4-page Case Study - Posted 12/26/2006

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Dingo Australia

Fast-Growing Australian Manufacturer Reduces Costs and Deployment Time

From 1992 to 2006, Dingo Australia grew from 3 to 151 employees to accommodate the rapidly growing demand for its world-famous mini diggers. As it grew, the company added a few computers at a time with desktop software preinstalled. This created a mix of Windows® operating systems and Microsoft® Office versions, which increased Dingo’s support burden, diminished productivity, and required extra time to activate and track the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) licenses. To establish a consistent desktop environment and streamline licensing, Dingo worked with Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Downs MicroSystems to acquire a Microsoft Open Value Company-wide Volume Licensing agreement. This agreement keeps Dingo’s Microsoft software up to date, provides predictable licensing costs, and has helped reduce its total cost of ownership (TCO) for Microsoft software.

Situation

The concept of the mini digger has been around since the mid 1980’s. In its early form it was little more than a motorized wheelbarrow. In 1991, Gary and Wendy Briggs purchased the Dingo manufacturing rights and established Dingo Australia in the town of Dalby, Queensland. It was here that they redesigned the “Dingo” into a mobile hydraulic power plant that runs a variety of attachments. Today, Dingo mini diggers are used all over the world by landscapers, builders, farmers, miners, manufacturers, and homeowners.

The high demand for the redesigned Dingo mini digger generated rapid growth for the company. The staff increased from 3 employees in 1992 to 151 employees in 2006. And the company now has five branch offices located throughout Australia.

More than half of Dingo’s employees work on desktop or portable computers. As new employees were added, the company acquired original equipment manufacturer (OEM) licenses for the operating system and applications on each new computer. Typically Dingo only upgraded software when the hardware was replaced, so the company had a range of operating systems—from Microsoft® Windows® 98 through Windows XP Professional—and Microsoft Office versions—including Microsoft Office 97, Office 2000, and Office XP. “When I started at Dingo in 2004, all the software licenses were OEM across the board, so if a computer was decommissioned I had to replace the machine and the license,” explains Paul Chipisuboff, IT Manager for Dingo Australia. “It was money after money after money.”

This licensing setup was not only expensive but also labor intensive. To deploy a new computer, the IT Department first had to locate the activation CD key for that workstation. Since it was not always easy to find that key, it was quicker to just grab any CD and call Microsoft Licensing for activation. This increased downtime for end users and reduced productivity for Dingo’s IT department.

With Open Value…. I’ve got a pool of licenses so if a machine breaks I can replace it legally, install the software to get the users up and running immediately, and sort the paperwork out later. Paul Chipisuboff IT Manager, Dingo Australia

Running multiple versions of the software on desktop computers also created support challenges. “Providing support was difficult because one person was using Office 97 running on Windows 2000, another was using Office 2000 running on Windows XP, and another was using Office XP,” says Chipisuboff. “Resolving problems required different directions for each because all of the interfaces were different.”

Those differences became particularly obvious when Dingo implemented Microsoft Exchange Server 2003. Employees who were using earlier versions of Microsoft Office couldn’t take advantage of some of the latest features of Exchange Server 2003, such as using Office Word to spellcheck e-mail or running in cache mode so that e-mail was stored on the server, and cached on the user’s local computer for quick access. “We had all these new features with Exchange Server 2003, but less than 5 percent of our employees had access to them,” says Chipisuboff.

By mid 2005, the company had 65 desktops, 15 portable computers, and approximately 30 Windows Mobile® powered smartphones. Workers outside of the corporate office accessed the Dingo network through a virtual private network (VPN) for e-mail and calendars. The accounting staff at remote offices accessed Microsoft Dynamics™ GP (formerly known as Microsoft Business Solutions–Great Plains®) through Microsoft Windows Server® 2003 Terminal Services. Dingo planned to move to Microsoft Dynamics AX Financial Management and Supply Chain Management software and needed all of the desktops to be on Windows XP and Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003 in order to take maximum advantage of new capabilities.

Chipisuboff decided that the best way to establish a consistent software configuration on all desktop and portable computers was to acquire a Volume Licensing agreement from Microsoft. “For the company to function correctly, we needed a premium product to go along with our premium business,” says Chipisuboff. “We weren’t a 10-computer operation anymore and we needed a more cost-effective and efficient way to acquire and maintain the software on those computers.”

Chipisuboff turned to Downs MicroSystems, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner that had been working with Dingo for several years. The goal was to choose a Volume Licensing agreement that covered the range of products that Dingo used at that point, as well as to provide the flexibility to easily add new products and increase the number of licenses as the company expands.

Solution

Downs Microsystems suggested that Dingo acquire a Microsoft Open Value Company-wide licensing agreement. This three-year agreement gives Dingo consistent volume pricing for Office 2003, and the core client access licenses (CALs) for the Windows Server 2003 operating system, Windows Storage Server, and Microsoft SQL Server™ 2005. Because all of its desktops already had OEM licenses for the operating system, Dingo will wait until the first anniversary of the agreement in April 2007 to add its Windows operating system to the Open Value agreement along with a Microsoft Exchange Server license and CALs.

After signing the agreement, Dingo upgraded any desktops that were running previous versions of the software to Windows XP Professional and Office Professional Edition 2003.

