OnDeck Predictive Sparing works proactively to reduce downtime

By analyzing 20+ years of parts, equipment and service data, OnDeck can predict failures and keep parts ready on the shelf for quicker, more reliable support. OnDeck drives our parts management strategy by identifying part needs and automating our supply chain and inventory sparing system. It proactively customizes local inventories with the right parts before a hardware failure occurs in a customer’s data center. This dynamic system continuously learns and adjusts parts inventories based on a steady stream of data from over 200 daily service events.  

How OnDeck Predictive Sparing combines data, AI and automation

1

20+ years of historical 
service ticket and customer equipment profile data fuels the OnDeck® database.

2

Our proprietary algorithm analyzes usage trends to predict potential failures 
before they occur.

3

OnDeck® identifies the parts needed to support your equipment before 
a system goes down.

4

The correct parts are shipped to your local Service Express office 
or stocking location.

5

When you need service, your local engineer has 
the right parts in-hand to repair your equipment.

6

Every 30 minutes the database updates and machine learning analyzes current data for part needs.

Predictive sparing increases parts knowledge

Many companies claim they can accurately stock high-fail parts, but their methods rely heavily on “gut instinct” rather than using advanced algorithmic systems with historical evidence. Truly managing part demands requires a more sophisticated solution. Our advantage is understanding how parts work together and knowing the vulnerabilities of the tens of thousands of equipment types we support. While a power supply may often fail in one model, it can prove exceptionally reliable in another, and the data gives us those insights.  

Anticipating part issues using dimensionality

By storing multiple dimensions of parts in our database, such as OEM, summary description, detailed description, critical/non-critical, etc., OnDeck can identify part needs for equipment that has yet to experience a failure. The system makes recommendations based on population sizes and historical rates for similar items. For example:  

Making connections

Our multivendor database stores multiple dimensions of metadata for thousands of SKUs in the install base, including similar and alternate parts used across models and OEMs.  

With this information, OnDeck can determine (without any historical evidence) that a fan in a new machine will likely fail if its design is similar to that of a previous generation system (based on historical evidence), and stock the part accordingly.  

Ready for the next failure with OnDeck Predictive Sparing

Our expertise, extensive service database and OnDeck capabilities help us understand better than anyone all the interrelated dependencies of enterprise IT infrastructure. We know who produces the equipment, how it’s put together and how components, like memory modules, CPUs, hard drives, tape drives, etc., behave. Most importantly, we understand how parts fail, anticipate when they’ll fail and prepare for the failure.  

The intelligence, data and AI housed in the OnDeck Predictive Sparing system ensures parts availability to help us meet customer needs at critical moments. Our first-trip repair and SLA-met rates are 97% and 99%, respectively.  

A renowned, research-led hospital invested in a multi-year migration of its applications to a hybrid cloud environment. However, the rise of COVID-19 increased demands for data collection and processing. The hospital’s team decided to repurpose its on-premises, non-production IBM Z mainframe as a dynamic data collection system that enabled efficient and cost-effective management, storage, analysis and archiving. 

Addressing healthcare data collection and capacity challenges

Due to increasing demand for data processing, the institution required additional capacity, leading to an estimated upgrade cost of over $1 million. While exploring options, the team discovered that IBM had ceased offering upgrades for its legacy Z systems. The team began to discuss alternative solutions to source hardware and support legacy mainframe systems. 

The hospital discovered Service Express when searching for a single vendor to assist with hardware and support. Relying on guidance from the Service Express team, the institution embraced an alternative hardware upgrade strategy that leveraged a pre-owned mainframe rather than purchasing new hardware or undergoing a total refresh. 

Partnership yields an integrated and cost-effective solution

Through this new partnership, the hospital integrated migration, transition and onsite installation services for the upgrade. In addition, Service Express provided IBM mainframe maintenance and Virtual Tape Library (VTL) support for its production and backup environments. 

By utilising previous-generation hardware, the hospital doubled its capacity and reduced CapEx by over $980,000 in three years. In addition, the organisation saved an additional $300,000 in OpEx by leveraging third-party maintenance (TPM) for its legacy IBM system. 

