Seamless SAS to Open Source R Migration

Reduce migration effort, increase automation, and gain full transparency into your future R architecture.

Industries are moving from SAS to open-source R. Which means, business-critical functionality embedded in large SAS codebases needs to be migrated to R. This is not a simple copy-paste exercise: the process is complex, time-consuming, and often involves more than replication of existing functionality. Many organizations want to optimize workflows and modernize their analytics along the way. Doing this manually is challenging and costly - especially under strict regulatory requirements.

At HMS, we guide you through every step - combining AI-driven automation with expert oversight and industry best practices to ensure a smooth, reliable, and efficient migration.

Why is the SAS to R Transition Challenging?

Migration is not just about translating code. It’s about selecting the right architecture in the open-source ecosystem. It’s about designing a solution that is scalable, maintainable, and future-ready. And it’s about ensuring that the migrated code delivers identical results - with the required quality, accuracy, and documentation.

Strict regulatory requirements and large, complex legacy codebases - especially in industries like Pharma and Finance - add further layers of complexity. That’s why a structured, expert-led approach is essential.

SAS to R Migration with HMS

We blend AI with a proven structured workflow and a strong in-house tool (Code2X) for automation developed to support our migration engineers.

Your Benefits at a Glance:

1

We know the right tools

Whether it’s our in-house solution for large-scale automated code migration, lightweight coding support, or the use of agentic AI - our team will work with you to design a migration workflow that’s tailored to your specific needs. The result: a process that’s efficient, scalable, and aligned with your technical and regulatory requirements.

2

We use automation where it adds the most value

Not everything can - or should - be automated. But when applied thoughtfully, automation can significantly reduce migration effort, increase consistency, and free up experts to focus on what truly requires human judgment.

3

We have the experts

Successful migration requires more than just technical tools - it needs people who understand the nuances of SAS, R, and AI. Our team combines deep experience in all three, with many consultants bringing strong backgrounds in regulated industries like Pharma and Finance.

Together, this ensures a migration process that is not only efficient and scalable but also reliable, transparent, and tailored to your needs.

Why our clients choose us

75%

Typical level of automation

6.000+

Project Days of Experience in SAS Migration

35+

AI Experts & Migration Engineers

What’s the automation potential of your SAS codebase?

We review representative code samples and give you a reliable, confidential, and obligation-free assessment.

Kick off a PoC

SAS to R Migration Workflow Example

The diagram below illustrates a migration workflow from a real-world SAS-to-R project conducted in 2025 in the Pharma industry.

Visual workflow showing the SAS to R migration process at HMS: from assessment and PoC to automated execution with Code2X and AI agents, including code analysis, architecture definition, batch processing, and testing of R target code.

The code translation part usually follows three phases: assessment, exploration, and execution. During assessment, we focus on project planning based on proven playbooks, perform detailed code analysis, define the target architecture, and specify requirements.

The exploration phase validates technical feasibility and prepares for automation by creating a proof of concept, developing migration strategies, and verifying result parity between SAS and R.

Finally, execution involves carrying out the migration using support tools such as Code2X and AI agents. This phase blends automation and expert-driven work: automation is applied to code decomposition and the implementation of translation strategies, producing an initial R version that is then iterated, refined, and tested by our experts to ensure accuracy, compliance, and maintainability.

More details?

Consider reading our article "Leveraging AI for Seamless SAS to R Migration: Challenges and Opportunities" at Phuse EU Connect 2025

The article highlights a collaborative effort to apply Generative AI in migrating SAS macros and templates for PK/PD analyses to R.

[Read more]

We focus on answering four main questions:

Why: The migration from SAS to R aims to eliminate tool switching in PK/PD workflows, enable advanced analytics, and create a unified, future-ready environment for data analysis and AI integration.
What: The migration targets a SAS codebase used to generate analysis-ready datasets for a range of pharmacological and bioinformatic workflows including NCA, popPK, PBPK, and gene expression analyses.
Where: The migrated R code will be implemented using a combination of R Base, tidyverse, and pharmaverse packages - selected based on the specific needs of each analytical domain to balance compatibility with existing SAS logic, modern data handling, and CDISC-compliant workflows.
How: We started with an exploratory setup where we used the Ellmer R Package für LLM usage and structured output inside Posit Workbench Pro and extended this setup over time with automation.

