Barrier Signs in Taree were experiencing poor performance on their internal network with frequent server performances issues impacting the availability of critical applications. A more strategic IT and business continuity plan was required to keep pace with ever-expanding manufacturing requirements.

Integer IT first conducted an audit of the network and the performance of the server’s critical applications and data repositories.  We provided a detailed report and life cycle documentation of the current IT infrastructure, and identified areas where security and performance were not deemed satisfactory and to an IT-resilient standard.

Our proposal outlined the benefits of the investment in a few areas, including a new server to improve performance and user experience, along with Sophos Firewalls & server and endpoint security, with a consolidation of the existing Network Attached Storage (NAS) environment.

The proposal was aligned to a plan to migrate on-premise accounting systems to the cloud (MYOB), and on-premise Microsoft Exchange to Office 365 mailboxes.

The project was completed over a 6-week timeframe to coincide with the historically quieter months for manufacturing (December – January).  Firstly, we migrated the mail users to Office 365 to avoid any unnecessary email disruption, and advised on MYOB two-factor authentication. The new server was installed in situ alongside the existing equipment and we remotely delivered the new infrastructure as the new domain server over a weekend. Integer IT were on site the next business day to be instantly available to assist any users who may have experienced any issues. The manufacturing process and the important delivery of orders were not impacted.

The IT environment is stable as well agile and can now scale to incorporate growth with securely connected employees via VPN or cloud-delivered applications for both office-based or mobile users. This in turn has provided a greater understanding and visibility of forecasting the sales pipeline and how it may impact inventory components for manufacturing to successfully fulfil the client’s delivery expectations.

Proactive IT management now monitors performance and advises on future IT strategy and budget planning, rather than reacting to critical outages with the subsequent loss of employee productivity.

Jeff Chambers, Owner, Barrier Signs

Having relied on a single IT person for support for so long we were naturally nervous about moving our support requirements, however Integer made us feel very secure with the steps we need to take and they quickly had a very clear understanding of how we could enhance our employees’ IT user experience, via their initial audit. Barrier Signs recommend Integer IT’s proactive approach, so we can concentrate on what we are good at.

Garry at Integer IT:

Barrier Signs have embraced and successfully embarked on an IT transformation project with the delivery of new infrastructure and security product suites. Their new firm IT foundation and fiber connection between buildings will enable further agile growth and not hinder ambition. Barrier Signs are great to work with, as they are realising the benefits of their investment very quickly.