February 9, 2005—IBM has announced a new service that provides a Web-based repository for document and records management to help clients of all sizes comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX).
Called IBM Flexible Hosting Solutions, Workplace for Business Controls and Reporting (WBCR) Service, the solution enables clients to utilize IBM’s WBCR application software quickly via the Internet.
The service provides businesses with an alternative to building and running their technology infrastructure in-house by tapping into computer systems in IBM data centers to provide sophisticated management of WBCR application software. The service uses existing IBM infrastructure, personnel, and management expertise to help businesses lower costs and eliminate the challenges inherent in deploying and running sophisticated software on premises.
Among the first clients that will begin using IBM’s new service is Barnwell Industries, which explores for, produces, and sells natural gas and oil in Canada and invests in leasehold land and drills wells and maintains water systems in Hawaii. Barnwell, which has about 50 employees, wanted to utilize the WBCR software at both its Canadian and Hawaiian offices, and found the hosted service a preferable solution for a company its size rather than to make the IT investment to install, run, and manage the software and related additional hardware in-house.
The new service is the latest in IBM’s range of compliance capabilities that IBM’s WBCR service also features backup and restoration services and help desk support, and the service will be updated to reflect future enhancements to the WBCR software. For more information, visit the IBM Workplace for Business Controls and Reporting site; the right sidebar includes highlights on the new service.
