“It did not make much sense for CGB to buy a new IBM POWER7 server. When we looked at renewing IBM support for our aging 9406-270, we also looked at Cloud400. Since Cloud400 was about the same cost as IBM support, well, it was a ‘no brainer’. Cloud400 is the best economic choice, hands down.”
Background
On November 21, 2011 Consolidated Grain and Barge Enterprises (CGB) acquired Twomey Group, one of the largest privately-held grain handling and storage companies serving the collection, marketing, drying and storage needs of farmers in Henderson and Warren Counties.
Founded in 1945, Twomey Company has established itself as a major storage provider, with nine grain handling and storage locations with a capacity of more than 50 million bushels, including a barge loading facility on the Mississippi River.
Twomey also operates a fluid suspension fertilizer plant, providing custom spraying, crop scouting, and crop inputs.
Proprietary OS400-Based Fertilizer Application Developed Over 30 Years
As a result, over 30 years Twomey has developed a proprietary fertilizer application that now runs on its 9406-270.
CGB Acquisition Changes Future IT Strategy
So, when CGB assessed its IT strategy for CGB Twomey Group, Cloud400© became a very attractive option.
Rich Winter, CGB Twomey Groups’ Data Processing Manager, explains, “We had run our business on an IBM 9406-270 for about 12 years. We support 21 users and OS400 was at V5R2. We support about 100 employees. In 2011, we had been thinking about moving to a more modern IBM server, like the POWER7 i 8202, with a disaster recovery plan. With the CGB acquisition, plans changed.”
New Environment Doesn’t Support OS400 Or Proprietary Fertilizer Software
Rich continues, “While CGB has their own IT resources they wanted us to use, their Windows environment does not support either OS400 or our proprietary software. We all figured it would be better to keep our proprietary fertilizer software on OS400 rather than rewrite it for Windows. But it did not make much sense for CGB to buy a new IBM POWER7 server. When we looked at renewing IBM support for our aging 9406-270, we also looked at Cloud400. Since Cloud400 was about the same cost as IBM support, well, it was a “no brainer”. Not only does Cloud400 run my application, they also run all my backups and manage the server. Cloud400 is the best economic choice, hands down.”
Cloud400 Best Economic Choice, Hands Down!
As Rich explains, “Cloud400 satisfied several needs. First, our OS400 applications could be easily supported on Cloud400. We were concerned about the ongoing reliability of the 9406-270 and there is no easy or cost-effective way to quickly migrate our proprietary application with a 30-year history of development to Windows. We figured we’d keep that on the AS400 until CGB could figure out how to assimilate that into their world.
Essential Disaster Recovery and Flexibility Included
“Next, we had a growing concern for disaster recovery. We are out here in the country. It’s remote. So we are vulnerable to unexpected downtime in the event of storms and flooding.
“Third, we wanted the flexibility Cloud400 offered instead of the fixed cost of a capital investment of a new IBM POWER7 i that did not fit the IT strategy of our new owners.
Saves $20,000 By Retaining Legacy Twinax Peripherals And Upgrades To IBM-Supported OS400
“We had some challenges as well,” Rich continues. “For example, we have 5 Twinax printers. These include Epson DFX 5000, DFX8000, and DFX9000 as well as an IBM 6400 and a Genicom Tally 1325. We could not very well just throw these away and buy all new printers. I figure it would have cost us an extra $20,000 or more for new printers. We also support 16 laser printers.”
“In addition, OS400 was at V5R2. So, we needed to upgrade that as well.”
Cloud400 Smooth Transition In Middle Of Busy Season
“We were in one of our busy seasons when we started our Cloud400 testing. We were right in the thick of the fertilizer and spraying seasons, so we did not have a lot of time for testing if something went wrong. ”
“Our transition was pretty straightforward. I was never concerned about our programs running correctly. It was just a matter of getting our databases loaded in Cloud400.
“The Cloud400 guys recommended an Ethernet to Twinax controller so our legacy printers worked just fine.
Applications Performing Flawlessly – And Way Faster – On Cloud400
“Our applications are performing flawlessly on Cloud400. Our people have hardly noticed any difference – except that it runs faster.”
How much faster? Rich says, “I was really amazed how much faster our application ran on Cloud400 – like about 10 times faster! Its lightning fast compared to what we had. It’s wonderful. The head accountant stopped in this morning and said, ‘Hey, is it just me, or is this new system a lot faster?’ Oh yeah, it’s a LOT faster. So, he’s happy about that.”
Cloud400 Tech Team Is Tremendous
Rich continues, “The guys at Cloud400 were tremendous. Very knowledgeable. I loved working with them. While I know they have other clients, every time I called they got to my issues right away. I think they are great.
“I would absolutely recommend Cloud400. I understand that when dealing with an old dinosaur system like ours the Cloud400 team had a learning curve. But they were very accommodating. Besides the technical guys, Bob Kennedy, the Cloud400 project leader, kept checking in on me to make sure everything was good. So, Cloud400 is terrific. I’ve got a lot of confidence in them.”