“My Migration From Our 9406-820 To Our New POWER i Took Less Than 4 Hours”
“I gave a complete copy of my system to Source Data. At their tech center, Source Data upgraded it from V5R2 to V5R4 and loaded it on our new POWER i. When our new POWER server arrived onsite, our migration from our 9406-820 to our new server took less than 4 hours.”
Background
Apex Bulk Logistics, LLC. is the largest, most diverse bulk transportation company in the western United States.
Apex Logistics offers transportation of dry bulk and non-hazardous liquid commodities between points in the United States with intrastate services in California, Arizona and Nevada. Other services include transload equipment and personnel for rail transloading operations, dedicated logistic fleet services and vacuum pneumatic equipment for silo, rail, or plant clean-up.
Based in Adelanto California, Apex has grown from its original single location to 7 full service terminals throughout the western United States. Dispatch operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week
POWER7 i 8202-E4D Replaces 9406-525
Apex upgraded from a POWER5 i 9406-525 to a POWER7 i 8202-E4D. The POWER7 i runs custom software developed by Innovative Computing Corp. This transportation software has been vertically integrated to include the shop, purchasing, safety, recruiting, dispatch, billing, payroll, accounting, customer service and fleet trucks.
Apex has 50 users that support 280 truck drivers who rely on this software for inventory and route information. The software communicates the location and details of transportation for Apex to monitor operations.
Apex Logistics also allows customers to check the status of their loads in real time, tender orders and view related order documents via the internet.
Experienced IT Director Relies On IBM POWER i
IT Director Richard Givens has over 30 years experience dating back to the IBM System/34. Over the years he has seen more responsibilities develop in managing new technology and knows the value of a stable operating system. Apex also utilizes a Windows Server 2008 as a remote desktop communication back to the POWER i.
“Not only do we oversee computers these days, we are overseeing surveillance, telephone, and computer systems. It helps when we can rely on our POWER i so that we can get other duties filled, rather than working on our Windows server.”
Around The Clock Access To Critical Inventory Information
“We actually monitor load information for our customers and monitor customer silo inventories for them. What makes Apex unique is our ability to communicate with our customers. Our customers need to be able to go online and monitor their loads anytime, so our POWER i needs to have 24/7 uptime.
“Our business revolves around the construction industry. Anytime people are building highways and bridges we are the guys involved bringing in cement and materials. A lot of these bridges and highways are built during the mid morning and night hours when the road traffic is low.”
Increasing SWMA And HWMA Fees Prompt Version Upgrade
“I could have paid about $28,000 for HWMA on my POWER5 i, or I could start a new lease and buy a new POWER7 i for a lot less and have HWMA included. I figure within 3 years the machine should pay for itself.
“The savings on SWMA fees also encouraged our upgrade. It is less expensive to upgrade than to continue paying the high cost of maintenance. As the machine and version gets older, the fees continue to go up. If you upgrade, IBM figures there is likely less maintenance for them so the fees are lower for the user.”
SDP’s Expertise Saved Us Over $29,000 On A New POWER7 i
“We just purchased a new IBM POWER7 i 8202-E4D that SDP’s Mark Breisacher is testing which will speed up everything for our users.
“Source Data Products was able to get us a considerable discount of $29,672 by helping us with our entitlement transfers, which reduce processor activation fees and user fees. We were also able to provide proof that we were paying enough SWMA fees with our current software provider for a promotion that was going on with IBM at the time.
“If I went through IBM or any other business partner, I probably wouldn’t have found out about these savings. It’s nice to use Source Data because they are on top of what’s going on in the industry.”
V7R1 Migration A Snap With SDP’s 4 Hour Version Upgrade
“I stopped doing upgrades myself when V7R1 started using analyzed object conversions. I had tried to do it myself and at the time didn’t realize I hadn’t checked every single object to be sure they were working. I went through a whole upgrade for a weekend and found out it didn’t work. I had to restore back to my old operating system.
“The 4 Hour Version Upgrade process to V7R1 went very smoothly. I just gave Source Data a configuration of my current system and let them know what I expect in growth over the next couple years and they handled the rest.”
Source Data Does The Planning And I Continue With Daily Duties
“We chose Source Data Products because of their knowledge of the iSeries, pricing and turn key objectives. The process was not labor intensive, with a minimum amount of downtime. Over the years I have used SDP with some previous companies that I have worked for and they always come through tremendously in helping me. Mark Breisacher was instrumental.
“We provided Source Data with a full system backup tape and they were able to load everything to the new box. We did a remote login and tested the system. All we had to do when the box was brought over was update the files with the nightly backup of my libraries and we were ready to go. Now the speed of response time is a lot quicker when you are going through the screens.”
Richard Givens Recommends SDP And Their OS400 4 Hour Version Upgrade
“A four hour window on a weekend is great for us. There is a lot less road traffic at 10 o’clock on a Saturday night, so that’s when we do the upgrades. In the past you were down 8-12 hours, sometimes a whole weekend. There are always time constraints when we have drivers that want to communicate back with us.
“Without a doubt I would recommend Source Data Products for purchasing a new POWER i and their OS400 4 Hour Version Upgrade. Working with Source Data Products was tremendous. Everything was seamless … less downtime and more simplicity.”