Mega Pharma Group, The

Major Pharmaceuticals Firm Cuts Software Deployment Time by 73 Percent, Boosts Control

Mega Pharma, the international pharmaceuticals giant, has more than 2,000 devices spread across 40 locations—so it needs the most effective way to manage them. That way, according to the company, is Microsoft® System Center Configuration Manager 2007. The solution has helped Mega Pharma to cut the time for major software deployments by 73 percent, as well as to reduce the costs of software licensing and the time and expense of helpdesk operations.

 

Business Needs

The Mega Pharma Group, operating throughout 18 countries in Latin America, was formed by the 2003 strategic alliance of three multinational pharmaceutical laboratories: Roemmers, Rowe, and Hexal.

With its diverse origins and geographic sweep of operations, Mega Pharma had a challenge in maintaining its IT infrastructure. That infrastructure included 150 computer servers, 1,200 workstations, and 1,000 mobile devices spread across 40 locations. The administration, updating, and control of all the computing devices within the organization were handled manually.

For example, hardware and software inventories were compiled onsite or by phone, and it was arduous work to keep up with what software was installed on which PCs. Installing a computer and deploying its software could take hours or, if the computer was in a remote location, days. Because some locations didn’t have onsite IT personnel, outside vendors had to be hired for simple tasks such as preparing a personal computer for use on the network.

Providing support to end users was another time-consuming task, sometimes requiring extended telephone conversations in which support staff tried to understand the problem and direct corrective action, other times requiring users to visit a variety of intranet support sites.

As Mega Pharma anticipated continued growth—and continued competition—in the pharmaceutical market throughout Latin America, and as it anticipated continued adoption of technology to enable that growth and meet that competition, it needed a better way to manage its IT infrastructure.

Solution

Mega Pharma’s solution is Microsoft® System Center Configuration Manager 2007, the successor to Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003. Mega Pharma has deployed System Center Configuration Manager throughout its enterprise, for use in software distribution and update management, asset intelligence, and end-user support.

Thanks to Configuration Manager, our IT staff spends less time on maintaining the network and more time on productive work like … ensuring the competitiveness of the system. Jorge Noguera Corporate Network Coordinator, The Mega Pharma Group

“When System Center Configuration Manager 2007 became available, it immediately became our primary choice for administration and control of our network,” says Jorge Noguera, Corporate Network Coordinator, The Mega Pharma Group. “We have had great success basing our infrastructure on Microsoft technology; the cost of implementing Configuration Manager was low; and we had the licenses as part of our Enterprise Agreement with Microsoft. All this made Configuration Manager a great choice for us.”

Mega Pharma automates the deployment of software and application updates with Sysem Center Configuration Manager. It assigns users to collections based on their roles and needs within the organization, uses the Copy Packages Wizard to create software packages for them, and uses Branch Distribution Points to distribute software to remote facilities without consuming wide-area network bandwidth for each deployment or needing a dedicated server at each location. The company has used System Center Configuration Manager to deploy 2007 Microsoft Office system software and plans to use it to support the migration to the Windows Vista® Enterprise Edition operating system.

Beyond software deployment, Mega Pharma uses System Center Configuration Manager to manage and control its environment. The Desired Configuration Manager feature will check the status of server configurations and alert IT staff when servers have exceeded proscribed parameters, enabling the company to more easily maintain compliance with ITIL standards.

And the use of Network Access Protection will enable Mega Pharma to ensure that remote users comply with security and other policies when connecting to the network.

Mega Pharma will use the software to help manage its 1,000 mobile devices, which run Windows Mobile® 5.0 software. The company expects to remotely administer the configurations and software that are installed on each device, and to control business applications and update them over the Internet without the user having to travel to the corporate office.

“With Configuration Manager, we will help ensure that users who are away from the office get the same level of IT support as users on the network,” says Noguera. “The result will be that they can contribute more easily to the company’s success.”

Benefits

“At Mega Pharma, we intend to use the latest technologies to stay ahead of the competition,” says Noguera. “Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager is helping us to do so.”

For example, when Mega Pharma deployed Microsoft Office System 2003, it took 30 days and required dedicated resources. When the company used System Center Configuration Manager to deploy 2007 Office system software, the process took just eight days, a reduction of 73 percent. The highly automated process checked the system status of target workstations against custom business rules, updated those machines where needed, and deployed the application software without requiring dedicated resources.

System Center Configuration Manager has also improved asset intelligence at Mega Pharma, giving IT managers immediate access to hardware and software inventory information through reports easily generated in the System Center Configuration Manager Console.

The information is used in a variety of ways: to help plan for software updates and deployments, to help ensure the company is not buying software licenses it doesn’t need, and to assist helpdesk personnel by enabling them to understand what hardware and software is running at an end-user’s workstation. Helpdesk personnel can also use System Center Configuration Manager to see the user’s session in real time, so they can identify and resolve problems.

With System Center Configuration Manager, Mega Pharma is managing more of its IT infrastructure and doing so in more effective ways.

In addition, Mega Pharma uses System Center Configuration Manager together with Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007. The use of the two System Center products makes it easier for the company to monitor and control server-level performance as well as desktop performance, and to act proactively to ensure high availability and business continuity.

“Thanks to Configuration Manager, our IT staff spends less time on maintaining the network and more time on productive work like evaluating new technologies, standardizing operations, and ensuring the competitiveness of the system,” says Noguera.