Wipro - FM Best Practices Showcase

IT Infrastructure Management and Support Services at SRF Limited.
Background

SRF Group is a market leader in industrial yarn & fabric as well as refrigerant
gases in India. Since its inception in 1974, the SRF Group has emerged as an
industrial major in its core business areas, with about 2100 employees operating
out of 14 locations in India, UAE and USA.

The fully integrated production lines of tyrecord fabric are ranked 7th in the world,
in terms of capacity and production. The fluorochemicals business has set new
standards in providing world-class products to its customers in around 45
countries. The group also has a growing presence in the fields of engineering
plastics and polyester films.

SRF have set a vision to build a world class Organization. The basis of which lie
in principles and systems that are guided by Total Quality Management (TQM)
as a way of life. Total Quality Management is a management approach that
profoundly integrates principles, methods, systems and tools, and transforms the
way SRF think and do things, as well as the way SRF manages its operations.

SRF is also striving for the coveted Demming Award and we at Wipro would like
to bring our best in class process framework to help SRF realize this vision.
In its efforts to meet its vision towards Quality, SRF has initiated a Total Quality
Management initiative. In this regard, SRF wants to align all of its IT initiatives to
deliver value to SRF’s business aiding them to reach the coveted Deming Award
during the next 3 year timeframe.

The TQM Philosophy and goal for Demming Award makes it imperative for SRF’s
IT Partners to align themselves to it and help SRF realize this vision.

The Challenge

1. To achieve high availability on IT infrastructure by having reliable processes
and technological enablers to the level of 99.999% availability of services.

2. Provide quality of service to end IT user at all sites covering stationary and
moving users defined as:
Speed of access
Performance
Uptime

3. Prevent data loss and ensure recovery with minimal loss to business.

4. Strengthening its IT Processes by leveraging on its competencies specific to
outsourced IT Processes under Manage-IT.

The Solution

Wipro considered the SRF IT department as a Service Provider to the users in
SRF, where Messaging, Office Automation & Business Application are the 3 core
service offerings. The IS Processes & IT Infrastructure play a key role in
delivering these services.

Wipro identified these services areas of as a key differentiators for our Service
Delivery:

IT Infrastructure Optimization & The significant benefits the IT
Consolidation Service, which includes Optimization exercise brought to
organizations are
1. Desktop Optimization 1. Reduced Costs,
2. Network Optimization 2. Better Management & Effective Utilization
3. Server & Storage Consolidation of IT resources
4. Security revamp 3. Improved Service Levels
4. Ease in IT Planning

Addition to the above activity the entire services were to be governed by
Infrastructure Management Service( FM services).

Desktop Optimization: -

In 2001 SRF had 679 desktops through out. Since SRF did not have a common approach
for PC procurement, they had a large number of different brands. Apart from this SRF also
had a large population of assembled PCs. The configurations of these, vary widely.
Processors range from 486 to P-IV, RAM ranges from 16 MB to 128 MB and Hard disks
from 1.2 GB to 20 GB.
Based on the analysis following were the summary of problems faced:
1. PCs hang frequently
2. Frequent “illegal Operation” "memory overflow" and "out of resources " errors cause
loss of efforts and valuable man-hours
3. System slowness
4. Inability to work with two or more different software simultaneously, especially while
working on Oracle Apps and large Excel files

From the point of view of IT manageability, following are the challenges faced:

1. No uniformity in configurations & different brands like IBM, Compaq, HP, Wipro, and
assembled.
2. Machines were purchased from multiple vendors, thereby making it difficult to
coordinate with them.
3. System configurations in some machines are obsolete, therefore, it is difficult to find
replacements of parts.
4. In some cases, upgradation is not possible due to hardware constraints.
5. Components are from different manufacturers
6. Different vendors for AMCs leading to coordination and handoff issues.
7. AMC dates fall on different dates

Benefits after Optimization:

E-mail
Office
Automation .net Intranet
Multi tasking CRM, 11i ERP
Oracle 8i Net Integrated office
E-mail
Office Automation
Multi tasking
Oracle 11I
Next generation OS like
XP

Applications handled by PC’s.

