Hitachi Data Systems-Insight Investment

Vendor: Hitachi Data Systems (NYSE: HIT)
Channel Partner: S3 http://www.s3.co.uk/ 
Customer: Insight Investment www.insightinvestment.com 
Vertical Markets: Financial
State: International – United Kingdom

Technology Used: Hitachi Universal Storage Platform V, Hitachi Tuning Manager, Hitachi Device Manager Software.

Solution: A fairly new business, Insight Investment has grown to become one of the largest asset management companies in the United Kingdom since opening in 2002. They specialize in developing investment solutions that are tailored to their clients’ needs, something that has allowed them to stand out in the industry.

When Insight conducted an analysis of their IT infrastructure in 2008 to improve operations, they determined that their storage infrastructure needed an overhaul in order for the business to be made more efficient. The infrastructure was nearing the end of its life span and machines were becoming less reliable. The capacity of the system was nearing its peak, limiting the amount of future growth that was possible and creating difficulties with capacity allocation. Insight needed a way to assign storage space where it was needed most to avoid future utilization problems.

To find a solution, Insight Investment turned to S3, a TrueNorth Channel Partner of Hitachi Data Systems. Using their knowledge of the asset management company’s operations, S3 quickly identified Hitachi Data Systems as the best vendor for the job. Insight selected the Hitachi Universal Storage Platform V because it could be used to store data that needed to be highly available and also serve as a central platform for virtualizing existing systems. The Hitachi Device Manager and Hitachi Tuning Manager were also installed to enable effective configuration and smarter monitoring.

Thanks to the virtualization that was possible with the Hitachi systems, Insight was able to avoid replacing their entire storage infrastructure and continue using some of their existing resources. Performance has increased by a third, the Hitachi solution is extremely reliable, and the new system also has plenty of capacity to support future growth. Finally, the installation was completed with minimal disruption to Insight Investments’ client-centered operations.

Further details: http://www.hds.com/assets/pdf/insight-investment-success-story.pdf