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Mendix (Boston), creator of a rapid application development platform that the vendor markets to the insurance industry and others, has launched version 6 of its flagship offering. Mendix 6, which the vendor describes as an open and scalable platform for rapid development of digital applications, includes support for offline functionality in mobile applications, and a Model API and open source Platform SDK offering enhanced import and export of application models.

Enexis (formerly Essent), the Netherlands’ largest energy company, is using Mendix as part of a strategic program to rationalize its existing application ladscape and drive rapid innovation in close collaboration with its business stakeholders, according to Jan Paul Buijs, Manager of the company’s CIO Office. “Using Mendix’s model-driven development platform, we’ve been able to accelerate our transformation and reduce lead time of application initiatives significantly,” he comments. “In our Rapid Product Development Factory, we are able to drive 10-15 initiatives in parallel. We look forward to leveraging new innovations in the platform as we continue to adapt to changing conditions and business needs.”

Unprecedented Flexibility, Scalability and Usability

“To succeed in today’s fast-moving, competitive marketplace, companies need to create a digital enterprise that’s connected, intelligent, adaptive and always on,” commment Derek Roos, CEO, Mendix. “The Mendix 6 platform provides the foundation for the digital enterprise of today and beyond, offering rapid development teams an unprecedented level of flexibility, scalability and usability.”

Mendix details features of its latest release as follows:

Offline Mobile Support

Mendix offers out-of-the-box, offline mobile support across platforms and devices through a model-driven rapid mobile app development approach. Without any code, rapid developers can build mobile applications that make use of static resource storage, read access to data, and data entry caching to maintain consistency of user experience and performance even when disconnected or offline.

Open Platform, Open Innovation

The Mendix 6 Model API and open source Platform SDK extend platform openness and application beyond alternatives in the market, according to the vendor, and provide the following benefits:

• Eliminating Vendor Lock-in: with the new model exchange functionality, application models can be easily exported for documentation purposes, or to port applications to other platforms, increasing transparency and eliminating lock-in concerns
• Legacy migration and modernization: model import capabilities support automated cloud migration of legacy applications, allowing organizations to accelerate application modernization at massive scale
• Quality assurance: new APIs allow static analysis on application models to check for inconsistencies, ensure quality standards and improve maintainability
• Task automation: scripts automate bulk tasks, such as reformatting flow or changing certain parameters and activities across multiple models, saving time and ensuring consistency

Additional Developments

Mendix also describes the following improvements featured in its current release:

• Resilient Applications on Cloud Foundry: Customers deploying Mendix applications on Cloud Foundry benefit from out-of-the-box resilience services, simplifying configuration for high availability, failover and scalability.
• Mendix on AWS: Mendix is available in Amazon Web Services Marketplace (AWS Marketplace). Customers can run Mendix using their existing AWS corporate account and leverage the services in their plan. In addition, the Mendix Free Edition and Developer Sandboxes now run on AWS.
• Responsive UI Framework: General availability of the Mendix UI Framework offers comprehensive themes, navigation layouts, page templates and design elements for more easily building responsive multi-channel apps.
• Digital Transformation Practice: A new dedicated team of Mendix innovation experts will help customers define and execute plans to achieve their digital goals. Leveraging the company’s vast experience, and working closely with partners, the Mendix Digital Transformation Practice will offer thought-leading content, workshops and custom research. The new practice will help customers define their digital vision and strategy, assess their innovation needs and current situation, and adapt people, process, and technology platforms to increase the velocity of change.