Dingo also added Microsoft SQL Server 2005 to its licensing agreement in the middle of its first year. “Normally we would have waited for the anniversary date, but Dingo needed SQL Server as part of the Microsoft Dynamics AX solution so we added a SQL Server license and CALs in mid-contract,” says Ian Hurley, Account Manager, Downs MicroSystems. “On each anniversary Dingo will let us know how many staff members they’ve added, and we’ll back-date the pricing for those licenses to the previous anniversary date. We’ll also forecast any new servers that they’ll need in the coming year and add those licenses as well.”

The home use part of the agreement was extremely attractive because it means our managers can load the same software legally on their computers at home and continue working after hours. Paul Chipisuboff IT Manager, Dingo Australia

The next big project on Chipisuboff’s to-do list is virtualization of all of Dingo’s servers using Microsoft Virtual Server. This means Dingo will create “virtual” versions of all of its servers that are hardware agnostic; therefore, they can be easily restored in case of a problem. “We’re looking at virtualizing all of the servers so that we’re no longer committed to any specific hardware,” says Chipisuboff. He also uses Virtual Server in the lab to test new server products without having to purchase additional hardware.

Benefits

By acquiring Microsoft software through an Open Value Company-wide Volume Licensing agreement, Dingo has gained predictable licensing costs, reduced IT time, increased productivity, ensured access to the latest technology, and reduced total cost of ownership (TCO).

Predictable Licensing Costs

Because the Open Value Company-wide agreement allows Dingo to add users throughout the year at a predetermined price, it makes it easy for the company to budget for new employees. “Dingo is growing quickly and as we add more users, we can give them the software and then notify Microsoft at the end of each year about how many users were added,” says Chipisuboff. “Those licenses are covered under the same agreement so we already know the cost of each additional license. And we have a Microsoft Finance agreement so we’re getting a complete solution for all of Dingo and making monthly payments rather than taking all the money out at once.”

Reduced IT Time

Deploying new computers under the Open Value agreement reduces the average deployment time per computer from five hours to one hour. And the process takes only 15 minutes using imaging software. “With Open Value, I don’t have to worry about activation. I don’t have to spend 20 minutes looking for the OEM CD to get the right CD key for that machine and fill out the paperwork,” notes Chipisuboff. “I’ve got a pool of licenses so if a machine breaks I can replace it legally, install the software to get the users up and running immediately, and sort the paperwork out later.” With all users on the same version of the software, it is easier for Dingo to maintain updates and troubleshoot problems. And the 24 hours a day, 7 days a week phone support and unlimited Web support provided through Software Assurance enables Dingo to quickly resolve problems at any time.

Increased Productivity

Establishing a consistent desktop configuration where all users have the same version of Office applications, including the Office Outlook® 2003 messaging and collaboration client, has helped make users more productive. “Now that all the computers have the same software versions, workers can sit down in front of any machine to check their mail and calendars, or they can access the network from their Windows Mobile powered smartphone or Outlook Web Access,” Chipisuboff explains.

Having the rights to use the same software on their home machine is also making it easier for executive managers to be productive after regular business hours without having to carry around a portable computer.

In addition, Software Assurance provides training vouchers for the Dingo IT staff and eLearning Courses for end users to help both groups get up to speed faster on new technologies.

Access to the Latest Technology

Rather than waiting until IT bought new hardware to upgrade its software, Dingo has access to the latest versions of Microsoft software—as soon as they are released—through the Software Assurance feature of the Open Value agreement. “Now Dingo can decide when to upgrade based on need rather than cost,” notes Hurley. “The company has already paid for the software, so the only cost comes from the time it takes to upgrade.”

The Software Assurance component of the Open Value agreement also gives Dingo access to evaluation software and pre-release versions of Microsoft software products, which enables Chipisuboff to download and test software in a virtual environment without having to provision new hardware. “When someone says they think we need a certain server product, I can virtualize the server, test it, and, if it works, make it live,” Chipisuboff notes. “We don’t have to commit anything to hardware until we know we want to add it, which saves hardware resources.”

Reduced TCO

The combination of more cost-effective licensing costs, reduced management time, and access to evaluation versions of new software through the Open Value agreement all contribute to a significant reduction in Dingo’s TCO.

Microsoft Volume Licensing
Microsoft Volume Licensing offers customized programs that are designed to meet the needs of your business. Tailored for companies of different sizes and purchasing preferences, these Volume Licensing programs provide simple, flexible, and affordable solutions that can help you manage your licenses with ease. Whether you have five or thousands of desktop PCs, Microsoft Volume Licensing has the right program for you. 

To acquire the latest Microsoft technology at a significant cost savings through Microsoft Volume Licensing, contact your Microsoft Partner or local reseller.

To learn more about Microsoft Volume Licensing, visit:
www.microsoft.com/licensing

For More Information

For more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234 in the United States or (905) 568-9641 in Canada. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:
www.microsoft.com

For more information about Downs MicroSystems products and services, call (61) (07) 4639 3344 or visit the Web site at:
www.downsmicro.com.au

For more information about Dingo Australia Pty products and services, call (61) (07) 4672 5400 or visit the Web site at:
www.dingo.ws