⸻ Success story
APEM secures digital transformation success with a cloud-first IT solution from LIMA.
APEM is Europe’s leading environmental consultancy, specialising in freshwater and marine ecology, and aerial surveys. Employing over 120 staff, their headquarters are based in Manchester with eight supporting throughout the UK, Germany and the US.
APEM has been offering clients highquality scientific support for almost 30 years and their technical experts are recognised as leaders in their field, working both onsite and remotely.
"The solution that LIMA implemented has addressed many of our IT challenges and helped us on our digital transformation journey. Our ongoing partnership continues to evolve, with LIMA actively suggesting ways to continuously improve and better support our cloud infrastructure. We feel we have found a collaborative IT partner who can act as an extension of our team and help us deliver our vision.”
Nicola Hunter, Finance Director at APEM
Nicola Hunter, Finance Director at APEM
Flexibility was a key IT objective for APEM, requiring the ability to adapt to the changing needs of their business whilst maintaining a seamless end-user experience.
APEM was running on an aging on-premise platform and needed to mobilise their workforce to drive increased scalability, flexibility and encourage collaboration across their teams.
They were looking for a secure, stable solution that would enable their staff to work in the laboratory, in the air or in the field at any time, from any device.
The challenges
- Their core infrastructure was end-oflife and not performing as required.
- Limited in-house IT resources with the burden of managing their own infrastructure.
- Lack of high availability in the current platform, making remote working difficult and running the risk of having a single point of failure.
- Lack of both backup and disaster recovery options meaning APEM were not able to recover quickly in the event of a full or partial outage. They ran the risk of long periods of downtime resulting in an impact on client projects.
The deliverables
After completing several insight-led assessments, LIMA recommended moving from an on-premise solution to a cloud-hosted solution with the following deliverables:
After completing several insight-led assessments, LIMA recommended moving from an on-premise solution to a cloud-hosted solution with the following deliverables:
- Migration of server workloads to Azure.
- Replacing the legacy Citrix environment with Windows Virtual Desktop.
- Consolidating and migrating corporate data to Azure Files and SharePoint.
- Provide backup and for all workloads through Azure Site Recovery Services.
- Upgrade to Microsoft 365 Business for added security and functionality.
Benefits and outcomes
APEM benefitted from several key outcomes through the introduction of a cloud-first infrastructure. LIMA provide regular service reports to discuss our ongoing partnership and any improvements that can be made. The service reports and review sessions encourage key stakeholder involvement to ensure the solution is meeting APEM’s business objectives.
The key benefits and outcomes include:
APEM now have the foundation in place to be able to flex and scale their IT infrastructure as and when is needed. Coupled with expertly managed cloudbased business continuity solutions, they now have peace of mind and assurance in their plan if the worst was to happen.
APEM benefitted from several key outcomes through the introduction of a cloud-first infrastructure. LIMA provide regular service reports to discuss our ongoing partnership and any improvements that can be made. The service reports and review sessions encourage key stakeholder involvement to ensure the solution is meeting APEM’s business objectives.
The key benefits and outcomes include:
- Massive scale and agility through consumption-based computing, ensuring APEM only pay for what they use.
- Gained the ability to rapidly onboard new business through acquisition as well as ensuring strong business to business integration.
- A standardised digital workspace through Windows Virtual Desktop, ensuring users have consistent access to the information they need whether they’re working remotely or in their office.
- A fully managed backup and disaster recovery solution providing enhanced data protection and peace of mind.
- Automatic provisioning of user profiles through Microsoft Intune reducing admin time when onboarding new staff.
- ProActive Support giving APEM access to 24/7 support from the LIMA Service Desk and our IT experts.
APEM now have the foundation in place to be able to flex and scale their IT infrastructure as and when is needed. Coupled with expertly managed cloudbased business continuity solutions, they now have peace of mind and assurance in their plan if the worst was to happen.
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