Provincial Agency Modernizes Core Systems While Syncing with Legacy Mainframe Estate

500,000

COBOL Lines of Code Refactored to Java

Zero Interruption

Between legacy and modernized systems

1000+

End Users Served

The Customer

A Canadian provincial agency responsible for asset assessment, taxation, and registration for its citizens.

The Challenge

The agency’s 25-year-old assessment and taxation system was critical to provincial operations but was running on costly Unisys OS 2200 mainframe technology with a shrinking pool of capable COBOL and DMS 1100 specialists. The primary challenge was the system's immense complexity: Only one portion of the application, used by one government department, was being modernized. The related taxation functions, used by a separate department, had to remain on the mainframe. This created a non-negotiable requirement to keep the new and old systems perfectly synchronized.

The project was further complicated by a mid-stream shift in government legislation which introduced new functional constraints for the platform. This required significant, unplanned modifications to the application's core business logic during the modernization process.

The Approach

AveriSource was engaged as the prime contractor to deliver a complex modernization that addressed all the agency's technical and business challenges. Using the AveriSource Platform and a blended services delivery model, the team executed a multi-faceted strategy which focused on:

Application Transformation

Approximately 500,000 lines of procedural COBOL were transformed into modern, object-oriented Java. Green screens were converted to a web-based UI, retaining a familiar layout and functionality to ensure rapid user adoption with minimal training for the 1000+ users.

Database Migration

The hierarchical DMS 1100 database was migrated to a relational Oracle database. Data transformation included a full schema design and data cleansing. To solve the core challenge of running two systems, the team built custom Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) functionality. This critical component allowed data to flow seamlessly in both directions, ensuring the modernized Java/Oracle system and the legacy COBOL/DMS environment remained perfectly in sync.

Agile Adaptation

When new legislation was passed mid-project, AveriSource successfully coordinated with the agency to incorporate the complex new business rules directly into the modernization efforts, avoiding delays and a separate enhancement project.

The Results

The project successfully proved that a complex modernization is achievable without disrupting interconnected legacy systems. The agency now has a modern, maintainable, and future-ready application for its assessment division. Notable project achievements include:

Zero interruption between the modernized and legacy systems, enabled by robust, bi-directional data synchronization.
Successful modernization from COBOL to Java and from a complex hierarchical DMS database to Oracle.
Seamless integration of major legislative changes mid-project, demonstrating extreme agility and avoiding costly project overruns.
Delivery of critical new functionality, including full bilingual support (English/French) and online help systems to meet modern compliance standards.
Elimination of mainframe dependency and the risk of an evaporating workforce for the province's critical functions.