A future-oriented backup solution at Alzchem Group AG in Trostberg

Alzchem Group AG

Alzchem is a globally active specialty chemicals company that is predominantly one of the market leaders in its fields of activity. The broad product range of Alzchem Group AG includes food supplements, precursors for PCR tests and pharmaceutical raw materials. The company employs around 1,690 people at four production sites in Germany and one plant in Sweden, as well as in three sales companies in the USA, China and England. In 2023, Alzchem generated consolidated sales of EUR 540.6 million and an EBITDA of around EUR 81.4 million.

Challenge

Alzchem Group AG faced the challenge of introducing a future-oriented backup solution. This had to be cloud-ready as well as compatible and certified for SAP S/4HANA. The solution should also be flexible for various software products and requirements, offer open interfaces such as Rest API and function seamlessly with a NetApp Storage and a VMware integration. As further requirements, the project managers stipulated that it should be an on-premise software and not an appliance-based solution, with purchase licenses and a direct line to the manufacturer. The evaluation process began with the creation of a comprehensive requirements catalog, followed by a market analysis and a proof of concept (PoC). All results were verified externally.

Solution

As part of the evaluation, Alzchem AG was acquired by DMP by telephone, which enabled the IT managers to be enthusiastic about further appointments. Thanks to the very good cooperation between DMP and Commvault, the customer’s wishes were understood in a relatively short time and all requirements were answered positively. DMP (DataManagement Professionals) has the highest possible partner status in the Commvault partner program in the areas of sales, presales, professional services and support. Commvault has one of the world’s largest portfolios in the areas of data backup and recovery, cloud, virtualization, archiving, file synchronization and share.

On the customer side at Alzchem, Klaus Thurner, team leader for the Server & Operations area, and Joachim Rager, Technical Expert Server & Operations, responsible for the operation of the backup solution, were responsible for the project. Thanks to the excellent cooperation, also thanks to short distances and direct contact persons at DMP, the project was successfully carried out within the planned timeframe.

During the implementation, DMP carried out an adjustment of the hardware sizing in favor of an optimal utilization of the ESX farm by the media agents. The backup solution now meets all defined requirements and the project managers at Alzchem are satisfied. The old IBM solution TSM has thus been successfully replaced by Commvault Backup & Recovery.

DMP’s solution is Commvault Backup & Recovery, which has been extensively tested in a Proof of Concept (PoC) with a detailed test of all requirements. DMP has supplied all the necessary Commvault licenses for mail and cloud applications, virtual machines and databases, as well as accompanying professional services for installation, commissioning and training.

“The direct contacts at DMP greatly facilitated communication and finding solutions when adapting the new backup-solution to our environment,” explains Klaus Thurner. For potential DMP customers, Joachim Rager emphasizes the necessity of a clear idea of what the Commvault solution offers. “It is not just a backup- solution, but also a data management system that needs to be managed accordingly. A thorough hardware and training planning is important in advance.”

Advantages

The advanced handling of the backup system is particularly noteworthy. From proactive protection and assessment of the vitality of backed-up data to demonstrably contamination-free recovery, the solution covers all requirements. Alzchem also benefits from DMP’s clear concept with regard to reporting, automation and verifiability for the management of cybersecurity risks as well as metrics for measuring and improving operational performance and security. In addition, the DMP Technical Support Center provides German-language support. The Support Center is characterized by the fact that it generally processes 97 percent of all support tickets successfully on its own. Klaus Thurner and Joachim Rager want to continue the cooperation with DMP and Commvault in order to continuously develop the solution and adapt it to future requirements of Alzchem Group AG.

About DataManagement Professionals

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