Standing still is not an option

Initial situation

The IT department of RONAL AG defines the IT strategy for the entire, internationally active RONAL GROUP. RONAL IT clearly sees itself as a business enabler in the service of the RONAL business organization. IT services according to clear specifications and standardized according to ITIL "best practices" guarantee the smooth functioning of the IT infrastructure, software solutions and support throughout the Group. An indispensable core application in the highly efficient production process is the ERP system "Infor Xpert", which runs on IBM Power Servers (IBM i operating system). The availability of this core system is of the utmost importance, because if the ERP solution stands still, the RONAL GROUP's wheels literally stop turning.

The challenge: IBM Power know-how, 7×24

Until recently, the RONAL GROUP had its own IBM Power servers at almost all production sites in line with the motto "IT on the Spot". However, the necessary IBM i know-how was not available at all locations. The Swiss IT team regularly had to call on IT colleagues from other countries for help - an unsatisfactory situation in the long run, not very efficient and far too slow in an emergency. Not to mention the lack of round-the-clock support. RONAL AG's IT in Switzerland simply could not afford this.

The solution

When the IBM Power machine in Härkingen was due for hardware renewal in 2014, RONAL AG used this foreseeable intervention to look for a better solution for system operation. The planned system replication via MIMIX to a backup location required a second machine, which RONAL AG did not have in Switzerland. Mirroring to an existing power server at RONAL GmbH in Germany was out of the question because the Swiss system also runs HR and accounting applications with sensitive personal and financial data. RONAL AG did not want to send this sensitive data abroad. So where would they get two IBM Power systems in Switzerland?

The solution was to move to the Swiss data centers of an IBM Power specialist. RONAL took a closer look at the proposals, concepts, and references from two providers. After a thorough evaluation, RONAL decided to partner with Sharp DX. The transition from the on-site physical IBM Power infrastructure to a flawless, high-performance managed service with guaranteed 24/7 availability took place in three steps:

• In 2014, the aforementioned upgrade of the physical IBM Power System took place at the RONAL GROUP headquarters in Härkingen. Data was replicated to the Sharp DX data center in Lupfig and to the ORIA Shared Cloud environment using Enterprise Standard. Sharp DX provides support for RONAL AG’s IBM Power System both on-site in Härkingen and, of course, at the Sharp DX data center.
• In 2016, the IBM Power server was physically relocated from Härkingen to Sharp DX’s primary data center in Bern. Connection to RONAL AG’s MPLS network was established to provide redundant, high-performance connections to the individual locations. Replication continues to the Sharp DX Shared Cloud Environment (SCE) at the secondary site in Lupfig. Sharp DX is now assuming full operational responsibility for the IBM Power systems at the plants in Switzerland, Portugal, and France.
• In 2018, RONAL AG decommissioned its physical IBM Power infrastructure and migrated the IBM Power platform—which is still required (as the basis for the ERP system)—to the Sharp DX Shared Cloud environment at the Bern data center. The locations (Bern and Lupfig) therefore remain the same. However, RONAL AG in Switzerland has now freed itself from the burden of its own Power servers.

The RONAL GROUP now conveniently obtains the IBM Power services it needs as guaranteed managed services from the data center of Sharp DX, Switzerland’s leading Power specialist.

Advantages

Outsourcing IT tasks often meets with resistance from the IT team. Not so at RONAL AG—quite the opposite: Andreas Dusold, Head of IT Support, was glad to have the workload eased by Sharp DX.

• Minimal system downtime: Thanks to Sharp DX’s professional maintenance planning and high level of IBM Power expertise, the few, very tightly scheduled time windows at the RONAL GROUP’s manufacturing plants are sufficient. For example, exactly one day is available for the migration of the plant in Spain to the shared cloud environment. This is only possible with a competent team that can, if necessary, compensate for staff absences, for example.
• No risk of downtime for the ERP system with production planning and control: system mirroring in two geo-redundant Swiss data centers with redundant connections to the locations in Switzerland, Portugal, France and Spain guarantees high availability.
• Fast and expert assistance in the event of an incident: 24/7 Platinum Support with access to Sharp DX’s extensive pool of IT specialists for any IT infrastructure and operations issues.
• Affordable services instead of costly purchases: IBM Power servers are not inexpensive to buy. At the Sharp DX data center, the RONAL GROUP can use the latest generation of IBM Power servers in a professional enterprise environment without having to purchase them.

The collaboration with Sharp DX and the high quality of its services have also won over the RONAL GROUP’s management. “There has been a real shift in mindset at the RONAL GROUP,” notes Andreas Dusold. Other RONAL GROUP locations are now also moving away from always replacing older IBM Power machines with new hardware and are instead procuring the operating platform as a managed service. Additional applications and operating systems are following the successful example set by the ERP system.