Moved everything to the cloud – and saves millions
In 2014, Ebab may need to do something about that support. It would be difficult for the company, which is a consultant in project and property development, to expand. Said and done, starting in December 2014, a transition began from own IT operations to operations in the cloud.
. I do not think we had managed to grow as smoothly as our old IT environment. Over the past two years, we have managed to manage that many people have been locked in and out of our business in a controlled and efficient manner. Despite strong growth, it is a great service because it is about as big today as in 2014, says Thomas Kraft, responsible for the Ebab Group.
A measure of growth is that sales increased from SEK 150 million to SEK 190 million in 2015, and that a sales record is expected this year. The number of employees has increased by 28 percent from 2014 to today. Today, about 250 people are employed. Of these, about 100 are external forces, which is an increase of 80 percent compared to 2014.
Also read: Folksam is at the forefront of the financial industry – putting operations in the cloud
What has been done is that own servers have been replaced with the operator Wycore’s completely cloud-based platform, with associated operation. Wycore has also helped with the transition. One can discuss whether it is a question of “hosting” or a “private cloud”, but the point is that the operation is managed externally, and that the users’ desktops are published from the servers to thin clients, or other computers, tablets or smartphones.
So far, the change of IT environment has not been calculated in detail, but it is possible to see large concrete gains already now:
̶ Previously, we paid SEK 450 per month for client units, over a three-year contract. We now pay SEK 166 per month for the thin customers that are used, says Thomas Kraft.
It contains a cost saving of approximately SEK 850,000 per year, only for client units for people who operate within Ebab. Part of that saving is eaten up by buying out the leasing contracts for the old client units, but it was a one-time cost.
But the savings in terms of client devices extend beyond that. First, you buy units for external sub-consultants who only work temporarily with Ebab’s projects, as they can use their own units.
Secondly, the devices used now are not at all as prone to theft as the laptops used in the past. It has already been noticed that the new units leave in case of burglary in project offices.
Thirdly, it is drastically faster to get started with projects and to establish project offices, because you avoid problems with others who have, for example, Macs and old PCs.
Perhaps the biggest perceived benefit is improved accessibility, which has made it easier to use applications anywhere. This is a great advantage because Ebab’s employees are often out on assignments. In addition, all data is stored in the cloud solution, which can contribute to increased data security.
̶ Much of the value that exists in the company is linked to document templates and other solutions that belong to the processor we work with, for example for building permits. It’s easier to manage and secure such content now.
Also read: Investigation hits fast: billions to save if the information goes out in the cloud
Another saving applies to cheaper connections for using the company’s applications. The demand has gone from fixed lines for between 3,000 and 5,000 kronor per month, to 4g connections for a few hundred bucks per month.
Are there any disadvantages to moving to the cloud? Yes, of course. The main one is related to the fact that they took the opportunity to clean the application flora.
? But it gets a little better every day.
Most of the work with the cloud move was done during the first half of 2015, but there are still some refinements. But on the whole, they have succeeded in modernizing and streamlining the IT environment.