs) to Google Cloud (GAE).
- Lowered cost and reduced footprint: rebuilt and optimized platform leveraging Google Cloud (GKE) resulted in a reduction of hosting cost by 50% and operating more sustainably
- Enabled customer win: won a key Fortune 500 account leveraging Rappit Developer to create a working prototype for a new module in the first 100 days operating more sustainably.
- 24×7 supported: The Rappit cloud operations team took responsibility for operating and monitoring the cloud landing zone, unburdening the ColorBase IT team.
ColorBase
ColorBase Exchange is a new cloud-based platform that connects printing material manufacturers to resellers like never before. This new platform revolutionizes how users do business, streamlining data exchange, procurement, the sales process, customer acquisition, payments, and logistics.
ColorBase Exchange helps manufacturers find new distributors and helps distributors find new materials without extensive sourcing and procurement processes. Rappit built and is operating the “fit for the future” ColorBase Exchange SaaS solution on Google Cloud after migrating it from AWS, which was more costly and cumbersome to operate.