There's no point installing state-of-the-art windows and insulation in a property, if the foundations underlying them on are not up to scratch. The same goes for web applications and a host of other business-enabling technologies - without a reliable and robust IT infrastructure to underpin them, any benefits will be short-lived.

To make the most of the Internet, companies need to webenable as much of their IT environment - and business - as possible. This provides organisations with the perfect opportunity to overhaul their entire IT architecture and reassess everything, from desktops and servers to backup solutions and remote access.

The Welsh Development Agency embarked on just such an initiative as part of its Information Systems (IS) strategy, and called in Computacenter to help build its technology foundation for the future.

The Welsh Development Agency creating an IT platform for the future

The Welsh Development Agency (WDA) was formed by the UK government to regenerate the prosperity of Wales after heavy industry decline in the 1970s and 1980s. Since its creation in 1976, the Agency has played a pivotal role in the successful economic development in Wales, which has benefited from more than £12 billion worth of investment. In addition to its Cardiff headquarters, the Agency also has numerous offices throughout Wales, Asia, Europe and North America.

The global nature of the WDA's work and its desire to embrace Internet technology, however, was placing increasing pressure on its existing IT infrastructure. This pressure needed to be removed if the Agency was to meet its online objectives, explains Dave Milner, IT Services Manager at the WDA: " The WDA is keen to become a leading e-agency, but to do this we need to have the technology to match our online aspirations. We soon realised that our IT infrastructure lacked flexibility, scalability and did not provide us with the solid base required to roll out new applications and e-business services."

The WDA was running a mixture of Novell and Microsoft solutions and most of the technology was at least five years' old. "We wanted to review the entire architecture and bring in more efficient working practices to reduce on-going IT support costs," comments Dave. "We took the decision to standardise on a Microsoft platform, but we then faced countless decisions about servers, legacy applications, backup solutions and desktop builds, and knew we would require expert help."

An IT foundation for the future

The Agency had already worked with Computacenter through the government's GCat procurement system and decided to call on the company's systems integration expertise for help with the roll-out of one of the largest IT projects ever undertaken by the WDA.

The first step for the project team was to choose the new operating system and desktop applications. "After various workshops with Computacenter and Microsoft, we decided on Windows 2000, Office 2000 plus Active Directory," comments Dave. "Soon after we had started the planning phase, Microsoft announced Office XP and we decided to switch to this as it provided added functionality and contained a Welsh language tool."

The WDA also needed a new server infrastructure to underpin its upgraded systems, as Dave explains: "We opted to upgrade to new Compaq [HP] servers [Proliant ML530R and ML530]. Computacenter assessed our needs based on our user levels and has provided enough capacity to ensure that our infrastructure is ready to grow hand-in-hand with the business."

Automatic delivery

The WDA also wanted to use the project to improve other areas of its IS strategy, such as the way new applications and anti-virus software are deployed, and also the way disaster recovery is managed. As Garry Southway, principal consultant at Computacenter, explains: "The efficiency of the WDA's existing systems and processes needed to be improved, so we worked with the Agency to find new cost-effective solutions." For backup and intelligent disaster recovery, the Agency now uses Veritas software in conjunction with an automated tape library at its larger sites, which reduces the number of back-up tapes required. Smaller sites have a single device, which also makes it much easier for non-IT staff to locally manage the back-up process, which was previously a management overhead for the IS department.

The new anti-virus system from Symantec has also saved Agency staff time by eliminating the need for servers and desktops to be re-booted every time the anti-virus software is upgraded. "The inconvenience of re-booting meant there was a risk that servers and desktops would not be upgraded with the latest version of anti-virus software. By making the process automatic, this risk has now been reduced," comments Garry. "The anti-virus software is seamlessly updated from the Internet and distributed across the WDA's hardware, which is subject to real-time and weekly scans." The rollout of other software has also been automated using Microsoft's SMS and Windows 2000 Group Policies, which enables upgrades and new applications to be distributed remotely to the Agency's entire desktop estate - saving both time and money. "By investing in the 'client build' process the Agency can now replace hardware with a new automated build that significantly reduces the user downtime," comments Garry.

As well as making provision for effective software deployment, the project also provided the Agency with an opportunity to streamline its applications, as Dave explains: "The Agency has enjoyed substantial growth in its responsibilities in the last few years and, as a result, we had several overlapping applications. We wanted to reduce this overlap, and so embarked on an audit that found there were around 50 applications in regular use, which was far too many. We have now selected one package for each of the main desktop functions, and have been able to implement security options preventing users from making unauthorised software downloads from the web."

Giving the users a voice

With so many different elements to the roll-out, it was essential that the project was effectively managed to ensure it was completed on time and within the allocated budget. The WDA and Computacenter team used a mixture of the proven project management methodologies PRINCE2 and PRIDE (Computacenter's derivative of PRINCE2), both of which have been adopted by Computacenter. "The project was very well controlled and there was a good feedback system," comments Dave. "Computacenter's technical team fitted in well with the WDA's staff and were extremely knowledgeable."

Various phases of the project included a strong emphasis on user involvement, which Dave believes was crucial to the success of the roll-out: "We realised early on that we would need to achieve user buy-in to ensure the projects success. People need to understand the benefits of a new system and a new way of working if they are to embrace change fully."

To achieve user buy-in, Computacenter and the WDA set up various user roadshows to explain the reasons behind the changes and the need for new IT systems and working practices. User groups were also involved in the planning stage and helped define the business requirements of the roll-out. As the project included new desktop applications and, in some cases, new desktops, the WDA also needed to focus on user training, which Computacenter provided. "As well as mandatory courses, we also laid on additional courses in Office XP and Lotus Notes, which proved very popular," comments Dave. "The training was very successful and gave users such a good insight into the 'help' capabilities of XP that the support staff now receive considerably fewer queries."

Office XP itself has also been well received - especially as it caters specifically for Welsh-speaking users. "The Welsh language tool demonstrates Microsoft's commitment to the language. We have also been impressed with the smart icons and automatic recovery function," adds Dave.

Window of opportunity

The benefits of the rollout, however, go well beyond just the functionality of Office XP, as Dave explains: "We wanted to reduce the complexity and costs involved in supporting our IT infrastructure. By standardising on a Microsoft platform, and implementing standard server configurations and desktop builds, we hope to see a significant reduction in our support overheads."

The Agency's infrastructure also provides it with the scalability and flexibility required to roll out online services and new applications. Although the project has only recently been completed, the WDA is already looking at various IT initiatives, such as hotdesking, document management and unified messaging. "Without the new architecture, we would never have been able to embrace these technologies. The Agency is now in a position to enhance communication with its staff, partners and customers, and we will be embarking on a range of small projects that will improve productivity and working practices for end users," adds Dave.

Thanks to the success of the Windows 2000 roll-out, Computacenter continues to play a role in the development of the WDA's IT infrastructure. One of the projects it is currently working on is the implementation of a Citrix farm and secure remote access solution providing applications and essential information.

"We would certainly hope to work with Computacenter in the future. Through its work on this and other projects, Computacenter has demonstrated to us that it has all the necessary skills and expertise to deliver real business benefit through its range of IT infrastructure services," concludes Dave.

 

Print this Page

Email this Page