Architecture & Technology

Why MACH?

The Answer is: Best-of-Breed, Flexibility and Scalability

MACH focuses primarily on the “best-of-breed” approach. The idea is that all eCommerce solutions, such as online shop, payment or fulfillment systems, are provided by individual solution providers who are specialists in their field. They each focus exclusively on their field of expertise in order to develop an optimal and specific solution. On the one hand, flexibility is extremely important to enable individual adjustments and integration options, on the other hand, for the connection of other individual solutions. Only in this way, the different individual systems can be seamlessly connected and a smooth and scalable exchange of data be ensured. This is exactly what the MACH principles stand for, making it possible for companies to always choose the solution that is right for their use case, to integrate new solutions into the existing system landscape, and thus to put together an individual solution according to their needs. Finally, companies that are following the MACH approach can profit from more efficient processes, lower costs and higher profitability.

What are the MACH principles?

Microservices

The structure of the MACH architecture can be compared to a modular system consisting of individual microservices that are independent from each other. Microservices are individual components that fulfill specific functions in the overall solution. Due to their independence, the (further) development of individual microservices is possible separately from other technical areas. In concrete terms, this means that technical competence is simultaneously transferred into innovative features by several cross-functional teams in an agile working environment and the solutions can be delivered to the customer autonomously ("Continuous Integration & Continuous Delivery" [CI/CD]). Further advantages of microservices are that they can be freely combined with each other as needed and that their operation and support is carried out on shared infrastructure in order to achieve high synergy and efficiency of the individual areas.

API-first

APIs (Application Programming Interface) are technical interfaces of a software solution to enable the smooth integration of further systems ("best-of-breed approach"). The documentation of our API is publicly accessible and describes for partners and developers exactly how functions of the platform can be used and which data formats are provided. The fulfilmenttools API is client agnostic. This means that the platform works in principle with any type of client and keeps the usage hurdle low by common standards. The clients provided by fulfilmenttools also run 100% on the officially operated and published APIs.

Cloud-Native SaaS

In the MACH architecture, the term "cloud-native" means that not only the data of the software solutions are stored in the cloud, but also that the data processing is cloud-based. By doing so, the costly use of local on-premise systems are redundant and the solutions can be scaled without limits. In this way, retailers profit from flexibility to adapt their capacities to market and customer requirements while keeping operating costs as low as possible. The fulfilmenttools platform is also operated in the cloud with state-of-the-art technologies. The data processing and storage of all components used is located in Belgium and Germany, but can also be operated in other regions if desired. Furthermore, all platform components follow the best-of-breed approach and allow independent and cost-efficient scaling. The operation and support of the cloud infrastructure is covered by our in-house site reliability engineers - in terms of scaling we rely on our hyperscaler, the Google Cloud Platform.

Headless

If the functionality of a system or solution can be accessed primarily via an API, it is called a headless architecture. The microservices, i.e. the business logics, can thus be flexibly connected via APIs to any frontend, regardless of whether it is developed in-house or available through other channels. This is possible due to the fact that the system architecture is designed ensuring that all systems and frontends are able to work together on a technical level. In addition, machine-to-machine communication, which is the absolute basis for any automation, is guaranteed. fulfillmenttools stands for headless "plus". This means that our platform can be operated 100% headless. But for some components of our system (e.g. the operative processing of customer orders), applications developed by fulfilmenttools, like apps or web applications, can be helpful. We make standard solutions available to our customers – but they can choose, whether they want to use them or not!

What benefits does MACH offer?

Highest product standards

All software providers of the individual systems or solutions are specialists in their field. Each part of the overall solution is designed and developed by experts in their sector. An expert in the field of fulfilment is fulfilmenttools, for example.

Flexibility and efficient processes

All services and products provided by members of the MACH Alliance are equipped with the same key features (microservices, API-first, cloud-native SaaS and headless). This means that all follow the same rules, which greatly simplifies integrations and provides flexibility.

Independence from service providers

Using the best-of-breed approach MACH enables independence from a specific service provider. This means that in cooperation with companies of the MACH Alliance, it is possible to change (partial) processes with reasonable effort while the overall process does not get affected and without the need to develop all processes completely new.

About the MACH alliance

The MACH Alliance is an independent, non-profit institution that advocates and supports open, future-oriented technology ecosystems. Its goal is to provide guidance to companies within the broad range of available technology and application offerings in the market and to help them select the right partners and get started with the transition from older legacy systems to new, modern software infrastructures. MACH stands for the principles microservices, API-first, cloud-native saas and headless, which represent a technological, modern industry standard. 

The MACH Alliance was founded in 2020 and consists now of more than 70 members from software providers, system integrators and enablers. All members are examined strictly to receive their certification.

Learn more about MACH alliance
PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE!

Make your processes more efficient with fulfillmenttools:

  • Respond quickly to demand peaks and scale your eCommerce dynamically
  • Implement software step by step and according to your needs
  • Seamless communication between systems or solutions through powerful APIs
  • Connect your IT systems as well as third-party systems quickly and easily
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Contact us

Would you like to know more? Send us a message – we look forward to a personal conversation and will be happy to discuss your options.

Send messageSubscribe to newsletter

Contact us

Would you like to know more? Send us a message – we look forward to a personal conversation and will be happy to discuss your options.

Send messageSubscribe to newsletter