The following partner insight was authored by Raunak Agarwal, Director - Projects & Delivery at AsInt, Inc.
As global enterprises prepare to transition from SAP ECC to SAP S/4HANA Cloud, one reality is becoming increasingly clear: The move is not just a technical upgrade — it’s a business transformation.
Success depends not only on what you migrate, but how you migrate. That’s where the SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) becomes a strategic differentiator. For asset-intensive industries, partnering with a focused, BTP-native organization like AsInt significantly reduces complexity, accelerates value realization, and keeps Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) under control.
In a world where adaptability drives survival, SAP BTP empowers organizations to stay nimble, innovate continuously, and embrace change with confidence.
The Clean Core Imperative
SAP strongly advocates a clean-core strategy for S/4HANA Cloud adoption. This approach minimizes in-app customizations and shifts extensions, integrations, and custom logic to SAP BTP.
Why Is This Essential?
Over-customizing the ERP core introduces:
- Technical debt
- Upgrade challenges
- Increased cost and effort
- Slower access to SAP innovations
A clean core ensures:
- Faster upgrades
- Reduced regression risk
- Consistent governance
- A modular, future-proof architecture
By building on SAP BTP, organizations gain flexibility while maintaining strict separation between the digital foundation (S/4HANA) and extension layers. Developers can use modern tools, languages, and frameworks — all tightly integrated with SAP’s data and process models.
How SAP BTP Accelerates Your S/4HANA Cloud Transformation
SAP BTP consolidates application development, integration, analytics, automation, and AI into a unified cloud platform. Key capabilities include:
1. Side-by-Side App Development
Build custom applications without compromising the ERP core using SAP Fiori, UI5, CAP, and SAP Build. These apps communicate with S/4HANA via secure, standardized APIs.
2. Seamless Integrations
SAP Integration Suite provides prebuilt connectors, workflows, and adapters for easy connections between SAP and non-SAP systems, reducing integration complexity.
3. Data & Analytics Modernization
With SAP Datasphere and SAP Analytics Cloud (SAC), organizations gain:
- Real-time operational dashboards
- Predictive planning
- Advanced data modeling without the need for a standalone BI stack
4. Automation & RPA
SAP Build Process Automation and Intelligent RPA help eliminate manual effort, streamline workflows, and improve productivity.
5. AI Enablement & Low-Code Tools
Use pre-built AI services or build custom models with SAP AI Core. Low-code/no-code tools democratize development across business and IT teams.
Across industries, SAP BTP is helping organizations reduce legacy complexities, standardize processes, simplify reporting, and deliver user-centric extensions that evolve with the business.
Where AsInt Makes the Difference
AsInt is an SAP Services Partner and certified SAP BTP developer specializing in asset-intensive industries. We understand that transitioning to S/4HANA is a strategic business program, not just an IT initiative.
AsInt supports customers through:
1. SAP BTP Enablement & Strategy
We help clients adopt a clean core mindset, select the right BTP services, and architect scalable solutions that support long-term business goals.
2. Custom Extension Development
Whether replicating a legacy function or building a new mobile or web interface, AsInt delivers:
- CAP-based applications
- SAP Fiori & UI5 interfaces
- Modular, API-driven extensions
Our BTP-native development accelerates product deployment and reduces learning cycles.
3. Integration Modernization
From legacy middleware replacement to modern API-led connections, we deploy SAP Integration Suite to streamline connectivity and reduce fragile point-to-point integrations.
4. Data & Analytics Activation
We unlock real-time visibility into integrity, maintenance, reliability, and operational KPIs using BTP’s data stack — enabling smarter decision-making.
5. Smart Templates for Reliability & Integrity
Our prebuilt BTP-enabled solutions include:
- Risk-Based Inspection (RBI)
- Inspection Data Management System (IDMS)
Why Start With BTP, Even Before S/4HANA?
Organizations can begin building extensions in SAP BTP while still operating on ECC. These extensions become immediately reusable post-migration. This provides:
- A phased, strategic approach
- Reduced migration risk
- Lower cutover complexity
- Faster enablement for IT & business teams
It also accelerates cloud-native capability building across development, integration, and analytics teams.
At AsInt, we simplify the five foundational pillars of SAP BTP:
- Application Development
- Automation
- Integration
- Data and Analytics
- AI and Machine Learning
This forms the backbone of our product portfolio and consulting framework — helping customers transition seamlessly into a clean, modern, intelligent enterprise architecture.
Final Thoughts
SAP BTP is far more than a development platform. It is the digital engine behind clean, intelligent, and scalable enterprise transformation.
With SAP BTP and AsInt’s industry expertise, organizations can:
- Modernize operations
- Standardize processes
- Eliminate technical debt
- Accelerate innovation
- Unlock the true value of SAP S/4HANA Cloud
Your move to S/4HANA becomes not just a migration — but a strategic opportunity to reinvent how your business runs.
Raunak Agarwal is Director - Projects & Delivery at AsInt, Inc.