Case Study: Cissell Mueller Construction
THE CHALLENGE
As Cissell Mueller Construction was experiencing a rapid growth spurt in 2002, the company realized it would require improved network protection for both the short term and long term.
“It was truly a double-edged sword,” says Duane Mueller, IT Manager for Cissell Mueller Construction, a general contractor for commercial buildings, including retail, office, medical and industrial construction. “We were having numerous issues with our current technology provider, plus we were growing very fast, which just compounded the problems. We had a basic firewall in place, but I’d still come in and face some 300 spam e-mails after a weekend. And while they may not all be virus-ridden, it’s still very time-consuming to go through them all.”
“Plus, there was the ever-present fear of simply losing data. Recently, I’d read a trade article which reported that 80-90% of companies who lose all data due to fire, hurricane, anything, are out of business in 18 months if they can’t recover their data in the first 30 days.”
“That was NOT going to be us. We needed to update our spam-filtering technology – fast. And we needed a provider who could grow with us and provide the necessary scalability.”
THE SOLUTION
“Professional Network Solutions came in and first of all, were able to enhance the system that was in place,” reports Duane Mueller, “which gave us immediate results: spam reduction and assured data backup.”
Then, approximately one and a half years later after a re-location by Cissell Mueller and significant growth, it was time for a totally revamped server and network system.
“By 2006, we really didn’t have a standard network security format in place to accommodate our growth,” says Mueller, “and after reading about companies in New Orleans that lost everything and never came back, we became concerned. So we asked Professional Network Solutions about disaster recovery.”
Professional Network Solutions answered the call with its Continuous Data Production Solution – a robust data recovery and backup solution that’s totally automated.
“Half of what we do in construction is accounting – and like any business, there is information to back up,” says Mueller. “After a situation analysis, Professional Network Solutions presented us with a very cost-efficient solution…and in only three days!”
But for Cissell Mueller, the right solution is more than just an economic choice, according to Mueller.
“They’ve got a team of guys who understand how our business operates and how our system is set up. If we add an employee or we incorporate new construction software, they’re on top of it; always pro-active. ‘How do we set it up? Do we have room? Do we need a new drive? How is it set up on the desktops?’”
“As our own personal IT advisor, Professional Network Solutions is always there.”
“Professional Network Solutions came in and … gave us immediate results: spam reduction and assured data backup.”