Foreground
2001 2003
Virus Scan
Backup
Compression
System Management
Synchronization
Authentication
Directory Services
Java Applets

Virus Scan Background
Backup
Compression
System
Management

IN 2001 2003
Desktop 638 Desktops 862
54% of M/c less than 400 MHz 85% Pentium processor
Hard disk < 4 GB Hard disk 20 GB
Memory <64 MB Memory >128 MB
Does not support Win 2000 & new application. Met EOL cycle of next 4 years.
Large variety of configuration, brands and Uniformity in configurations - better
families of processors like 486, Celeron, manageability from IT perspective.
Pentium I, II & III
Large No. of vendors to deal with leading to Only 2 vendors for procurement and AMC.
handoff issues Higher vendor commitments.
Downtimes due to unavailability of spare parts Spare parts guaranteed by the manufacturer
for old PCs with 3 years warranty. Commitment on
problem resolution time.
Frequent hanging problems and windows fatal Stable platform. Reduced errors and hanging
errors leading to loss of efforts and man hours problems
User complaints of slow speed of PCs Improved performance of the PCs
Cases of user data losses due to hard disk crash Reduced possibility of data loss
on aging hard disks
Results after Optimization:

98% desktop uptime availability for each user.

Note: Desktop uptime is percentage of desktop
available to user without affecting their
productivity.

100
98
Network Optimization: - 96
94
92
90
88
86
84
82
80
A -03 M -03 J-03 JL- A-03 S-03 O-03 N-03 D-03 J-04 F-04 M -04
03

D e s k t o p Up t im e T a r g e t Up t im e

There are currently 14 locations of SRF connected to each other over the wide
Area Network. There are three kinds of technologies being used to connect
various locations. These are summarized below as of 2001:
1. VSAT: It uses the satellite communication links to connect two sites point-to-
point. Some of the distinguishing point worth mentioning are given below:
2. Virtual Private Network (VPN) : This is a Leased line / ISDN based
technology, where a Wide Area Network of a service provider is used by
multiple clients, thus reducing the overall inter-city bandwidth costs. SRF
currently have these services taken from Wipro Net Limited.
3. Point-to-point Leased Lines: These are leased circuits over the Telephony
infrastructure that connects two sites.


IN 2001 2003
Some of the critical sites do not have All the sites are having permanent connectivity
permanent WAN connectivity like leased line or
VSAT
Frequent disconnection lead to stopped Reduced disconnection with the use of
business, effort and time loss especially for permanent connectivity at various places and
Oracle Applications users router reconfigured for auto switch over during
link failure for all the places.
There have been large downtimes on the Out-source the liaison of these vendors to the
leased lines mainly due to liaison issues with service provider with uptime commitments
DOT and MTNL
Limited spares availability in case of failures. With new high end routers at HO and Manali,
Replacement of WAN components take the existing routers were used as spare for the
average of 1-2 months. rest of the sites. They will be made available
within a maximum of 2 Hrs. after problem
reporting
Gateway routers not able to take the additional Routers at the gateway to be of higher
load of network security processes configuration to support security processes
now being implemented
No network management tool to monitor link Network monitoring system to monitor all links
uptimes, utilization etc. in real time
Maximum issues related to Wide Area Network Bandwidth re-sizing and optimization at
arise during the month ends when bandwidth various units to cater to increased month end
utilization is highest pressures

Bandwidth cost very high Renegotiated with service provider and
reduced the overall cost of links.
Most of the locations were connected through All locations are connected through leased
VSAT. Where latency was high. line or VPN with higher bandwidth.


100

80 99% WAN uptime available for each site.
60

40
Note: Wan Switch over time is the total no
20 of time the primary link fails and back up is
0 fired.
A -03 M -03 J-03 JL-03 A-03 S-03 O-03 N-03 D-03 J-04 F-04 M -04

WA N Uptim e % WA N S wit c h o v er

MS Exchange Server Optimization: -

SRF in 2001 was using Windows NT 4.0. This
operating system is already obsolete and not a very
stable product. There have been many instances of
server crashes in SRF at HO, Malanpur and Qutab.
The model of Windows NT is a completely
distributed model i.e. each location has its own set
of domain resources which are completely
independent of the other site. This model offers
does not require much of the WAN resources as no
replication across WAN links take place. However,
in case of a hardware failure, this model does not

We propose to have a hub & spoke model for the
domain using Windows 2000 platform. In this model a
root controller will centrally manage the resources at
all the locations. HO and Manali would act as
completely redundant controllers. The master
information database for all the system resources and
users in SRF, will lie in the HO. This will be replicated
to Manali at specified intervals.
All the sites with more than 30 users, will have an
additional domain controller. In case of a failure the
backup server will take over the operation
automatically. In case of a major server crash, when
even the backup server is not able to function there
will be temporary disruption in the network services.
However, this model offers reduced recovery as a
complete replica of the database will be available from
other sites.
This model will offer a single logon from anywhere in


IN 2001 2003
MS Exchange
Incidences of server crashes and long time for Reduced possibilities of crashes. Quicker
recovery recovery in case of a failure.
Overloaded servers - No possibility of additional Enhanced server resources with future
load scalability built-in.

