Going Green? Go to the Cloud Align Your Business and Green Initiatives with Symmetry s Secure, Scalable Cloud Solutions.
CONTENTS Introduction Where is the e-waste Going Green Operations Can Save Businesses Money 7 Ways Symmetry Saves About Symmetry and Cloud Hosting Solutions Start seeing an eco-centric Cloud in your business forecast Let s face it; being green isn t always the most practical trend to execute as part of your business plan or even your everyday life. Words like environmentally friendly and organic conjure up daunting connotations of expensive and inconvenient. But there are some exceptions to the norm, especially when it comes to IT technologies. Cloud computing is an eco-centric solution that can drastically cut your capital expenditure and energy costs within businesses operations. Cloud-based solutions are a win-win for enterprises and the environment. Business operations implementing the Cloud reduce energy consumption, hardware upgrades, internal resources and maintenance costs all while going one step further to lower the IT world s carbon emissions footprint. Greener or just a different e-litterbug... You re probably wondering is the Cloud actually greener or is the e-waste simply being passed along? A common assumption is that once these corporate data center systems are unplugged, the same hardware and cooling equipment are simply turned on at the host s station. Of course, some of the e-waste is indeed shifted to the hosting partner, but the overall environmental impact is significantly less. Think about it. With a shared Cloud, multiple clients are housed within the same attuned, secured system. From the get-go, the shared Cloud s power generation pales in comparison to the span of generally older, power-sucking data centers across every individual business. Okay, so now you may be wondering how the private Cloud bolsters efficiency then? Regardless of the virtualization environment, Cloud hosting vendors continually invest in cleaner technology and use each system to its intended capacity. These vendors are in the business of IT solutions, so remaining current and effective comes with the territory. They recognize the benefits of energy-efficient systems go beyond saving business dollars on a utility bill. 2
Bottom line, advanced, greener data centers best serve clients. Users can expect faster performance, more capabilities and less failure risk. Each system s dynamic infrastructure is designed to increase productivity and reduce e-waste at the same time. Furthermore, energy-efficient equipment alleviates strain on the entire system and helps keep operations running smoothly. Aside from a functioning standpoint, Cloud service providers, like Symmetry, understand they have a social responsibility. As research progresses and more eco-friendly technologies emerge, these vendors are taking the initiative to stay abreast. Their specialty places them in an opportune position to support greener upgrades. Subsequently, clients are able to bypass internal efforts and costly system updates, simply by turning to a Cloud host as a way to minimize energy consumption and the headache of maintaining an in-house data center. Operate green. Save green. Besides being kinder to the environment, Cloud solutions can also be kinder to your business budget. After reading thus far, a lower utility bill is an obvious cost-effective result. However, Cloud computing offers clients better security and numerous out-of-the-box ways to save. Throw away your data center lock and key When you think of the Cloud do you imagine your business sensitive information floating around in virtual space? If so, you re not alone. However, what you may not realize is that Cloud virtualization, whether shared or private, ensures more security than standard in-house data centers. Cloud hosting vendors are staffed, qualified and equipped to support each client setup in every type of Cloud infrastructure. To the contrary, as a result of budget constraints and/or staffing holes, many businesses lack the resources needed to effectively manage their in-house data centers. Add emerging technologies, procedures and protocols to the mix and even the most seasoned IT professionals have trouble keeping up. Not performing mission-critical migrations, maintenance patches or upgrades also puts these corporate systems at risk of security breaches and network failure. 3
What Cloud Fits YOU? Private Cloud Your applications run on servers you own, in your own data center. Hosted Private Cloud A third party vendor hosts and manages servers that you own. Shared Cloud Your applications run on hardware owned and managed by a third party vendor in their data center. Your applications are made available to your users via an internet connection. The hardware may be shared between customers. Hybrid Cloud Your applications are hosted on a combination of public Cloud infrastructure and private hosted Cloud or private dedicated non- Cloud infrastructure. Software as a Service (SaaS) An application that has been web-enabled and made available through a public Cloud environment. Users may share access to the same software or access separate virtualized environments. With the right Cloud host, businesses can compute with ease, so they can rest at ease. Clients who leverage the Cloud receive regular system monitoring and infrastructure protection, including data encryption, data anonymization and built-in redundancies. Cloud hosting vendors adhere to government compliances and industry standards to ensure their clients environments are secure and perform smoothly. Since recent Cloud disasters by some high-profile vendors, IT experts have engineered grid-iron boundaries to keep crucial client data locked down. The takeaway here