Flynet
Enable, Enhance, Evolve

Flynet originally started its operations as a science company located next to the University of Cambridge. Back then, the company would solve the clients’ host system integration and mainframe connectivity problems. Over the years, Flynet transitioned to help companies to future-proof their legacy applications. Today, Flynet is a leading supplier of host server integration software and services and provides a no-code or low-code Flynet Viewer tool-set, allowing organizations to integrate the mainframe in their cloud, mobile, SOA, iPaaS, IoT, and digital agendas without increasing technical debt. Companies such as DHL, BMW, HP, Vodafone, and Tesco use the multi-award-winning Flynet Viewer software suite to connect and administer their host system environments. The Flynet suite of enterprise applications deals with the clients’ current issues, and also delivers a strong capability that can assist the client to realize a future-proof solution portfolio. The company terms it as ‘Enable, Enhance, and Evolve.’ To learn more about Flynet and its philosophy, we interviewed Christian Rule, the director of business transformation of the company. Following are the insights shared by him.

Please elaborate on the three elements of Flynet’s philosophy: Enable, Enhance, and Evolve.

The three elements form the basis of the technology that we deliver.

Enable: We deliver Flynet Viewer Terminal Emulation (TE). This was one of the primary pieces of technology that we built. Viewer TE is an instant web browser based terminal emulator engine that frees the host connections from traditional desktop applications, such that they can be used on mobile devices with zero client software installation. The business systems involved include Mainframe, iSeries, Unix, VMS or MultiValue system, on any device with zero client software installation, all centrally managed via the Flynet Viewer administration center. Clients are supported by Flynet Viewer TE in their server-side macro creation and out of the box operations.

Enhance: The Enhance phase helps clients to turn green screen host applications into modern responsive web-based GUI applications. Through the Flynet Viewer Studio UX (User Experience)—a no-code and low-code platform—the clients can reshape the way they interact with Mainframe, iSeries, Unix, VMS or MultiValue system, changing green screen user experiences into contemporary interfaces that are delivered over the web. The clients can then adapt and evolve business processes, they are also able to quickly realize new efficiencies and gain tactical advantages over their competition.

Evolve: Finally, this stage takes the Viewer Studio application further as it provides the ability to use the low-code or no-code for the web services. We deliver Flynet Viewer DataConnect in this phase, allowing the clients to transform their host environment into a dynamic component of the business system-interface. Although the new tools are confined to the enterprise’s transaction layer, they can unleash the clients’ investment in their host system, which enables them to freely interact with, and feed, third-party business systems. This process ultimately increases the availability, timeliness, and integrity of key business data.

Could you brief us about the challenges that Flynet solves through this philosophy?

Largely, the clients are dealing with the old or legacy user interfaces, which make it impossible for the millennial to operate them. There is also a desire to access the older applications using latest devices, which has been very difficult. Through our tool-set, companies can take the legacy applications on a modern web service journey.

We build completely responsive interfaces that can be used by the clients dynamically to redesign their legacy systems such that they can work on mobile devices. Armed with the tool-set, the Flynet professional services team creates highly sophisticated applications for customers. The company’s clients and projects span across many verticals and platforms, and include diverse operations such as virtualization, mobile, and cloud.

What are the factors that steer Flynet ahead of the competition?

One of our main USPs is that we are the only low-code/ no-code platform that can synchronize natively with green screen applications. Flynet’s ability assists clients in the RPA processes as we can offer web services that harmonize with the back-end open applications.

The main differentiator for us is our approach. While many competitors start with a code-based approach to modernize the legacy applications, we start from a web development stand-point and look from top-down. This helps us build a solution that synchronizes in a better way with the legacy applications.

Through this approach, our clients are able to modernize their system in an efficient and cost-effective manner. For Flynet customer DAF Trucks, a leading company had quoted a minimum of 500 senior consultant days for a green screen UI transformation. Using Flynet Viewer, an internal non-developer was able to complete the entire project in 70 days. What made this deal even more beneficial is that the cost incurred was also minimized for the client.

Further, our Studio environment produces an open and editable shop of applications. Whether it is web services or NBC modelled UI, everything is accessible by the client, and they can customize the systems. The developers can work exclusively with us in our Studio, or we can build applications that will be standards based and thoroughly documented.

What does the future hold for Flynet?

Currently, we are based in the UK and the US, and we have a growing partner and channel network all across the globe. Our present platform allows companies to build modern web applications on software legacy apps. In the future, we will launch a new version of our studio product that will allow clients to seamlessly create applications against both legacy and modern systems at the same time. The new version will enable clients to completely run applications in the cloud.