Insurance companies are rapidly embracing insurtech solutions to attract new customers, improve efficiency and enhance customer experience. However, like many organisations undergoing digital transformation, they often face the challenge of funding new initiatives without redirecting resources from other business areas. Implementing new technology solutions while facing pressure to reduce policyholders’ costs is an ongoing challenge for all insurance providers. 

Maintaining performance amid rising operational costs

A national insurance company was tasked with finding ways to reduce operational costs without affecting its workforce and performance. Upon further discovery, the company’s IT and procurement teams reviewed OEM maintenance contracts to better understand increased costs for post-warranty hardware. 

OEM maintenance costs associated with the company’s IBM mainframe and Dell EMC storage systems were clear targets for cost reduction. The insurance company had relied on OEM support for decades. To control costs, the IT team determined it was time to gain buy-in to explore third-party maintenance (TPM) as an alternative. 

Strategic solutions enable fund reallocation and OpEx savings

After conducting thorough technical evaluations of leading global maintenance providers, Service Express ranked number one. The combination of in-house engineering expertise, multivendor capabilities and a long-standing track record of IBM mainframe support delivered the confidence needed for the insurer to transition support to Service Express. 

The company transitioned from OEM post-warranty maintenance to TPM, successfully achieving its primary objective of reducing costs. In addition, the insurance provider utilised Service Express’ ExpressConnect^® Monitoring platform, which streamlined maintenance, automated support and increased productivity. 

The partnership with Service Express helped the insurer reallocate $250,000 in OpEx to other insurtech initiatives. The business achieved 75% savings on its contracted services by utilising a TPM provider instead of OEM support without compromising performance. 

The global manufacturing industry faces numerous challenges, including significant disruptions due to supply chain interruptions, assembly plant closures and a limited workforce. Even the most resilient organisations struggle to adapt in uncertain times. 

Economic uncertainty brings unforeseen IT challenges 

A global manufacturer identified an urgent need to increase its mainframe computing power to deliver sustainable performance amid unplanned production requirements and improve its business continuity capacity. However, economic uncertainty caused budget constraints and created a barrier, along with the impending expense of new IBM hardware. 

Confronted with OEM production backorders and extended lead times, the company’s procurement team sought a solution to meet their needs while minimising IT spending. They identified Service Express as a potential partner because of its inventory of IBM mainframe hardware, technical expertise and third-party maintenance (TPM) services. 

Cost-effective hardware solution addresses capacity demands 

After understanding the company’s hardware goals, Service Express identified, configured, delivered and installed an IBM Z system that provided an additional 10,000 MIPs capacity. Rather than undergoing a costly hardware refresh, the company opted for the previous generation of equipment, resulting in over $1 million in CapEx savings. Additionally, leveraging TPM support saved the company over $300,000 in OpEx annually. 

Service Express helped sustain performance during a period of disruption, uncertainty and pressure to cut costs. Now, the manufacturer can seamlessly scale its computing power to address unexpected fluctuations in production cycles with trusted infrastructure and reliable support from Service Express. 

For decades, a mass media company has remained at the forefront of world events, finance, entertainment and more, with millions of digital and magazine subscribers accessing its content. The organisation continuously creates and publishes content highlighting real-time events. To ensure it maintains operations, the company enforces a zero-tolerance policy for service delays and downtime for its partners. 

Maintenance provider skill gap extends outage and recovery timelines 

Before partnering with Service Express, the media company relied on another maintenance provider for a small portion of its infrastructure. Only one critical incident underscored the risks associated with providers lacking experienced engineers and systems that automatically identify hardware failures. 

The gap in technical capabilities resulted in extended production and recovery downtime. This experience demonstrated that not all maintenance providers are well-equipped for mission-critical support. 

Solving downtime concerns with proactive and reliable support 

As a result, the company decided to find a new maintenance provider with technical proficiency and automated support. The company needed a provider capable of supporting its diverse Dell EMC, HPE, Oracle/Sun and Hitachi infrastructure. 

The global media company decided to partner with Service Express for third-party maintenance (TPM). Service Express provides access to L1, L2 and L3 engineers with multiplatform knowledge and responsive service callbacks within 30 minutes. Along with multivendor expertise, Service Express offers 24/7 hardware support monitoring that automatically opens a service ticket using real-time alerts. The IT team has peace of mind that ExpressConnect^® Monitoring will immediately place a ticket when a hardware failure occurs to reduce downtime. 

