Why is the mainframe critical
- Senthil Nathan
- May 17
- 1 min read
A mainframe computer, informally called a mainframe or big iron, is primarily used by large organizations for critical applications like bulk data processing for census, industry, consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and large-scale transactions.

Built-in encryption and access control. Handles thousands of users & apps simultaneously. Processes huge volumes of transactions.
What is the use of mainframes in the real world?
Mainframes are often running behind the scenes in industries where data integrity, security, and uptime are most critical:
Banking & Finance: ATM networks, credit card transactions, fraud detection
Healthcare: Patient records, claims processing
Government: Tax systems, defense, social services
Retail & Logistics: Inventory control, billing, order management
Airlines: Reservation systems, flight tracking
Facts:
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An IBM Z System mainframe can withstand an earthquake of at least 8.0 magnitude on the Richter scale.
Mainframes manage 68% of IT workloads while only accounting for 6% of IT costs.
They process 90% of all credit card transactions.
Mainframes are utilized by 71% of Fortune 500 companies.
This year, mainframes celebrated their 60th anniversary. celebrated their 60th anniversary.
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