Empower Home Appliance Leader with Federated API Management
“Haier uses API7 Enterprise's federated API management to manage different API gateways from various Lines of Business (LOBs) to find a balance between agility and stability.”
Infra Team
,
Haier
Reduce 80% loads of infrastructure maintenance
while LOBs keep rapid iteration
Infra team delivers golden image and best practices to LOBs
while focusing on business integration and API development
Challenges
Founded in 1984, Haier Group is a leading global provider of better life and digital transformation solutions. Haier has held the No.1 position in Euromonitor's Global Major Appliances Brand for 15 consecutive years.
In 2019, Haier's subsidiary Haier Smart Home ranked 448 on Fortune's Global 500 list with a revenue of $27.7 billion. But there were many pain points need to be solved.
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Diverse Lines of Business (LOBs) utilize disparate API gateways such as NGINX, Kong, and APISIX, leading to duplicated construction efforts, elevated maintenance expenses, and a deficiency in centralized API asset management.
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Each LOB manages its API gateway independently, leading to separate approval and implementation procedures for updates. This decentralization impedes product iteration by introducing delays and bottlenecks in coordination across multiple teams.
Solution
- Haier's infra team delivers a comprehensive suite of services including the golden image of API gateway, industry-leading best practices, security, observability, and a unified control plane based on API7 Enterprise.
- API7 Enterprise empowers business units with support for gateway groups and custom plugins, ensuring ample flexibility to cater to the diverse needs of various LOBs.
Competitive Edge of Our Solution
Streamlining API management with GitOps
Through infrastructure as code, business departments can streamline API management processes by submitting pull requests to the code repository, enabling seamless implementation of GitOps methodologies.
Gateway Groups Isolate Different Lines of Business
API7 Enterprise facilitates distinct business units through customizable
Lower Migration Costs
API7 Enterprise is compatible with Apache APISIX and offers convenient and well-developed migration solutions for NGINX Plus, Kong, and other NGINX-based products. This compatibility ensures a smooth transition process, enabling enterprises to leverage the advanced features of API7 Enterprise while preserving existing infrastructure investments and minimizing disruption.
Results
Decoupled API Gateway Infra Team and Lines of Business
Haier's infrastructure team delivers golden images, implements best practices, offers integration solutions, manages upgrades, and deploys security patches. This enables Haier's business units to concentrate on core activities such as API development, releases, integrations, and customization of plugins, ensuring a streamlined workflow and maximizing productivity across the organization.
Improved Security and Observability
Haier implements a unified golden image and best practices across LOBs. The infrastructure team autonomously oversees patching and upgrades to bolster security, seamlessly integrating infrastructure-as-code. Additionally, they adeptly handle slow or malicious requests, ensuring uninterrupted operations without the need for LOB involvement.
Engineers For Business, Not Infrastructure Maintenance
API7 provides a comprehensive API gateway solution complemented by a suite of extensive services, including security patches, best practices, performance optimization, and tailored training. The integration of these offerings has led to a remarkable 80% reduction in infrastructure maintenance for Haier. Consequently, this efficiency gain allows Haier to redirect resources towards strategic business development initiatives and rapid product iteration, fostering sustainable growth and innovation.
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