The company also consolidated its maintenance service agreements, simplifying and streamlining contract management through coterminous agreements. 

Switching to Service Express saved time by proactively identifying hardware failures, placing service tickets and simplifying maintenance agreements. Leveraging TPM support helped the company save over $750,000 in maintenance costs within three years. 

Faced with rising costs, one of America’s largest energy providers committed to delivering reliable electricity solutions identified an opportunity to optimise its increasing IT spending. Maintaining hundreds of specialised servers had become increasingly expensive, prompting the company to reassess its support strategy. The energy provider partnered with Service Express to control costs and identify new opportunities for efficiency. 

Challenges in maintaining in-house systems

The company’s specialised infrastructure is vital for ensuring local communities and businesses have electricity, but servicing the equipment became expensive and complex for several reasons: 

• Maintaining systems was challenging due to their remote locations and lack of in-house support staff. 
• The company was having trouble finding parts for the customized systems. 
• Extended lead times on parts led to longer disruptive outages. 
• Refreshing systems was no longer an option due to a limited IT budget. 

Implementing change required a shift in its current maintenance and hardware strategy. Previously, the company relied on the OEM for equipment support and hardware. In addition to leveraging OEM maintenance, systems were refreshed every three years regardless of current performance or needs. These practices placed a strain on the company’s IT budget. 

Navigating new maintenance strategies

The energy provider had never worked with a company like Service Express. The company’s leadership team was cautious initially since the systems are vital to its operations. Service Express alleviated concerns by providing detailed equipment analysis using Maintenance Navigator, identifying opportunities to leverage third-party maintenance (TPM). In addition, Service Express’ access to previous-generation parts required for the company’s customised systems granted its teams peace of mind. 

Experienced service team members were available to support the company’s most remote locations, reducing service times. 

The energy provider’s transition to TPM and refined hardware strategy reduced support costs by 20%, saving several million dollars without compromising uptime or performance. 

For over 25 years, Pall-Ex Group has provided thousands of businesses safe and reliable palletised freight distribution services around the UK and Europe. Pall-Ex Group serves customers of all sizes and industries, including manufacturing, agriculture, construction and others. 

With more than 40,000 pallets entering Pall-Ex Group’s hubs daily, the company must have the latest technology to ensure customers know when to expect their next delivery. The company maintains six physical locations to support its robust network in the UK and 5,000 users across Europe. 

Over time, balancing priorities and meeting business demands became a challenge for Pall-Ex’s IT team. To advance its growth initiatives, the company partnered with several maintenance and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) providers. However, Pall-Ex began to experience poor service quality and instabilities that impacted its customer base and overall business. Consequently, the company started its search for a new partner who could provide the services and support required to maintain the business. 

Collaborative approach to inform decision-making

Pall-Ex partnered with Service Express in 2018 based on a recommendation to the business, the company’s comprehensive service offerings and experienced people who invest in their team’s success. 

The Pall-Ex team was confident in Service Express’ ability to foster business growth and quickly meet business demands. Service Express provides IaaS for the company’s x86 workloads to support its Nexus Core Operational System and MyNexus pallet tracking software. 

Dave shares the tangible results of working with Service Express, highlighting the benefits of migrating to a secure, agile and reliable IaaS solution. “The stability and security of the Nexus and MyNexus platform have allowed us to focus on key business tasks that move it forward. This enables us to deliver strategic projects with advantages over and above our competitors.” 

Ongoing partnership built on quality service and reliability

When reflecting on the several-year partnership with Service Express, Dave emphasises, “The service quality is the main differentiator. I’ve been working with Service Express for more than fifteen years. In that time, we’ve established key relationships. I can count on one hand the number of issues I’ve dealt with over the years. However, when there is an issue, the people within the business take ownership and resolve the problem. Businesses make mistakes, but Service Express seldom makes the same mistake twice.” 

Pall-Ex’s confidence in the Service Express team and service delivery is further proof of the valued partnership. Working with Service Express as an extension of the Pall-Ex team for current and future projects has redirected time, budget and resources to other business priorities.