GT Software, provider of service-oriented architecture (SOA) development solutions that leverage mainframe resources, announced that CareFirst, has purchased Ivory Service Architect from GT Software in order to integrate its mainframe computers into a SOA.

CareFirst, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, is a not-for-profit health care company which, through its affiliates and subsidiaries, offers a comprehensive portfolio of health insurance products and administrative services to nearly 3 million individuals and groups in Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia and Maryland.

Ivory Service Architect provides tools to expose mainframe functionality so that organizations can quickly and efficiently ‘component-ize’ strategic mainframe applications into services. Exposing the mainframe as a producer and consumer of services greatly speeds up subsequent development and makes mainframe functions and data available across a diverse technology and skill base. Ivory Service Architect is readily adopted by mainframe developers, significantly reduces development time and facilitates mainframe SOA implementation.

CareFirst has already gone to production with the first set of Ivory-based services that enable its call center users to centrally view claims data that exist across disparate mainframe systems.

“Ivory Service Architect will enable CareFirst to fully leverage their mainframe resources in support of their customer service system,” said Rob Morris, senior vice president of Marketing and Strategy at GT Software. “With Ivory Service Architect, the mainframe developers are part of the process and SOA initiatives are implemented quickly for immediate benefits.”