is Cloud hosts are better prepared when a disaster hits and current on best practices and technologies. When you re in the know, your business savings grow. Cloud clients eliminate business spending by provisioning resources and taking advantage of convenient pay-as-you-go plans. These businesses subtract application upgrades, cooling equipment, repair costs and additional internal man hours from the equation. The Cloud s scalable capabilities let clients virtual systems grow as their businesses grows, without expanding their budget. There s a Cloud computing solution for every organization out there and waiting to jump aboard is only costing these businesses money. By turning to a trusted partner, like Symmetry, Cloud clients can eliminate unnecessary equipment and resources, and gain a better return on investment. Frank Powell, Chief Operating Officer, Symmetry Corporation Pay-as-you-go means clients spend based on the services they use and are able to customize the applications within their Cloud configuration as needed. In-house data centers often waste business dollars by wasting unnecessary energy during downtime and valuable time during lengthy, often overcomplicated upgrades. When you add up the benefits, Cloud solutions simply make cents for business operations. 4
7 Ways Symmetry s Cloud Solution Saves The Cloud should save you money, not pinch your budget. Don t get nickeled and dimed to achieve a better computing solution. Instead, turn to Symmetry. Symmetry s Cloud solutions offer scalability, streamlined architecture, easy maintenance and uncomplicated provision capabilities. Plus, clients receive best-in-class service and support at no added costs. So the only math you ll be doing is figuring out how to utilize your extra savings. Not sure if the Cloud is the right environment for your business current ERP operations? Symmetry delivers Cloud hosting solutions for a variety of deployment models, including: JDE SAP Infor Custom 3rd party non-i servers Start enjoying the sound of no. Symmetry s turnkey Cloud solutions guarantee: 7. No capital expenditure Retool or expand your Cloud environment to fit your evolving business needs without hidden costs. 6. No sign-up fee Why pay for something before you start it? Symmetry doesn t charge you for filling out some paper work. 5. No maintenance fees Symmetry s experts handle your Cloud, so you can handle your business. That means if equipment needs fixing, it doesn t come out of your business pocket book. 4. No charges for applications you don t use Symmetry s Cloud caters to the unique nature of each client s business. You don t use it, you don t pay for it. 3. No additional resources required You won t need personnel or hardware on your end to fill in any gaps within your Cloud environment. 2. No idle charges Do you pay for gas when you re not driving your car? No. So why be charged when you re not computing? Symmetry practices its pay-as-you-go philosophy, so there s no guesswork come bill time. 1. No hassle The Cloud is meant to be easy. So why do so many vendors offer Do It Yourself style hosting solutions with support and architecture completely unsuited to the complexities of the environment? Symmetry s Cloud solutions are differentiated by their focus on providing enterprise-level services and consulting, in addition to state-of-the-art Cloud infrastructure. 5
About Symmetry Symmetry Corporation provides technical managed services, security administration and project support for SAP customers in the U.S. and around the world. Founded in 1996, Symmetry has been a pioneer in defining best practices for SAP technical administration. Symmetry s unique, team-based approach to managed services and consulting consistently achieves the highest customer satisfaction ratings in the industry by providing affordable, fixed-price, high quality services delivered by teams of US-based experts. Symmetry is an SAP partner, certified in hosting and Cloud services and an IBM Advanced Business partner and member of the IBM Cloud Computing Specialty. i IN THE SKY Cloud Solutions for IBM Power Powered by the platform you trust, i IN THE SKY Cloud Hosting delivers the stability and performance of the IBM iseries with the added benefits of the Cloud flexibility, scalability and affordability. Temporary and Short-Term Systems Leverage the flexibility of Symmetry s i IN THE SKY to speed project implementation cycles and reduce project costs by creating temporary sandbox systems for projects and testing without capital expenditure. Cloud Disaster Recovery i IN THE SKY provides affordable AS/400 Cloud hosting and expert disaster recovery planning, testing and execution services to protect your business investments. SaaS Enablement The security, stability and performance of the IT engine driving your SaaS solution is critical to the delivery of services. The winning combination of enterprise-level architecture and expert technical support from i IN THE SKY ensures the best possible experience for your customers while your teams focus on their core area of expertise the software. Strategic Support and Consulting Services Symmetry s expert solutions architects are available to assist your organization in understanding Cloud technologies, assess your architectural requirements and develop implementation strategies tailored to your business needs. For more information, please contact our Business Development Department www.sym-corp.com SAP is the trademark of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries. IBM is the trademark of International Business Machines Corporation, registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. All other products mentioned in this document are registered trademarks of their respective companies. 6