Netron Inc, a Canadian legacy software transformation outfit, has opened a European headquarters ahead of the local launch of HotRod, its patented process extraction software. The expansion follows the company’s realization that a quarter of its revenues were coming from Europe, despite its limited presence there.
The firm has formed a team of 20 staff, based in London, to sell to the UK market, and has started signing deals with resellers and systems integrators, including ECSoft Group Plc, for the European market. Netron has already completed two major projects in the UK, with credit card firm Barclaycard Plc and Motorola Inc. The company says it expects 50% of its operations to be in Europe by 2002.
HotRod allows companies to mine legacy COBOL software for business processes. The software works by scanning large quantities of code to identify business process algorithms. Netron claims the software ‘fingerprints’ business rules by their external characteristics, using algorithms developed by NASA for identifying patterns of stars. Netron says that up to 90% of code is extraneous to the important business logic, and that HotRod can scan a million lines, creating an inventory of the crucial 10%, in less than 15 minutes. HotRod is expected to ship in four to six weeks.
Toronto-based Netron has been going for 15 years and says it is reaching a size where IPO in Canada or on Nasdaq seems likely. Another alternative being explored for the longer term is floating off its European subsidiary.
