The Storage Operations Centre will provide the base from which skilled Hitachi Data Systems administrators can manage aspects of customers’ data storage systems remotely. This provision of managed services reflects the industry trend for companies to seek external expertise and will enable Hitachi Data Systems customers to reduce operational costs and maximise utilisation of their existing storage resources.
Steve Murphy, UK Managing Director, Hitachi Data Systems said: “The Storage Operations Centre will provide a platform for the launch of a range of managed and support services in the future. Our aims are to help the customer maximise their IT efficiency and increase their responsiveness to internal business units.”
The first offering to be introduced is the Remote Ad Hoc Storage Administration Service. This will allow customers to contact experienced Hitachi Data Systems storage administrators who will link into the organisation’s processes to deliver best practice storage management, helping to increase utilisation and drive performance improvements. Customers will be able to purchase time in advance, which can be used as and when it is required.
Bryan Hair, UK Managed Services Director, Hitachi Data Systems said: “Many organisations need storage administration skills but can’t justify the cost or time constraints of a residency service or additional staff in house. By offering the Remote Ad Hoc Storage Administration Service we hope to allow them to focus on their core business and help reduce their storage administration costs, which can be a strain on the IT budget in any organisation.”
As the Storage Operating Centre grows, Hitachi Data Systems plans to introduce a number of new service offerings, such as heterogeneous product support, that will help organisations to reduce the total cost of ownership of their storage infrastructure.
The services offered through the Storage Operations Centre are also available to customers of Hitachi Data Systems’ channel partners.