Independent IT solutions provider LIMA Networks has helped one of the UK’s largest insurance brokers to revamp its data storage infrastructure, resulting in greater flexibility and impressive cost savings.

Autonet Insurance Services Ltd, Britain’s biggest independently-owned broker in the consumer and business van insurance field, called on Manchester-based LIMA Networks to help it move away from a storage infrastructure solution that had become expensive to maintain and grow, and difficult to administer.

As a financial services company with more than five million customer enquiries per month and a need to comply with industry regulation concerning data management and recovery, Autonet needed LIMA Networks to provide an IT solution that met all of the company’s various needs. This was achieved through a NetApp and VMware virtualised solution, which saw Autonet switch from using 30 physical servers to 15 virtual servers.

As well as reducing the company’s server estate considerably and improving efficiency and manageability, through the use of NetApp Autonet now has flexible disaster recovery technology which helps ensure business continuity.

Nik Potts, head of IT at Autonet, said: “I now have I now have real flexibility and have been able to achieve 90 per cent cost savings from year to year. I would wholeheartedly recommend NetApp to other firms.

“I feel a giant weight has been taken off my mind. I’ve genuinely been better able to sleep at night. I know I now have a very reliable data storage function matched by a full disaster recovery capability.”

Via EPR Network
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A college in Salford, Greater Manchester, says it has effectively future-proofed its ICT service to students and cut storage by half, after joining forces with Lima Networks to implement a restructuring of its IT system.

Salford City Academy, which accommodates 670 students from the Salford and Eccles area, approached Lima after coming to the conclusion that its existing infrastructure was ill-equipped to meet the future needs of its pupils. Among the concerns raised about the old system was that it was relatively slow to respond to users’ needs, meaning that staff and students alike were having to ensure an extended wait before being able to open network files.

Having been selected by the college as its solution partner, Lima Networks got to work on replacing the old infrastructure with a NetApp and VMware vSphere 4 configuration, which not only improved performance and consolidated storage, but also offers sufficient flexibility to ensure it continues to meet the requirements of students and staff well into the future. The installation was completed in August 2010 – right at the start of the academic year – and the new system has made a big difference to the way the college operates.

“What I particularly liked with this approach was the full disaster recovery suite that was included; this could really deal with some ongoing back-up issues,” said Salford City Academy’s network manager, Andrew Lawton.

Mr Lawton’s aim was to resolve the problem of physical limitations on storage, whilst also trying to make the college’s ICT capabilities more environmentally-friendly. There have been a number of benefits following the restructuring, with innovations such as virtual desktop infrastructure also helping to avoid the additional costs associated with forking out for replacement hardware.

“I think the engineering here was extremely good and the partner really understood our requirements. I have to say that at the outset our Principal was a bit nervous about all this but he’s very happy now – as are we all,” he added.

Via EPR Network
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