Dante Consulting Signs Contract With Navy Federal Credit Union to Provide J2EE Training, Architecture, and Security

Dante Consulting signs contract with the Navy Federal Credit Union to deliver Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) technology. As part of the contract, Dante Consulting will design and implement Navy Federal's J2EE architecture and security, mentor staff, and assist in the conversion of 200 financial applications to J2EE technology.

Arlington, VA, December 10, 2001 - Dante Consulting signs contract with the Navy Federal Credit Union to deliver Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) technology. As part of the contract, Dante Consulting will design and implement Navy Federal's J2EE architecture and security, mentor staff, and assist in the conversion of 200 financial applications to J2EE technology.

Navy Federal, like many large corporations, faces significant challenges in developing and distributing software applications that support business operations. Three common challenges are dependence on proprietary technology, software distribution, and reuse of business logic. Navy Federal's move toward J2EE technology is designed to address all three issues.

Dependence on proprietary technology occurs when companies build software applications using non-standardized products that are required to make software run, or to change the software. When better technologies and products are introduced into the marketplace, companies that have become locked into proprietary technologies cannot easily adopt the new products without significant re-work. Recent advances in the IT industry have produced an industry standard, called J2EE, which companies adopt to move between vendors and products more easily. Many companies now build products that comply with the J2EE standard (e.g., WebSphere from IBM, WebLogic from BEA).

Software distribution, the process of delivering a software application to users' personal computers, is especially challenging for companies with a worldwide presence, such as Navy Federal. Addressing the advantages of J2EE technology, Dante President, Pierre Malko said, "J2EE technology is designed to allow users access to business software applications using Internet browsers, in contrast to older technologies that required installation of software on the desktop PC."

"Reuse of business logic is also hampered by older technologies," Malko continued, "whereas J2EE technology tends to increase the reuse of existing software functionality, thereby decreasing development time and cost."
Dante Consulting will assist Navy Federal, the world's largest credit union, in its move away from proprietary technologies that create long-term technology dependencies. By mentoring credit union staff in J2EE technologies, Dante will help the credit union deliver software solutions that reuse business logic and can be more easily deployed to Navy Federal's 93 worldwide branch offices.

"We are pleased to have an opportunity to assist Navy Federal with its transition to J2EE technologies. As more companies realize the business advantages of migrating to J2EE, we are experiencing strong growth in demand for our expertise." Malko said.

Navy Federal is the world's largest credit union, with more than two million members and $14 billion in assets. Headquartered in Vienna, Virginia, Navy Federal operates 93 member service centers and 243 proprietary "No Surcharge" ATMs worldwide. Navy Federal serves most military and civilian personnel of the Navy and Marine Corps and their families.

Dante Consulting is an IT consulting firm based in Arlington, VA. Dante specializes in using J2EE technologies to web-enable large-scale legacy environments and migrate existing functionality to more flexible, secure, open-system environments. For more information, visit Dante at www.DanteConsulting.com or call 703-807-0520.
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