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The powerful business rules engine (BRE) like Higson empowers organizations to manage complex decision logic with precision, speed, and efficiency. While many businesses understand the foundational benefits of a BRE, unlocking its full potential requires exploring advanced capabilities, performance optimization, and strategic deployment methods.
This article dives into what makes Higson a standout solution, offering insights beyond the basics.
Higson's Advanced Capabilities: Driving Efficiency and Precision
1. High-Performance Rule Processing
Higson is engineered to deliver lightning-fast performance. In benchmarking tests, Higson demonstrated the ability to handle up to 9,000 API requests per second — nearly 18 times faster than many competing BRE solutions.
This performance boost directly translates into:
- Instant decisions — capable of calculating four premium quotes within one millisecond.
- Enhanced customer experience — real-time responsiveness supports seamless digital services.
2. Memory Optimization for Large-Scale Datasets
For businesses operating with vast data sets — common in insurance, banking, and e-commerce — memory efficiency is critical. Higson has reduced memory consumption by up to 46% in its latest release, ensuring complex decision tables consume fewer resources while maintaining high throughput.
3. Intelligent Decision Table Management
Higson excels in managing intricate decision logic. Whether dealing with extensive lookup tables or rapidly changing market conditions, its streamlined structure ensures:
- Faster table initialization — complex tables with over 1 million rows load 36% faster than in previous versions.
- Adaptive memory control — the system evicts unused tables to conserve resources.
4. Improved Authentication and Security
Higson introduces optimizations that significantly boost performance with secure REST API calls:
- 3.2x faster response using JWT authentication.
- 4.5x faster with Basic Authentication and BCRYPT(5).
- Remarkably, performance with PBKDF2 encryption improved 501 times, demonstrating Higson’s ability to handle complex encryption securely and efficiently.
Deployment Strategies for Maximum Impact
Higson's flexible deployment options provide adaptability for various infrastructures. Depending on your environment, you can choose between:
1. Containerized Deployment (Docker & Kubernetes)
- Ideal for scalability and portability.
- Efficient for organizations that require frequent updates or manage microservices architectures.
- Ensures seamless synchronization across multiple instances.
2. Application Server Deployment (WAR File)
- Best suited for environments with stable infrastructure, such as Tomcat or JBoss.
- Offers simplified maintenance and debugging.
3. Hybrid Integration via Higson Runtime REST
For microservice-based applications, Higson Runtime REST acts as a dedicated API layer, centralizing rule processing while maintaining modular scalability.
Success in Action: Warta Insurance Case Study
Polish insurance giant Warta leveraged Higson to revolutionize its sales processes. Key benefits included:
- Seamless integration with legacy systems from the 1990s.
- A centralized Pricing Configurator that allowed business users to modify parameters independently of IT teams.
- Automated tasks like form-filling, application validation, and payment scheduling improved operational efficiency.
Practical Tips for Maximizing Higson's Capabilities
To extract the most value from Higson as your business rules engine, consider the following best practices:
✅ Design efficient decision tables: Structuring tables with optimized logic paths reduces lookup times.
✅ Leverage memory-saving features: Use Higson's idle eviction mechanism to automatically release unused data tables.
✅ Embrace containerization: Kubernetes deployment ensures smooth scaling and version management.
✅ Empower business users: Higson’s intuitive UI enables non-technical teams to modify rules without developer involvement.
Conclusion
For organizations seeking to maximize decision automation, improve system performance, and reduce operational costs, Higson offers a robust and efficient solution. By leveraging its advanced capabilities and flexible deployment options, businesses can unlock smarter decision-making processes that align with evolving market demands.
Are you ready to see Higson in action? Discover how this cutting-edge BRE can empower your organization to make smarter, faster decisions — every time.
