Dell-Fujicolor

Vendor: Dell (NYSE: DELL)

Channel Partner: EMC www.emc.com
Customer: Fujicolor www.fujicolor.de        
Vertical Markets: Digital photo printing
State: International – Germany

Technology Used: Dell PowerEdge 1850, 1950, 2600, 2800, 2850 and 4600 servers, EMC Celerra NS80 Storage Arrays, Dell Latitude D600, D610, D620, D630 and D820 notebooks, Dell OptiPlex GX260 and 755 desktops, Dell Precision 450 and 470 workstations, Windows Server 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft Office System, Cubeware, CentOS, VMware ESX server software

Solution: German-based Fujicolor specializes in developing photos for customers across the country, and operates 6 photographic labs. In recent years, the company’s operations have changed due to the rise in digital photography. Instead of dropping off rolls of film, Fujicolor's customers now submit photos online using services like Web shop, drop off images stored on CDs and memory cards, or use self-serve kiosk systems. Digital images are then electronically forwarded to Fujicolor labs, where they are developed into high quality prints.

Germans submit about 21 billion digital photos for printing each year, and Fujicolor realized at the beginning of 2007 that they would need to increase their memory and storage capacity to meet the changing needs of their customers. Their existing storage systems were already performing at their peak, so the company opted for entirely new systems.

After careful consideration, Fujicolor purchased 8 EMC Celerra NS80 Storage Arrays from Dell. The systems that were replaced were also manufactured by Dell, and Fujicolor chose to stick with the manufacturer both because it simplified the replacement process and because Dell is a certified EMC Partner.

The Dell products have proven to be an extremely effective solution. The new systems have 80 TB (terabytes) of storage, 52 TB (terabytes) more than the storage systems that were replaced. The new hardware has enough space for 40 million pictures, and because data is periodically deleted to make room for new orders, this is more than enough storage to meet the company’s needs. The new systems also perform better. At peak times, they are only operating at 60 to 70-percent of their potential, whereas the old machines were regularly operating at full capacity. This is a significant benefit, as Fujicolor estimates that the EMC Celerra NS80 Storage Arrays from Dell will have enough storage capacity to meet the company's needs for 3 years before they will need to be upgraded or replaced.

Further details: http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/casestudies/fujicolor_cs_eg_final.pdf