February 2, 2017 Ferag AG Reduces Cost and Complexity of Remote Access

Challenges:

• Replace Citrix with less resource-intensive and more effective remote access solution
• Provide a variety of home-office or traveling users, including project managers and engineers, with access to Windows desktops and applications
• Enable branch offices and subsidiaries around the world to access enterprise resources hosted in Ferag’s central data center

Solution:

Deploy Ericom Connect to give Ferag employees simple, browser-based remote access to desktops and enterprise applications from any device

Benefits:

• Allows Ferag to give employees flexible, browser-based remote access to a variety of enterprise applications and full desktops from any device
• Reduces the cost and complexity associated with configuring and operating competing solutions such as Citrix or VMware
• Improves productivity by enabling remote sales representatives and engineers to seamlessly access the tools they need on-the-go and from home
• Enhances the company’s ability to address new access challenges quickly and easily
• Enables branch offices and subsidiaries to access enterprise software remotely without bandwidth limitations

“Ericom Connect is straightforward to administer but extremely effective, allowing us to address access challenges and improve productivity for a wide variety of users without sacrificing important time and budget resources. We are a very satisfied customer.”
Ralph Ruttimann, Head of IT, Ferag headquarters

Background

Ferag AG, a family-owned company based in Zurich and with locations across the world, provides full-scale printing, packaging and fulfillment systems across a variety of industries. Ferag specializes in the development and manufacturing of conveying and processing systems utilized by printers, packagers, publishers and direct mail organizations.

Catering to Multiple User Needs

Serving customers around the world, Ferag utilizes a broad range of enterprise applications to operate its business on daily basis. Leveraging a Microsoft-centric infrastructure with Windows 7 and Windows 10 clients, the company needed to provide easy access to Microsoft applications such as Office, Exchange and SharePoint, especially to employees who are traveling or working from a home-office. Additionally, Ferag runs several enterprise software systems in their central data center to schedule and support monthly sales and financial reports submitted by branch offices and subsidiaries, as well as printing and production schedules and project quotes.

“Our remote employees, especially sales, project managers and service engineers, always need easy access to Windows and enterprise applications, such as Cincom CPQ,” stated Ralph Ruttimann, Head of IT at Ferag’s headquarters in Switzerland. “Citrix was getting too complex to operate so we looked for a new solution that would not only cost less but provide browser-based access to applications and desktops from an array of devices.”

Ferag required a solution that would seamlessly allow a large variety of users with diverse needs to access different applications and desktops across multiple device types, including notebooks and tablets. As they added users, Citrix was becoming increasingly costly and, with their existing version approaching EOS, the company decided to seek an alternative to support their users located around the world.

From Citrix to Simple

Ferag had been using Citrix to deliver business applications and desktop features to employees on thin clients. In order to reduce their dependency on Citrix, they decided to start replacing these thin clients with rich clients running Windows; however, they realized that they still relied on some of the Citrix functionality for remote and travelling users and access to applications and desktops in their central data center.

Ferag also considered a VDI-in-a-Box solution for these users. However, during the proof of concept, they found that the VDI platform was still too resource-intensive. Searching for an alternative, Ferag spoke with IT solutions provider Ruf Avatech AG, who recommended they test Ericom Connect. According to Ralph Ruttimann, Ericom Connect was extremely straightforward to install and configure and was ready to use after just one day.

“Supporting our existing infrastructure, Ericom Connect allows us to deliver browser-based access to business-critical applications, with minimal bandwidth requirements,” added Ruttimann. “The solution requires minimal resources to maintain, freeing up my team to support other projects.”

Improving Flexible Access

Ericom Connect allows Ferag to offer employees flexible, browser-based access to a variety of enterprise applications and full desktops without the costs or complexity associated with Citrix or VMware. Through a fast and simple deployment process, remote employees were able to quickly connect to the resources contained in Ferag’s central data center on day-one.

Simple browser-based access makes it possible for employees using any device to perform their jobs more efficiently: sales representatives can access sales-tracking and other applications when meeting new clients out of the office, project managers can use remote desktop functions to edit client offerings for same-day presentations on-the-go, and service engineers can access their quality management tools on any job site.

Ericom Connect has also proven important for Ferag’s remote printing facility, facilitating a smooth transition to its new ERP software. The printing facility now uses Ericom terminal servers to connect to its ERP software remotely, giving them unlimited access without worrying about bandwidth restrictions or endpoint configuration.

“Ericom Connect is straightforward to administer but extremely effective, allowing us to quickly address new challenges and improve productivity for a wide variety of users without sacrificing important time and budget resources,” added Ruttimann. “We are a very satisfied customer.”

Increasing Mobility

Excited about the opportunities afforded by Ericom Connect thus far, Ferag plans to expand browser-based access to more users with additional licenses. In line with Ferag’s effort to create a more flexible work environment, these licenses will be used to give even more employees the ability to work remotely, allowing them to access a full array of Microsoft Office and enterprise applications from different devices.

www.ericom.com

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