This is how IT availability in healthcare is secured with COP
Full monitoring of the entire IT system gives true picture of IT availability
But we take it from the beginning. The customer had a large number of different types of monitoring systems in their IT infrastructure, but lacked a unified view of their IT availability. They were therefore looking for a supplier with a system that could give them a better overview and that could interact with both existing and future systems in their IT environment.
In addition, the system needed to be able to include maps, e.g. Google Maps. The maps help to identify the geographical location of all the health care centers, hospitals and dental practices that are connected in the same IT infrastructure.
– An interruption in IT operation complicates and delays accessibility and sometimes makes it impossible for care to access medical records and booking systems. Then it is important to be able to locate and remedy the problem quickly, says Markus Carlsson.
The goal for the customer was to create a faster troubleshooting process and incident management, and for the Service Desk to get a better overview and thus be able to solve problems proactively, even before they occur.
The customer’s target image was clear and contained:
- Full capability for monitoring the customer’s entire IT infrastructure
- Increased proactivity within the administrative organization
- Faster feedback to operations in the event of errors, as well as reduced response times in the event of incidents
- Easier daily handling in the event of error images
- Minimize manual handling in the event of incidents – with connection to the current case management system
- ONE parent tool for all IT-related monitoring alarms
- Easy management of reports and SLAs to follow up IT availability
A solution that delivers
The solution implemented is Compose Operation Platform COP based on IBM’s platform Netcool. Some of the services and applications that are also included in the delivery include Dynamic Event Management and Dynamic Dashboard, both modules from the Compose Collection. Out of the blue, additional services have been implemented, including customized application monitoring for a completely new system in the IT infrastructure.
When asked how Compose IT got the honor of delivering the project, Markus replies ”On recommendation”.
– On behalf of the customer, there was already a preliminary study produced that presented proposals for a suitable monitoring system. In that preliminary study, Netcool was recommended as the primary choice of solution, says Markus.
Based on the preliminary study, two suppliers were then screened out, a San Francisco-based IT company and Compose IT. After a demo of COP and Netcool, it was clear that the choice fell on Swedish Compose IT. That COP was by far the best system solution for the goals the customer had with a monitoring system was also clear early on, says Markus, and mentions some of the criteria that COP delivers on:
- The overall picture – to ensure that ”the right person sees the right alarm at the right time” thanks to the right priorities. With COP, only the information that someone is expected to act on is displayed, and thus the user avoids the ”alarm blindness” that is common, where the NOC or Service Desk ultimately does not see the forest for all the bare trees and thus misses out on addressing important alarms
- Alarm classification – with the Compose Collection module Dynamic Event Management, incoming events are classified dynamically, and everything is done via a user-friendly GUI, which makes it easy for the person in charge of the system. In this way, we ensure that the right alarm gets the right priority and is shown to the right person. The system also manages preparedness groups with associated preparedness schedules, and can automatically notify the right person directly via SMS
- Visualization – with predefined widgets available in Dynamic Dashboard, it is easy to build a Dashboard meeting user requirements and the need for maps. An example of this is the GIS-based map widget that plots the alarms on Google Maps
- Speed – a very driven customer and project manager at the customer wanted a working monitoring system to demonstrate to key people by midsummer at the latest. Compose IT was quick to get a demonstrable system in place already in May! This was possible thanks to an agile way of working with strategic sprints and methodical project work with well-defined steps
In addition to this, it can be mentioned that the customer now has a solution that can really measure IT availability.
Visualization with IBM Agile Service Manager (ASM)
In the customized solution that has been implemented, there is a container-based application that makes visualization possible.
– I think mainly of the Agile Service Manager (ASM) which is connected to the customer’s vCenter, says Henric Fondelius, IT Consultant who is also part of the project team for this customer.
ASM offers a complete overview and control over a dynamic and complex infrastructure with constantly changing services.
– ASM allows you to select a server or network resource and then present an overview of how it is connected to other devices, both in real time and during certain time periods. In this way, you can quickly locate and solve problems, explains Henric.
ASM consists of many different applications that work together in Docker containers, which in turn are collected in a Server Farm. Examples of included applications are:
- Apache Kafka – message bus that efficiently consolidates topology data from multiple sources
- Zookeeper – fast, distributed and scalable synchronization service
- Elasticsearch – distributed search and analytics engine that is scalable and reliable
– ASM is also awarded in the annual design competition ”Indigo Design Awards” 2019, for us it is proof that IBM Agile Service Manager is really good, says Henric Fondelius.
Topology example ASM
It is not only maps that are visualized for the customer’s Service desk, but through the ASM GUI, system managers can also get an overall picture of problems and connections in the entire IT infrastructure.
Link to picture and more about ASM:IBM Agile Service Manager
– It has been a large and exciting project that we ran during the year with final deliveries this summer. For those customers who wish, there is also the option of signing an operation & management agreement with support and assistance from Compose IT, concludes Markus Carlsson.
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With over 600,000 working hours, mainly on IBM Netcool, Compose IT has accumulated a solid competence and experience bank. It is the bank that our customers benefit from today, and that is behind our system solutions. Are you also in need of a more controlled IT environment?
(*Source: ”Vården i Siffror” och ”TLV”)
Footnote: for contractual reasons, we do not name the customer
