DB2 on HP-UX – the best combination for KONE

“To function effectively as a globalcompany, KONE needs standardisedbusiness processes and a highlycentralised IT infrastructure. Such aninfrastructure must offer the highestpossible levels of performance andavailability. We are confident that wecan rely on DB2 and HP-UX to meet thisneed, now and in the future.”Jacques Poma, vice-president of IT, KONE

Customer at a glance:Industry sector: Engineering/services

Name: KONE Corporation

Headquarters: Helsinki, Finland

Founded: 1910

Telephone: +358 (0)204 751

Number of employees: 30,000

Annual revenues in 2003: a5.3 billion

URL: www.kone.com

PartnerCompany: IBM

Headquarters: New York, USA

Telephone: +1 914 499 1900

Number of employees: 320,000

URL: www.ibm.com

Business: Leading IT company

Products: Computer systems, software, EMCstorage systems, microelectronics,professional services

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KONE is a global engineering and servicescompany that specialises in moving peopleand goods. It comprises of two divisions,KONE Elevators & Escalators, responsible formanufacturing, selling, installing, maintainingand modernising elevators and escalators,and for servicing automatic doors. The other,Kone Cargotec, supplies products andservices related to the movement and loadingof goods. Founded in Helsinki in 1910, KONEhas become a world leader in its sector, withsales of more than a5 billion in 2003.

KONE employs approximately 30,000 peoplein more than 40 countries worldwide. Itsoperations are underpinned by a global SAPimplementation, housed at data centres inBrussels, Singapore and Atlanta. SAPapplications support KONE’s entire supplychain and in total, the company has morethan 5,000 SAP users.

OutsourcedGiven the mission-critical nature of KONE’sSAP implementation, it is important tomaintain the highest levels of availability andperformance. With this in mind, KONE hasoutsourced its global operations to HP, theonly company able to provide effectivesupport in all the countries in which KONE

operates. HP has the responsibility ofoperating KONE’s SAP databaseinfrastructures, which are housed in three datacentres, as well as managing and supportingthe DB2 database. The heterogeneousinfrastructure managed by HP includes threeoperating system platforms - UNIX, Windowsand Solaris - the main application is SAPrunning on HP-UX.

Database performance is another key issuefor the success of KONE’s SAPimplementation. With data volumes growingrapidly and exceeding 1TB in the Brusselsdata centre, concerns were expressed aboutthe ability of KONE’s Informix database tocontinue to support the implementationeffectively. For example, it was no longerpossible to reorganise the database online;the system had to be shut down to do this.Furthermore, although the database was verywell configured, KONE’s IT department wasstruggling to maintain the target responsetime of 1.4 seconds for SAP users.

“We needed to be confident that ourdatabase would support future growth, so wedecided to switch from Informix,” said JacquesPoma, vice-president of IT at KONE. “Thechoice was to move to another IBM product,

DB2, or implement Oracle. We chose theformer option because we felt that it wastechnically more advanced.”

Three-way co-operationAlthough this would be a pioneeringinstallation of DB2 on HP-UX systems, KONEwas determined to continue to run its SAPimplementation on the HP platform, whichhad been central to its operations since 1997.According to Poma, this determination wasreinforced by the strong willingness shown byboth HP and IBM to participate in the project.

KONE worked closely with HP and IBM tomigrate to the new database architecture.While IBM assumed the main responsibilityfor the data migration, HP was responsiblefor preparing the servers, installing the baseenvironment, and managing the move toproduction.

The migration was completed on time andwithin budget. The SAP installations in allthree data centres are now running on HPSuperdome servers, with databases of 1.3TB,900GB and 300GB in Brussels, Atlanta andSingapore respectively. HP is providingongoing SAP and database services.

According to Poma, the installations are

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running well and HP’s management toolshave been successfully adapted for DB2. Nomajor problems have arisen, and minorissues have been dealt with quickly andeffectively.

“Thanks to the commitment of everyoneinvolved, this very complex project wasbrought to a successful conclusion,” saidPoma. “I was particularly impressed by theway HP and IBM cooperated closely toensure this success. Whenever an issuearose, both companies were extremelyresponsive.”

Future-proof platformNow that the migration has been completed,KONE can be confident in the ability of itsarchitecture to meet its current and futureneeds. The combination of DB2 and the HPplatform has led to an average response timeof 1.2 seconds for the SAP system, well belowthe target figure. Poma estimates that it willbe at least 18 months before the infrastructureneeds to be upgraded in any way. Once anupgrade becomes necessary, the scalabilityof HP’s UNIX architecture ensures that it can

Why HP?• Ability to provide support in every country

where the customer has operations.

• Strength of technology platform.

• Willingness to cooperate closely with IBMto achieve a successful implementation ofDB2 on HP-UX.

Hardware• HP Superdome

SoftwareHP-UX:

• IBM DB2 (total database volume 2.5TB)

• SAP Business Warehouse

• SAP Customer RelationshipManagement (CRM)

• SAP Human Resources (HR)

• SAP Web Application Server

• SAP Enterprise Portal

• SAP Workplace

Windows:

• SAP Treasury

• SAP Business Connector

• MS Exchange

• Citrix

• Documentum

• Nimbus

• Remedy

Solaris:

• Tomcat

• Vignette

• Siteminder

• iPlanet

• Jumpstart

be achieved quickly and smoothly. Thuscontinued growth in database volumes can be accommodated without anysignificant impact on performance andavailability, using a future-proof technologyplatform.

One of the immediate results of the migrationwas a reduction in the size of the data set by30 per cent, reflecting the differentarchitectures of DB2 and Informix. Periodicreorganisation will continue to be practised inorder to optimise performance; this can nowbe done online without impacting users. ForPoma, this more efficient infrastructuretranslates into reduced costs, even though end-users experience improved response times.

“To function effectively as a global company,KONE needs standardised businessprocesses and a highly centralised ITinfrastructure. Such an infrastructure mustoffer the highest possible levels ofperformance and availability. We areconfident that we can rely on DB2 and HP-UXto meet this need, now and in the future,” heconcluded.

Challenge ResultsSolution

For more information on how working with HPcan benefit you, please contact your local HP salesrepresentative or reseller, or visit www.hp.com.

© 2004 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statementsaccompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

Publication Number: 5982-7987EE Written: September 2004

• The migration was completed ontime and within budget, and nomajor issues have arisen.

• The new architecture is adaptiveand will meet current and futureneeds.

• It is anticipated that no significantupgrades to the infrastructure will berequired for at least 18 months,saving KONE immediate costs.

• Performance has improvedsignificantly, with average SAPresponse times being 1.2 seconds(target 1.4 seconds).

• The more efficient infrastructuretranslates into reduced IT costs.

• Outsource global IT operations toHP Managed Services.

• Replace existing Informix databasewith IBM DB2.

• Run new database on HP UNIXservers located at data centres inEurope, the US and Southeast Asia.

• Engage HP and IBM to implementpioneering implementation of DB2on HP-UX.

• Provide effective support for globalbusiness with a 5,000 user SAPimplementation.

• Identify future-proof, high-performance database architecture.

• Implement database on leading-edge technology platform.

HP Services• Preparation of servers

• Installation of base environment

• Assistance with migration activities performedby IBM

• Post-migration activities and move to production

• Managed services

• System and operations support

• Ongoing SAP and database services

Find out more about the alliance between HP and SAP, visit www.hp.com/go/sap.