Social housing and care charity Transform Housing & Support has signed a three-year contract with LIMA Networks to deliver a fully managed IT digital system for the organisation.
The move forms part of Transform’s aim to maximise the use of new digital technology in a bid to continually improve the range of services it provides to 2,000 clients each year. Transform supports people to live independent and fulfilling lives by providing housing, support and homecare in Surrey, West Sussex, Berkshire, Hampshire and south west London.
The tender and procurement was prepared and managed by Claire Davidson Consultancy Ltd alongside SHAW Consultancy, who wrote the Digital Strategy. IT consultant Claire Davidson has been supporting Transform with modernising its IT infrastructure. LIMA had really understood the key drivers for an organisation like Transform, she explained. “LIMA demonstrated that the company could enable Transform to accelerate the rollout of its new digital strategy to deliver an agile and resilient way of working, ahead of the expected 2021/22 launch timeline,” she said. “They have been innovative in their thinking and have been able to show Transform what is truly possible.”
The services LIMA will be providing Transform include migrating the organisation’s infrastructure and applications to Microsoft 365/Azure* while deploying SDWAN – a virtualised network that allows Transform to manage the 20 sites remotely without the need for on-premises support – and Windows Virtual Desktop, to deliver a smooth, effective and reliable desktop experience for staff. The project aims to deliver scale and agility through a platform which provides resilience, performance and efficiency.
With a very small IT department comprising of only two staff members, a fully managed service had been the right solution for Transform, Claire Davidson added. The team could now focus on getting the best out of the technology available to them and making sure that the organisation’s digital programmes, services and infrastructure could fully meet the demands of the challenging social housing and charity sector post-Covid-19.
Director of Finance and IT at Transform Housing & Support Ratna Sukumaran said the contract with LIMA represented a major step forward for Transform. “It will provide a firm foundation for the implementation of our digital strategy,” he added. “In particular, the implementation of Microsoft 365 will enable us to work differently and more flexibly in the future.”
Ryan Ratcliffe, CSO LIMA Networks, said the company was delighted to be working with Transform Housing & Support at this exciting stage in its journey. “Transform is an innovative, forward-thinking organisation that shares similar cultures and values to LIMA and we are looking forward to supporting them throughout their digital transformation,” he said.
Claire Davidson said she was excited about how Transform would be able to utilise the new technology. “Microsoft 365 will mobilise the organisation’s workforce and allow it to embrace opportunities to deliver services in the ‘new normal’ workplace we are in as a result of coronavirus,” she added. “Transform now has options to explore and a leading, progressive partner in LIMA to achieve that.”
What LIMA Networks will be providing for Transform
The new technology includes Microsoft Azure; site recovery, backup, files, traffic manager and Automation. Microsoft 365, Cisco Meraki and integration of Microsoft Teams, with the existing unified communications solution Wavenet.
The new partnership will include delivery of:
- IaaS - Infrastructure as a service;
- Backup and disaster recovery;
- 2nd and 3rd line support services;
- Microsoft 365 and Azure* – Azure is an open and flexible cloud platform that enables the quick build, deployment/management of applications across a global network of Microsoft-managed data centres;
- Network security;
- SDWAN – a virtualised network that allows Transform to manage the 20+ sites remotely, without the need for on-premises support. It provides enhanced visibility of network traffic and security measures for safe internet use by staff and customers.
LIMA Networks
LIMA believes technology is the backbone that supports business ambition. For 22 years LIMA have been solving business challenges by designing and delivering intelligent IT solutions with a passion for technical excellence and customer satisfaction.
By using a consultative engagement framework to learn about your business and design solutions that meet your business objectives, LIMA supports organisations to achieve competitive advantage and market growth.
LIMA’s solutions cover the entire IT portfolio including cloud, data centre, managed services and security & performance monitoring solutions.
To find out more, visit www.lima.co.uk.
