How does an APEX upgrade work?

About Oracle APEX

Oracle APEX is a database-driven low-code platform that uses SQL and PL/SQL to implement business rules and other logic. The GUI abstracts much of the underlying programming, which allows you to develop applications quickly and leaves you more time to focus on the underlying system.

Personally, I have now been working with Oracle APEX for some three years. It started in 2019 when I did the bootcamp with Qualogy Caribbean and obtained the relevant certificates. Sometime in the future, I also want to get the official Oracle APEX certification.

The question posed to Qualogy Caribbean

A.S. Watson is the world’s largest drugstore chain and the company behind brands such as Kruidvat, Trekpleister, ICI PARIS XL, PourVous and Prijsmepper. We work for them together with Qualogy in the Netherlands a lot and were asked to upgrade the existing Oracle APEX application (5.1.2) to version (20.1).

Why? At A.S. Watson, lots of the internal applications are built in Oracle APEX, and in Oracle APEX 5.1.2 at the time. To do so, standard Oracle templates and themes were adapted into tailored versions. With each upgrade, these tailored versions also had to be adapted, which took up a lot of time.

In the meantime, changes had been made to Oracle APEX itself, which called for an upgrade. It was a great opportunity to modernise existing applications and to rebuild aged functionality. At the same time, we also wanted to switch from this tailored version to the standard implementations so as to reduce maintenance in the future.

Supple transition for users

Last year we started by upgrading the first major application, which went live early 2021. This was followed by other (smaller) applications, which we are still working on. The biggest challenge for this project? User expectations.

Users are used to their trusted interface of a certain application. As a developer, you therefore try to keep as much of the core functionalities intact as possible. Then - to the users – it feels as if they are working in the same application, just with a different jacket.

From scratch

To upgrade the first, major application, we decided to build it from scratch. This allowed us to map what did and what did not work step-by-step. It was also a great opportunity to optimise existing processes. The later upgrades were less large-scale so we were able migrate to the latest APEX version in one go.

Proud of the result

To date, I am very satisfied with the way the project is going. Upgrading all the applications is quite a job, but the end result is a modernised application – and one in which we respected the original workflow and still make best possible use of the latest functionalities. And the most important thing: we are getting positive reactions from both the client and users. I am proud of it!

Ongoing cooperation

I have now also started upgrading applications in Oracle Forms, which is proving quite the challenge! But this is just part of the work we do for A.S. Watson, as we are one of their preferred suppliers. We also work together closely with our Qualogy colleagues in the Netherlands, which makes the work extra-special. This blog tells you more about our work.

More information

Want to know more about this project? Or do you have specific questions about offshore IT by Qualogy Caribbean? Then contact Nilesh Bishesar via info_caribbean@qualogy.com.