German multinational software firm SAP opened a new data center in Mumbai last week to complement existing infrastructure in Europe, the US and Saudi Arabia.
The data center’s arrival is good news for operations in the region that require fast, reliable cloud services with low latency and high availability. The real drawcard here though will be the improved data federation capabilities it introduces that benefit the region and the world at large.
Data federation is simply a unified view of disparate sources that doesn’t require moving or copying that data from its source while preserving its integrity.
With data federation in place, trading partners will be able to exchange goods and services across borders while preserving the integrity and security of their data. This means a buyer in India using the SAP Business Network’s data center can use a supplier on the US data center without infringing on either nation’s data laws.
“The result is a network that can not only connect partners globally but also help customers to conduct business more intelligently, respond faster to change, and drive greater value from every interaction across procurement, supply chain, logistics, asset collaboration, and working capital management,” Jörn Keller, Executive Vice President and Chief Product Officer of SAP Business Network, said in a press release.
SAP says that the new data center localizes data in compliance with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) guidelines. This is especially important for the finance and insurance sector, where mandates regarding local data storage are stricter.
The data center also provides access to a range of SAP services including SAP HANA Enterprise Cloud, SAP’s AI assistant Joule, data analytics and more. As with all SAP data centers the Mumbai location meets international security standards and holds the relevant certifications.
“While supporting compliance within an increasingly complex regulatory environment, data federation offers numerous technical advantages as well, especially in hybrid or multi-cloud environments. These benefits include cost efficiency, unified governance and security, and faster response times compared to accessing servers in distant regions. Yet the most valuable competitive advantage provided by data federation may be the most elusive: peace of mind for business leaders amid the ever-looming threat to supply chains posed by disruption,” adds Keller.
The executive notes that businesses will turn to data federation and other cloud solutions to improve their operational resilience. These solutions can help mitigate disaster, conflict and other threats, and this data center aims to do just that