BITO Lagertechnik

By migrating its IT infrastructure to PFALZKOM’s certified Data Centers, BITO Lagertechnik was able to optimize its performance and reliability in a future-proof and resource-saving manner despite a tight schedule by means of tailor-made managed services and redundant fiber optic connections.

Successful migration of the IT infrastructure to PFALZKOM – increase in performance and reliability

How the collaboration began

BITO employs around 1,300 people worldwide (including around 800 in Germany) and produces storage systems in different sizes and variants (metal shelving systems, pallet racking, plastic container systems) at its three production sites in Meisenheim, Lauterecken and Poland, which are marketed, delivered and, on request, assembled worldwide.
The German production sites are located in rural areas and the availability of fast internet connections has therefore been limited in some cases in recent years. The first contact between BITO and PFALZKOM came about a few years ago when BITO was looking for a professional, high-quality and redundant connection. After commissioning and implementation, BITO was already able to convince itself of the reliability of PFALZKOM’s services.
The digitalization of products and processes is progressing and BITO products are already being integrated into many digital business processes. Active network components such as routers, repeaters, hubs and beacons process and amplify signals, while passive network components such as connectors, cables and connection sockets ensure reliable communication. BITO has various complete packages in its portfolio that support digitalization in your company quickly, effectively and cost-effectively. The increasing digitalization of production and company processes leads to growing demands on bandwidth, reliability and performance of your own IT environment.

Many changes in the IT market

Much has changed in recent years, particularly in the disruptive IT environment. With mergers, new license models and high license prices, global players are presenting many customers and IT service providers with major challenges. These developments – often short-term and challenging – offer opportunities to reorient oneself and focus on strategic cooperation with the right IT service provider.
In a joint exchange with PFALZKOM, the current challenges were discussed and individual solutions were outlined by interlinking the areas of Data Centers, network & connectivity and managed services; all convincing arguments for consolidating the cooperation.

“The collaboration with PFALZKOM exceeded our expectations in every respect. We were particularly impressed by the enormous speed of response and the flexibility with which the team responded to our individual technical requirements and the tight schedule. We experienced a level of technical expertise that we had never experienced before. With the new infrastructure, we now benefit from operational stability and a level of performance that means we know our IT systems are in safe hands for the future,” summarizes Denis Klaar, Head of IT & Process Management.

Precise advice – from professional to professional

In the subsequent consultation meetings, the individual technical requirements were recorded in detail and suitable solutions were discussed individueally. This resulted in a joint target plan. This included the decision to use a dedicated virtualization environment in the future. Based on professional recommendations and the formulated objectives, BITO and PFALZKOM agreed on the appropriate performance classes for the storage systems, suitable backup strategies and a 24/7 gold service level. All services were defined on the basis of practical experience. The focus was also on the increasingly important topic of cyber security and far-reaching security aspects (e.g. adjustments to the firewall). All of these measures were conceptually integrated into the overall strategy.

In the end, the offer concept was not a series of hardware solutions, but a coordinated overall package consisting of:

  • A redundancy concept for connecting company locations with professional fiber optic business solutions and very high reliability
  • A service package with the operation of various managed services for the provision of the IT environment
  • The hosting of essential IT components in multi-certified PFALZKOM Data Centers

Results that are impressive

Once the contract had been awarded, the PFALZKOM team had to prove that the leap of faith taken for the implementation was the right decision. The time window for the migration of IT environment was – in this case – relatively tight due to contracts ending at short notice, and a postponement of a year was to be avoided if possible.
Thanks to the many years of experience in implementing comparable customer environments and a very well-organized project management team, the strict schedule could be adhered to despite additional necessary change measures. After the successful implementation, BITO sees this confirmed by significantly increased performance and reliability. As a result, the company is now ideally equipped for the future and looks forward to continuing its partnership with PFALZKOM.

“We felt we were in very good hands with PFALZKOM right from the start. The discussions always took place on equal footing. Despite the tight schedule, all requirements were designed and implemented in detail,” adds Stefan Ellrich, IT team leader.

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