Multibase has adapted to the changing business environment over 25 years by retaining its sense of perspective, managing risk, and concentrating on real business value, relevance and sustainability. With nearly 30 staff, with an impressive range of skills and experience, Multibase can readily help system owners with new technical development and move with the times to leverage the value of their long term technology investments to access the Internet marketplace and developing new ways of doing business.

Incorporated in Sydney, NSW in February 1983 Multibase was formed as a specialist supplier of application development tools for the Unix Open Systems environment.

The company is well known as the author of CL4, a set of software development tools for the Unix environment, and an integrated Relational Database Management system, and Fourth Generation Language for the Unix environment, first released in 1984.

Multibase as UNIFACE distributor

In 1989 because of its broad expertise in database technology, software development tools, operating systems and networking, Multibase was selected as the UNIFACE distributor in this region. UNIFACE is an integrated cross-platform software development environment. Multibase was one of the few selected alpha test sites for UNIFACE software releases and has the proven expertise to create related software such as database drivers and CASE bridges.

In 1993, Multibase WebAustralis was selected as THE Guide distributor in this region. THE Guide is a scalable, technology-independent methodology for application software development.

In 1994, Multibase WebAustralis created Uniface Australasia to concentrate on its UNIFACE activities. In addition, Uniface established its Asia Pacific Headquarters in Sydney and based its Asia Pacific Support Centre on the expertise of the Multibase WebAustralis support team.

When UNIFACE was first promoted in this region it was an unknown overseas product offering an entirely new genre of technology. Over the ensuing 5 years Multibase WebAustralis made it into a well regarded highly successful product and the local organisation into one of the most successful sales and support organisations of its type.

As the result, in early 1995, Compuware Asia Pacific purchased the sales and support of UNIFACE from Multibase WebAustralis.

Multibase and the web

Since 1995, Multibase WebAustralis has expanded its business into a number of complementary areas, including the commercialisation of the Internet and in particular, the World Wide Web.

The integration of Internet technology into CL4, and the creation of web applications built with CL4, was achieved with a determined research and development program which continues. As well as the traditional green screen applications which Multibase continues to support, CL4 enables the development of fast, robust and customisable databases and catalogues, with attractive graphical user interfaces.

Owners of legacy CL4 applications can protect and leverage their investment, especially to develop web services delivering data to users through a range of more recent technologies. Alongside existing CL4 applications, new applications, especially those targeted for Internet delivery, can now be developed in current technologies using CLDBLib which opens the CL4 database to application development in other popular development languages.
Multibase’s early Internet involvement began with the purchase and rebuilding of a small Adelaide-based web developer as a design partner for complex systems. The business was later sold to management and Multibase expanded with in-house business analysts, designers and developers.

In 1995, the WebAustralis brand was established as an ISP offering dialup and ISDN Internet access to clients in Sydney, Adelaide, and NSW country areas in collaboration with a range of partners. With the move to mass-market provision of Internet access through DSL and cable, Multibase has focused the business on solution development, integration and hosting.

In the late 1990s, Multibase participated variously as a supplier and partner in a number of major web business ventures. One of these was in building, a familiar Multibase industry, through which major experience in web catalogue development was gained and integrated into new ecommerce solution frameworks. Another in the emerging area of Internet-delivered business information industry, initially through a joint venture and later as a service provider, has developed into the dominant business information brokerage in Australia. Later, Multibase developed software for, and then purchased, a business that continues to supply richly interactive web sites for sports organisation that has developed into the Samson brand and the Multibase iSport Sports Network.

Multibase now

Since the late 1990s, the company has focused on five areas of business central to conducting day to day business on the web. Multibase retains and reinforces its personal contact with clients and a commitment to take their business needs seriously, in the areas of application development tools and solution frameworks, hosting, sport management web systems, eCommerce and legacy system integration and management.

As well as its own application development tools, Multibase uses other best-of-breed technologies to deliver custom web application solutions which offer significant value for money. Commercial, technical and customer service combine to develop and manage systems using most major web tools in both Unix and Microsoft environments, particularly systems which involve the secure collection, storage, retrieval and delivery of valuable information of any kind. Where appropriate, we use existing solution frameworks, either built by Multibase or by third parties, to reduce cost and increase speed of deployment.

• Multibase’s hosting business has grown from a backroom operation to a high quality specialist hosting provider, with a mix of dedicated, co-located and shared hosting in Unix and Windows environments. More complex systems typically have a mix of database and application hosting, often requiring specialist security measures, and may combine servers hosted on multiple platforms. The location of the facility of Fujitsu Australia’s world-class Internet Data Centre in Sydney, and the constant management and improvement of security and performance, provide an environment equally suitable for complex web systems and straightforward shared server hosting.
• The SAMSON system powering iSport web sites is an Internet-based administration and communication system designed to meet the needs of sport. It provides better communication, administrative efficiency, a professional image, and secure operations. Multibase sport web sites, powered by the SAMSON system, are lively, usable and information-rich web sites for sport, with all the functions necessary to run a sport, and features crucial to sport participants and enthusiasts - for fixtures, results, points tables, news, and calendars.
• The Multibase ePay system, offering real time credit card clearance and a recurring payments system, provides a robust ecommerce choice for merchants hosted both by Multibase and elsewhere. Multibase now develops ecommerce systems in almost any Internet technology, as well as supporting a range of ecommerce solution frameworks with the payment gateway built in. New security technologies are regularly added. In 2007, cellPay for credit card clearance from mobile EFTPOS terminals was introduced.
• In the area of legacy systems, Multibase continues to support and improve CL, as it defies expectations of its replacement with more recently developed technologies. Multibase's strong Unix skills are also increasingly called upon to maintain legacy systems both in CL4 and other Unix technologies. New tools also enable us to develop a web front end in modern Internet programming environments such as ASP.NET or the LAMP platform.
  Incorporated in Sydney, NSW in February 1983 Multibase was formed as a specialist supplier of application development tools for the Unix Open Systems environment.

The future

With its longevity and commitment, Multibase continues to support customers in Australia and the Asia Pacific, from very small organisations to large government and private institutions. We provide technological expertise, particularly using the Internet, to clients from a variety of backgrounds, with a commitment to effective long term solutions that eliminate technological complexities and provide significant value.