Download PDF
Case Studies > Arek Oy: Leveraging Google Cloud to Modernize Finnish Pension Management

Arek Oy: Leveraging Google Cloud to Modernize Finnish Pension Management

Technology Category
  • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing
  • Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Public Cloud
Applicable Industries
  • Cement
  • Construction & Infrastructure
Applicable Functions
  • Maintenance
  • Quality Assurance
Use Cases
  • Construction Management
  • Infrastructure Inspection
Services
  • Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
  • Cybersecurity Services
The Challenge

Arek Oy, a Finnish company that builds and maintains information systems for pension insurance, was looking to modernize its infrastructure to improve efficiency and agility. The company wanted to adopt a hybrid approach, using a combination of private and public clouds, while ensuring data protection at all times. Arek was particularly interested in boosting capacity for its core applications that manage pension calculations and provide real-time results. However, the company faced challenges in scaling cost-effectively and quickly to support more users, which slowed its time to market for introducing customer services. Additionally, Arek aimed to eliminate outdated networks that could slow response times by as much as 30 seconds and reduce IT complexity to accelerate response times and gain better control over CPU use.

About The Customer

Arek Oy is a private limited company owned by its customers. It provides IT services that power programs at pension companies across Finland. The company is committed to innovation and is always looking for ways to become more efficient and agile as it enhances customer services. Arek builds and maintains information systems that are necessary in pension insurance, and offers system services that are in the pensions industry’s joint usage. The company is particularly focused on boosting capacity for its core applications that manage pension calculations and provide real-time results to its customers.

The Solution

Arek partnered with Google Cloud partner Tietoevry to migrate some of its systems to the cloud. Tietoevry recommended Anthos to manage Arek’s CPU-intensive calculation application, which required 15 million lines of code to run on the mainframe. By migrating the application to Anthos, Arek achieved a 0.4 second response time for code, while making it easier to scale up when customers need more power or capacity. This migration also freed up 50 percent of Arek's mainframe capacity. Additionally, Arek worked with Accenture to map out the process and guide a new, more scalable DevOps pipeline. Accenture provided guidance, gathered requirements, and executed proof-of-concept projects to help Arek navigate the large number of moving parts. Google Cloud also worked with Arek to provide regulatory compliance and security capabilities, ensuring data sovereignty and compliance with GDPR.

Operational Impact

  • The migration to Google Cloud has allowed Arek to manage and run CPUs to speed service delivery while reducing costs compared to legacy infrastructure. The company now has better control over its IT resources and can focus more on delivering outstanding customer services rather than getting bogged down by IT maintenance and management requirements. The migration was completed in under a year and Arek instantly began to see positive results. The company is now exploring other applications to migrate to Anthos and is working closely with Google Cloud, Tietoevry, and its customers to identify which ones will be best served by the cloud. The move to Google Cloud has also enabled Arek to maintain strong IT security performance while expanding its cloud infrastructure.

Quantitative Benefit

  • Reduced mainframe use by 50 percent

  • Managed more than 160,000 events per week and scaled out as needed post migration

  • Reduced IT complexity to accelerate response times

Related Case Studies.

Case Study
IoT System for Tunnel Construction
The Zenitaka Corporation ('Zenitaka') has two major business areas: its architectural business focuses on structures such as government buildings, office buildings, and commercial facilities, while its civil engineering business is targeted at structures such as tunnels, bridges and dams. Within these areas, there presented two issues that have always persisted in regard to the construction of mountain tunnels. These issues are 'improving safety" and "reducing energy consumption". Mountain tunnels construction requires a massive amount of electricity. This is because there are many kinds of electrical equipment being used day and night, including construction machinery, construction lighting, and ventilating fan. Despite this, the amount of power consumption is generally not tightly managed. In many cases, the exact amount of power consumption is only ascertained when the bill from the power company becomes available. Sometimes, corporations install demand-monitoring equipment to help curb the maximum power demanded. However, even in these cases, the devices only allow the total volume of power consumption to be ascertained, or they may issue warnings to prevent the contracted volume of power from being exceeded. In order to tackle the issue of reducing power consumption, it was first necessary to obtain an accurate breakdown of how much power was being used in each particular area. In other words, we needed to be able to visualize the amount of power being consumed. Safety, was also not being managed very rigorously. Even now, tunnel construction sites often use a 'name label' system for managing entry into the work site. Specifically, red labels with white reverse sides that bear the workers' names on both sides are displayed at the tunnel work site entrance. The workers themselves then flip the name label to the appropriate side when entering or exiting from the work site to indicate whether or not they are working inside the tunnel at any given time. If a worker forgets to flip his or her name label when entering or exiting from the tunnel, management cannot be performed effectively. In order to tackle the challenges mentioned above, Zenitaka decided to build a system that could improve the safety of tunnel construction as well as reduce the amount of power consumed. In other words, this new system would facilitate a clear picture of which workers were working in each location at the mountain tunnel construction site, as well as which processes were being carried out at those respective locations at any given time. The system would maintain the safety of all workers while also carefully controlling the electrical equipment to reduce unnecessary power consumption. Having decided on the concept, our next concern was whether there existed any kind of robust hardware that would not break down at the construction work site, that could move freely in response to changes in the working environment, and that could accurately detect workers and vehicles using radio frequency identification (RFID). Given that this system would involve many components that were new to Zenitaka, we decided to enlist the cooperation of E.I.Sol Co., Ltd. ('E.I.Sol') as our joint development partner, as they had provided us with a highly practical proposal.
Learn more
© 2015-2024 IoT ONE Limited | Privacy Policy

Contact us

Let's talk!

* Required
* Required
* Required
* Invalid email address
By submitting this form, you agree that IoT ONE may contact you with insights and marketing messaging.
No thanks, I don't want to receive any marketing emails from IoT ONE.
Submit

Thank you for your message!
We will contact you soon.