Case Study: AEGON (global insurer) achieves real-time LAN access to mainframe data and cuts mainframe CPU costs with OpenText

AEGON elevates mainframe data to the LAN

AEGON, a global insurance and pensions provider, relied on CAESAR, a COBOL-based mainframe application, for pension administration but faced a growing volume of information requests that outpaced nightly batch processes. Repeated mainframe file generation was slow, costly (pay-per-CPU-cycle), and hampered collaboration between COBOL and LAN/Java teams, while DB2-to-Oracle replication and EBCDIC/ASCII conversion posed technical barriers to exposing reliable data on the LAN.

AEGON used Micro Focus tools (Net Express and Server for SOA) plus a “factory” conversion process to migrate and synchronize mainframe COBOL to LAN COBOL, expose core functions as web services, and replicate tested data for LAN use. The change preserved the application core, sped development, cut mainframe CPU costs, reduced query turnaround from a day to minutes, enabled SLA reporting and new web applications, and improved flexibility and customer satisfaction.

Aegon

Hans Wasmus

Systems Architect and Project Manager