The project has proven the viability of GenAI-assisted code translation while showcasing its potential to transform clinical data workflows. Despite challenges like integrating AI-generated code into validated environments, the structured approach has fostered collaboration, improved coding practices, and laid the groundwork for scalable, intelligent automation.

Technology partner aligned with your target architecture

As a certified partner, we work with leading platforms:

The Fastest Route to a Reliable SAS to R Migration Decision

Curious how our tool analyzes SAS code and converts it into stable target code?

We demonstrate it using real examples and your own codebase - giving you clarity on automation potential, target architecture, and the concrete implementation path.

Your Migration Tool Demo

See our migration tool in action – featuring common use cases, explained clearly and shown in real-world context.

Request a live demo

Proof-of-Concept Discussion for Your SAS Migration

We work with you to evaluate the automation potential of your code – covering effort estimates, platform mapping, and realistic expectations. From there, we decide whether a Proof of Concept is the right next step.

Kick off a PoC

Why Choose HMS as Your SAS Migration Partner

Choose HMS for a seamless SAS migration:

6000+ days of project experience

In-depth SAS expertise meets modern cloud technologies

The Right Skills for Your Migration

From SAS experts to cloud architects and engineers—our team brings real-world experience from complex migration projects.

Individual Migration Strategy

Tool-supported, architecture-compliant, and tailored to your platform, target architecture, and operating model.

Comprehensive AI Expertise for Your Migration

More than 35 experts in generative & agentic AI optimize the use of AI in migration projects.

Life Science / Pharma

HMS replaced a 25-year-old central SAS-based system with a modern, cloud-native Statistical Computing Environment (SCE) for analyzing clinical studies for Germany's largest pharmaceutical company.

Benefits:

Integration of the SCE web app with SAS Studio under SAS Viya for seamless workflows
System design with AWS services for optimal data security and access
Automated validation strategy to simplify regular release deployments

Case Study anschauen

Long-term SAS support for IT department of a banking group

Finance

Since 2006, HMS has supported the regulatory reporting departments of a large German banking network with SAS expertise and comprehensive know-how. We provide ongoing consultation, performance optimisation, and customised solutions for regulatory requirements.

Benefits:

Qualitative improvement of legacy resources
Enhanced software and data quality
Performance optimization
Daily support

Case Study anschauen

SAS Viya migration at automotive bank

Banking

We successfully migrated our client's SAS platform from on-premises to SAS Viya on Azure. We built a cloud infrastructure with Kubernetes and implemented migration and automation tools.

Benefits:

On-time fulfillment of all requirements
Modern work environment
Ensured operational readiness (OpsReadiness)

Case Study anschauen

Perfect Execution: Migration to SAS Viya

Energy Supplier

A leading energy supplier migrated critical systems from SAS 9.4 on-premises to the cloud-based SAS Viya platform. HMS optimised the infrastructure for stable operations.

Benefits:

Efficient migration
Low-maintenance user environment
Long-term support by HMS

Case Study anschauen

GenAI-Supported Transformation: Migration from SAS to AWS

Finance

Our solution contributed to the modernization of core SAS BI landscapes by successfully facilitating the transition to the cloud. We effectively used GenAI for automated code migration to Python.

Benefits:

Long-term cost-effectiveness and efficiency of BI applications
Architecture meets BaFin requirements
Process optimization through consolidation and professionalisation of processes

Case Study anschauen

Cloud-native Statistical Computing Environment

Life Science / Pharma

HMS replaced a 25-year-old central SAS-based system with a modern, cloud-native Statistical Computing Environment (SCE) for analyzing clinical studies for Germany's largest pharmaceutical company.

Benefits:

Integration of the SCE web app with SAS Studio under SAS Viya for seamless workflows
System design with AWS services for optimal data security and access
Automated validation strategy to simplify regular release deployments

Case Study anschauen

Karsten Wohlgefahrt

Principal Sales Manager

Curious about how your SAS code can be migrated in practice?

Let’s talk about what a Proof of Concept for your project might look like.

Kick off a PoC