No access to SRF mails while traveling Ability to read and respond to SRF mails
using Internet through web mail.
Manual data backups with no facility to verify that Specialized application to automate the data
the data is recoverable backup, verification and restoration
processes
Data losses during the server crashes Reduced risk of data losses due to hard disk
or other component failures.
Slow response on mailing at Manali and TFL Adequate server and LAN resources to
improve speed of messaging response
No control over scheduling of mail based on the Scheduling of mails so that large mails do
mail size not obstruct WAN bandwidth
Internet Mailing
High cost of adding Internet mail Ids due to Unlimited ID's.

IN 2001 2003
additional bandwidth requirement
Excess Internet Bandwidth usage due to Optimized bandwidth usage for Mailing
inadequate design
Internet access speed slow Adequate speed

Low reliability, due to multiple points of failure Reduced points of failure. Redundancy for
each failure point
Large variation in mail delivery time Faster mail deliveries
No content filtering - No control over company Content filters to monitor and control (if
sensitive data sent out through mails required) data going out and coming in
Manageability is difficult Easy Manageability


100 Results after Optimization:

99 99% messaging service uptime available for
each user.
98

97
Note: messaging service is calculated user
96
wise.
95
A -03 M- J-03 JL- A-03 S-03 O-03 N-03 D-03 J-04 F-04 M -
03 03 04
E - M a il S e r v e r U p t im e T a r g e t U p t im e

Security: -

In 2001 SRF did not have any specialized
security tools deployed. There was no way
to protect company's confidential data from
getting out of SRF in unauthorized manner.
Similarly, there are limited options for
blocking unwanted or objectionable data
from entering into the system.
The security is limited to the operating
system level authentication and the
application level security. For both the OS
and application level security basic set of
policies are documented but not followed
strictly everywhere.

In order to manage the security of all data systems, the
sources of threats have been classified into two
categories:
External Threats: These sources enter the corporate
network through the gateways open to the external
world. There are three such gateways in our network, of
which two have identified to be vulnerable. These are
VSAT (very secure), VPN (medium vulnerability) and
Internet (High vulnerability). The measures were taken
to secure these gateways as shown in detailed diagram.

Internal Threats: These are the threats posed directly
on all our data systems from our internal users. Most of
the systems can be made immune to these threats
using the native operating system level security,
application level security and the network security.
Substantiating these with strictly followed policies
further enhances the overall security of the system


IN 2001 2003
Multiple unsecured Internet Gateways Consolidated & secured gateways
No gateway Firewall or virus wall Enterprise Firewall & virus wall
Anti virus only at Server OS & users desktops; no Anti virus protection at gateway, Server OS,
protection at Exchange Exchange server & clients
Limited router level security for VPN Router security to isolate SRF network completely
over the VPN
Access to routers possible from outside Router access to be limited to HO
No content filtering capabilities Content filters at gateway level
No data access / password policy Security policy covering data access, authentication,
anti virus etc.

Information Security & IT Policies and Procedures

In our existing IT setup, SRF do not have well laid out processes for most of the operational area.
This has resulted in a variety of procedures being followed for the same processes at various
business units. This has further created wide gaps in not only on the infrastructure front but also
on the Applications front. This is quite a challenging situation for moving on to an integrated
structure.

2003
As a part of the IT infrastructure revamp exercise, we carry out a comprehensive exercise to audit
and document the IT policies and procedures.

Tangible and Measurable Benefits:

The Benefits of this initiatives have been significant and has spread across the entire
business units of SRF. User productivity has improved significantly. Security, has been prime
for Industry, data loss & integrity was protected. The improvements can be translated into
some key highlights as mentioned below.
 IT infastructure avilablity user wise has reached 98.73%.
 WAN uptime has reached over 99% due to auto switch over configratd & fine-tuning
of the network.
 Fire wall instalation and IDS configred with 0 intrudition.
 98% desktop uptime when compared to 85% previous year.
 Nill Virus outbreak reported.
 Messaging service avilablity is almost 100%.
 Consolidation of routes helped in reducing the no of routes from 70 to 15.
 LAN uptime has been 100%.
 IT policy and procedured defined and roled out sucessfully across all location.
technology implementation, Storage implementation, Internet security implemented.
 Installed MRTG to graphically monitor the LAN interface utilization.

Customer Speaks:

Anand,
Results of our infrastructure project. The results speak for themselves. Just one word to define it -
Extraordinary! Thanks are in order to you, Thandava, MVS, Anurag, Doc, Subhash for your
time, resources and patience with my 'unrealistic' goals !

Warm regards,
Sudhendu Bali

Customer Contact Details
Name & Designation Phone Number E:mail ID
Sudhendu Bali +91-2371234 sbali@srf-limited.com

Wipro Infotech
# 37, Castle street, Samridhibhavan,
Bangalore – 560 027
Tel: 5576120 -129
Fax: 5576128

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