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Olympus America Adds Linux, Gains Three Times the Performance


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Precision Technology Leader Taps Linux on IBM System i to Streamline Key Business Operations

BOSTON, MA - 05 Apr 2006: LINUXWORLD -- IBM announced today that Olympus America Inc., a precision technology leader that designs and delivers innovative solutions in healthcare and consumer electronics worldwide, has increased the performance of its Web services by supplementing its current environment with Linux on IBM’s “all-in-one” System i business computing solution.

Olympus is currently relocating its North American corporate headquarters to Center Valley, Penn. At this new location, two new System i570s will serve as the company’s data hub, running simultaneously in logical partitions:

* The Linux-based Web services applications that interface with Olympus’s JD Edwards World ERP application running on i5/OS and other applications in their network;
* i5/OS applications that manage Olympus’s finances and supply chain, and ERP and data warehousing applications that enable Olympus to monitor inventory and ship medical and consumer solutions from warehouses across the country; and
* Tivoli Storage Manager running on AIX 5L, which backs up 300 Windows servers to an IBM TotalStorage solution.

“The System i delivers a simplified system to our customers -- no matter the size of the enterprise,” said Mark Shearer, general manager, IBM System i. “Olympus’s migration to Linux on System i has enabled it to focus on creating value for its customers, rather than maintaining a costly and unreliable IT environment.”

Olympus recently selected IBM technology to expand its Web services environment. Olympus added some 50 Web services built on J2EE and Apache Tomcat to Red Hat Linux running on the System i. Those applications tap just one of the system’s 25 processors and one gigabyte of memory. By a three-to-one margin, the new system outperforms Olympus’s previous environment -- which required two processors and two gigabytes of memory.

“Running Linux on System i has provided Olympus with rock-solid availability and reliability,” said Michael Hughes, Executive Director, Application Development and Information Engineering, Olympus America. “Instead of addressing periodic failures and reboots, we can focus on our business while System i handles such key corporate functions as inventory, shipping and finance.”

About the IBM System i
The IBM System i is a tightly integrated business system including hardware, middleware, storage and security. The “all-in-one” System i platform embraces open standards and can run i5/OS, Windows (1), Linux and AIX 5L operating environments simultaneously so clients can simplify their IT environment and reinvest those savings in business innovation. Business partners and solutions providers of all sizes drive System i5 success by building, selling and deploying more than 7,000 of the world’s most popular business applications for their clients on the System i family. For more information, visit http://www-03.ibm.com/systems/i/.



About IBM
IBM is the world’s largest information technology company, with 80 years of leadership in helping businesses innovate. Drawing on resources from across IBM and key IBM Business Partners, IBM offers a wide range of services, solutions and technologies that enable customers, large and small, to take full advantage of the new era of on demand business. For more information about IBM, visit http://www.ibm.com.

About Olympus
Olympus is a precision technology leader, designing and delivering innovative solutions in healthcare and consumer electronics worldwide. Olympus works collaboratively with its customers and its parent company, Tokyo-based Olympus Corporation, to leverage R&D investment in precision technology and manufacturing processes across diverse business lines. These include: Gastrointestinal endoscopes, accessories, and minimally invasive surgical products; Advanced clinical and research microscopes; Lab automation systems, chemistry-immuno and blood bank analyzers and reagents; Digital and film cameras and digital voice recorders. In the U.S. and Canada, Olympus America serves healthcare and commercial laboratory markets with integrated product solutions and financial, educational and consulting services that help customers efficiently, reliably, safely, and easily achieve superior results. Olympus is the leader in gastrointestinal endoscopy and clinical and educational microscopes. The company’s consumer electronics business spans North and South America. For more information, visit www.olympusamerica.com.



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