Toyo Seikan Thailand protects production during critical period with Nutanix

INDUSTRY

Manufacturing

Benefits

• Protects business continuity in midst of the pandemic, enabling a 4-fold improvement in backups
• Ensures design programs stay on track with CAD/CAM files saved in seconds
• Minimizes disruption giving executives secure remote access to data and applications during lockdowns
•  Enables staff to stay productive with anywhere, anytime access on any device
• Recover files in less than 10 minutes, previously took 30 minutes
• Increases IT efficiency by 80%
• Reduces maintenance costs by 40%
• Gains platform to support IoT development for smarter manufacturing
  

SOLUTIONS

Enterprise Cloud Platform

• Nutanix Acropolis Operating Software, including built-in hypervisor-AHV, and Security Configuration Management Automation (SCMA)
• Nutanix Files
• Nutanix Flow
• Nutanix Frame
  

Applications

• Database
• App Payroll
• Webserver for displaying production information in production lines
• App material control

BUSINESS BENEFIT

The legacy IT infrastructure could not support Toyo Seikan Thailand (TST) on its continuing journey to smarter manufacturing. Besides the cost, it lacked the flexibility to operate in agile ways and was unable to support remote working—a key requirement during the pandemic. Furthermore, backups could be done only once a day risking data loss and production interruptions while routine management for the three-person IT team was time-consuming. 

TST fixed the situation with Nutanix, ensuring business continuity during the pandemic with secure remote access to data and applications on any device. What is more, the chance of unforeseen issues troubling production was reduced by enabling 4 times improvement in backup times and saving design files in seconds. Overall, IT efficiency jumped 80 percent with files recovered in less than 10 minutes instead of waiting half an hour. Yearly maintenance costs were cut by 40 percent, and TST gained a springboard for the adoption of IoT.

CHALLENGES

Toyo Seikan Thailand (TST) is an affiliated company of Toyo Seikan Group Holdings, Ltd. of Japan, manufacturing packaging in metal, plastic, glass, and paper.  And like manufacturers the world over, the company is turning to its own data to boost the productivity and profitability of operations. 

Nevertheless, TST reached a point—like many businesses in the industry—where the legacy IT system could not cut it any longer. In essence, the legacy IT infrastructure was never designed to handle the enormous amounts of data that TST could exploit for smarter kinds of production. What is more, the yearly maintenance contract was high for an infrastructure that lacked the flexibility for TST to operate in agile ways. For example, it did not support remote working—a capability that would be vital because of the pandemic and nationwide lockdowns.

At a deeper technical level, the time it took to create backups and the resources those backups consumed meant they were done just once a day, overnight at the company’s two data centers. This was less than optimal, increasing the risk of data being lost and production being disrupted. It was an ongoing concern for the three-person IT team, which faced a constant stream of requests to recover files. Moreover, the requests simply added to a list of time-consuming activities the team already had around upgrades, procurement, and basic maintenance.

SOLUTION

The situation needed to change, and TST looked for a cutting-edge infrastructure that could not only fix the challenges it faced today but enable a longer-term strategy of more data-driven production. TST chose the Nutanix cloud platform with hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) to begin the transformation to replace its legacy infrastructure and deliver smart manufacturing initiatives. Running Acropolis Software, the Nutanix HCI, included the built-in AHV hypervisor, security and, management automation.

In addition, TST implemented Nutanix Files for integrated scale-out storage and Nutanix Flow to protect individual applications through software-defined networking. Importantly, TST also took advantage of Nutanix Xi Frame. A desktop-as-a-service (DaaS) solution, Xi Frame would allow employees to remotely access the data and applications they needed during lockdown to achieve their business goals and keep the production running.

CUSTOMER OUTCOME

Unlocks the value for IT while increasing management efficiency

Thanks to the Nutanix HCI cloud platform and its simplified management, the IT team saw operational efficiency jump by 80 percent. Upgrades and routine administration like procurement were no longer time-consuming. With significantly reduced downtime, the three administrators felt much less pressure managing the company’s two data centers and could focus more on value-added customer-centric services. The great news for TST was that also reduced the yearly maintenance cost for its IT by 40 percent, saving around $27,100.

“Analytics function from Nutanix Files also enables us to do new things that we could never do before. For instance, we can now monitor the status of each file and track file changes as well as each user’s behaviors in real time. This helps us control, manage and make use of IT resources more easily and cost-effectively, and better address our auditing requirements. Moreover, file recovery function allows us to recover files in less than 10 minutes, while it previously took us half an hour to finish this task. In addition, the number of IT requests for file recovery decreases considerably, and we can complete various reports much faster,” said Mr Rujiroje Peejaroensup, IT Manager, Administrative Division, Toyo Seikan (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

Strengthens business continuity in midst of the pandemic

When the pandemic impacted companies across Thailand, TST was able to respond—ensuring business continuity to avoid disruption. The risk of unforeseen issues hitting production was cut because of improved backup and disaster recovery capabilities with Nutanix. Backups could be taken 4 times a day, over periods of just 15 minutes, minimizing the impact on network performance. For engineers, CAD/CAM files were now saved in seconds to avoid any interruptions to design processes. Says Mr Rujiroje, “Backups used to be a huge challenge, but with Nutanix, mission critical backups between our two sites are done efficiently, no matter how large they are.”

Nutanix DaaS gives immediate mobility and flexibility with robust security

TST executives and employees needing remote working access during the pandemic got the support they required with Nutanix Xi Frame. They gained remote access to data and applications without fear of compromising business security.  “Nutanix Xi Frame was up and running within an hour.  Our executives were very pleased with its capabilities that allowed them to remotely work with convenience.  It lets them work from anywhere, anytime, on any device with secure and complete access to their work desktop, files, and network,” commends Mr Rujiroje.

To fully enhance application-centric security and data protection, TST “decided to use Nutanix’s Flow together with Frame to protect our systems, data and applications from cyber threats. Flow allows us to monitor traffic for remote access sessions in real time. We are confident that our employees can now safely work from anywhere anytime. Furthermore, Flow identifies and quarantines abnormalities, sends alerts to us and points out where they occur. This enables us to solve problems more quickly and accurately. In the past, it was impossible for us to do this.”, said Mr. Rujiroje.

NEXT STEPS

TST is planning to use its Nutanix HCI cloud platform as a launch pad to integrate Internet of Things (IoT) technology with its production processes. With Nutanix, the company will avoid the costs of additional servers to support any IoT development, simply adding storage disks for the generated data.

PARTNER

Internet Solution & Service Provider Co., Ltd. (ISSP)

With the concept "Grow Your Business with ISSP: Professional Solution & Cloud Service Provider," the company aims to deliver cutting-edge technology as a cloud platform-powered Essentials Solution and Service to help customers transform into a fully digital-driven business smoothly.