Mission Critical Logistics Case Study for Hitachi Data Systems

BACKGROUND

Hitachi Data Systems Corporation provides Services Oriented Storage Solutions that enable heterogeneous storage to be dynamically provisioned according to business needs and centrally managed via industry-leading Hitachi storage virtualization software.  As an integral part of the Hitachi Storage Solutions Group, Hitachi Data Systems delivers storage infrastructure platforms, storage management software, and storage consulting services through direct and indirect channels in over 170 countries and regions.  Its customers include nearly 60 percent of Fortune 100 companies. For more information, visit the company's Web site at http://www.hds.com.

CHALLENGE

Hitachi Data Systems supports its customers around the world with multiple levels of service commitments.  For Fortune 500 enterprise class customers operating critical data centers, they serve as the “backbone” of many essential corporate processes where 24/7 availability is a requirement.  A malfunctioning machine can make an enormous economic impact on a minute-by-minute basis.  For instance, if an automated teller machine is unavailable, both cash and resulting interest that a financial institution can potentially earn is jeopardized.  When an airline’s reservation system is down, thousands of tickets per minute cannot be sold.  Even fundamental corporate data storage, such as records to maintain federally mandated Sarbanes-Oxley compliance are not accessible.

Service level agreement commitments dictate aggressive timeframes, often a matter of hours, to keep equipment functioning.  Hitachi Data Systems must ensure that essential parts are where they need to be, when they are needed, around the clock.  Dedicating every conceivable service part to maintain this equipment is a huge expense that is not cost effective.  The strategic allocation of parts is paramount to meeting customer obligations, without significant asset investments.  Hitachi Data Systems needed a reliable mission critical logistics provider with the global breadth and expertise to help them meet their customers’ demands.

SOLUTION

After working with a variety of providers and achieving unfavorable results, Hitachi Data Systems conducted a thorough due diligence process to identify a new mission critical logistics partner.  They ultimately selected Choice Logistics to manage their mission critical service parts inventory for their global base.  As an added benefit, Choice Logistics’ sophisticated technology and infrastructure complemented Hitachi Data Systems’ internal operations to create additional efficiencies.

With a network of more than 370 active strategic stocking locations, Choice Logistics helps Hitachi Data Systems consistently fulfill demanding service level agreements around the world.  To accomplish this, Choice Logistics stocks and deploys mission critical logistics service parts in more than 80 locations throughout North America as well as locations in Central and South America.

RESULTS/BENEFITS

With Choice Logistics, Hitachi Data Systems was able to achieve well over 99 percent accuracy of service parts delivery on an enormous scale; stocking over 58,000 parts.  This allowed Hitachi Data Systems to both meet and exceed its customers’ high expectations. 

The results did not end there:

“Anyone can deliver a part, but the data and level of inventory visibility that Choice Logistics provides allows us to improve our overall operation,” said John Peterson, vice president, logistics, Hitachi Data Systems.  “Without the critical data that Choice Logistics’ advanced technology offers, we cannot accurately track our assets.  They have allowed us to significantly reduce our inventory, resulting in tremendous bottom line savings.  We’ve also been able to improve our defective return process, putting returns into the repair cycle faster and reducing our investment in spare parts.”

To benchmark performance, Hitachi Data Systems regularly participates in comparative surveys that analyze their service against competitors.  According to the results, Hitachi Data Systems consistently achieves a top ranking, crediting Choice Logistics’ mission critical logistics expertise as a primary contributor to this success.

In addition, Choice Logistics was recently recognized as Hitachi Data Systems’ 2008 “Preferred Logistics Provider of the Year.”  This acknowledgment reinforces Hitachi Data Systems’ trust in Choice Logistics to help them consistently improve performance to meet the needs of their vast customer base.  Choice Logistics emerged as the leader from a field of more than two-dozen respected transportation and logistics providers.

The Hitachi Data Systems /Choice Logistics relationship has endured mission critical logistics for more than eight years and continues to flourish.  Because of Choice Logistics’ high level of performance, Hitachi Data Systems seeks to expand the partnership around the globe to continue to reap the benefits of Choice Logistics’s services and consistent performance.

About Choice Logistics

Choice Logistics provides flexible service parts logistics services to meet the unique challenges of mission critical logistics, global service organizations. More than 380 active strategic stocking locations (SSLs) around the world provide 24/7 same-day solutions and strategic inventory management. Choice Logistics works with leading high-tech companies to provide them with a competitive advantage. Avaya, Cisco, Dell, EMC, Fujitsu, Hitachi Data Systems and others have selected Choice as their preferred global provider of outsourced logistics.  To learn more about Choice Logistics, visit www.choicelogistics.com; call (800) 593-2108, or e-mail info@choicelogistics.com.