HPE QU625A Product Data Sheet
Objective
Creating a futureproof IT
infrastructure to provide 24/7
access to business-critical systems
Approach
Compared a variety of concepts from
dierent IT suppliers. Decision made
to install an integrated solution from
HPE comprising a storage system,
a tape library and switches
Case Study
Futureproofing
Montana’s data centre
Fashion retailer implements an integrated
solution from HPE
IT Matters
• Futureproof, scalable IT infrastructure
• Faster backups with LTO-6 tapes
• Simpler backup process as there is
no longer a virtual library
• Integrated HPE solution makes
the entire IT environment easier
to manage
Business Matters
• The HPE 3PAR StoreServ system’s
four nodes ensure high availability
of all business-critical applications
and databases
• Excellent planning by Concat
ensured a smooth migration
to the new environment with
just 12 hours downtime
Montana has completely
modernised the IT
infrastructure in its data
centre: the Betty Barclay
Group’s service company
now uses an integrated
solution from HPE to
ensure that its various
departments have access
to business-critical
applications and data
around the clock, and
will continue to do so
in the future.
Challenge
24/7 availability for
business-critical applications
Montana is the Betty Barclay Group’s
internal service company. The Group
currently employs over 1,000 people, some
500 of whom work at its headquarters in
Nußloch, Germany. It includes the brands
Betty Barclay, Vera Mont, Gil Bret, Saint
Jaques and Cartoon, which are sold in
over 60 countries around the world.
Due to the Group’s strong growth over
recent years, the demands on its IT
infrastructure have risen rapidly. Its data
volumes have increased significantly,
in no small part due to the accounting
department’s introduction of the SAP
Finance (FI) and Controlling (CO) modules.
Case study
Montana GmbH
& Co. KG
“The single-manufacturer strategy really made sense for us – if we have
any problems, we have a single contact at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
The testing period showed us that the performance of the new solution
would be suicient for us and that it would be very easy to manage.
Other solutions we investigated proved to be much more complex
and time-consuming.”
– Karl-Robert Friedrich, IT/ORG manager, Montana
Industry
Fashion, retail
Page 2
A total of 15 dierent databases – all of
them Microsoft® SQL databases – are
stored on the central IT system in Nußloch.
These databases are used for a variety of
dierent programs, such as the Product Data
Management (PDM) system by Koppermann
Computersysteme. Montana also uses an
ERP system designed specifically for the
fashion industry – INTEX Fashion ERP – and
the Hiltes Software ERP system to manage
the Group’s retail activities in Europe. All of
its shops are connected to the system via
their POS solutions.
In addition, the company operates a number
of other systems to manage areas such as
customs duties, mobile order entries, human
resources planning, wages and salaries. The
central SAN (storage area network) system
currently has a capacity of 123 TB.
As well as the ever-increasing data volumes,
demands on system availability are also
increasing. “In principle, our systems have
to be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week, 365 days a year,” explains Karl-Robert
Friedrich, IT/ORG manager at Montana.
“This is because we work with partners in
China who need access to both our PDM
system and INTEX Fashion ERP system
during their working hours. Our logistics
partner here in Germany also works in
shifts around the clock. And we have a
high volume of data to process overnight –
sometimes in batch jobs.”
In the past, Montana used an HPE
EVA storage system for its complex IT
environment. Data was backed up to an
HPE tape library with LTO-4 tapes using
HPE Data Protector software. However,
this environment was beginning to show
its age. Support for it had expired, the
capacity was at its limits, and the company
was beginning to experience availability
and performance bottlenecks.
“The entire environment was simply no
longer suicient to meet our requirements,
we had to modernise it in order to ensure
that the company could continue to grow,”
says Friedrich.
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