Windows 7Customer Solution Case Study

Design Practice Gains 64-Bit Performance, Improves Productivity with System Upgrade

OverviewCountry or Region: AustraliaIndustry: Architecture and engineering services

Customer ProfileHASSELL is a multidisciplinary design practice that provides services for commercial and residential architecture, interior design, and urban planning. It has 12 studios across Australia and Asia.

Business SituationThe design firm uses several 64-bit software applications, but it was unable to take advantage of 64-bit performance because it was running a 32-bit operating system on its 850 computers.

SolutionHASSELL upgraded to the 64-bit version of the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system and deployed a standardized operating system image across the entire company.

Benefits Improved system performance Increased IT efficiency Boosted employee productivity

“After implementing Windows 7, we saw an initial reduction in calls to the help desk, which also strengthened our ability to direct our efforts to high-value services to the business.”

Bill Rue, Chief Information Officer, HASSELL

HASSELL is a multidisciplinary design practice that has earned hundreds of awards for its work in Australia and Asia. The company invested in 64-bit applications to support the graphics-intensive design work that it does for clients, but it was running those applications on a 32-bit version of the Windows XP operating system. In an effort to maximise the power of the 64-bit software and to increase employee productivity, the company upgraded to the 64-bit version of Windows 7 Enterprise. With the help of Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Gen-i, HASSELL deployed the operating system, including localised versions to its design studios in Asia. As a result of the upgrade, HASSELL improved system performance, so it can take full advantage of its 64-bit software; increased technology efficiency and reallocated resources to more strategic tasks; and improved employee productivity.

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SituationFounded in 1938, HASSELL is an international network of 12 design studios across Australia and Asia. The award-winning design practice has five primary disciplines: architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, planning, and urban design. HASSELL is one of world’s largest privately owned design-based practices. In the 2011 World Architecture Top 100 HASSELL is ranked number one in Australasia. The practice has approximately 960 employees, with fluctuations based on the number of contractors it employs for various projects.

To manage its design and architecture projects, HASSELL has more than 300 software applications, including line-of-business applications; productivity applications, such as the programs in Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007;

and design tools, such as the Adobe suite and a variety of computer-aided design (CAD) and building information modeling (BIM) tools. The company has 850 personal computers—desktops, laptops, and netbooks, running the 32-bit version of the Windows XP operating system with a server environment running on a mix of the Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Server 2008 R2 operating systems. The technology team is centralised, serving employees based in major cities in Australia, as well as those at design studios in China, Singapore, and Thailand.

HASSELL had several 64-bit software applications running on the 32-bit operating system, but it wanted to upgrade to a 64-bit operating system to take full advantage of the performance power available with its software applications. “We really wanted to make the most of our software inventory and, at the same time, boost productivity through faster performance,” says Bill Rue, Chief Information Officer at HASSELL. “The performance bottlenecks we were seeing with running 64-bit applications on a 32-bit operating system have a trickle-down effect on our business. When systems aren’t running at optimum performance, it drains employee productivity, causes lags in our project-delivery timelines, and ultimately impacts customer satisfaction.”

At the same time, HASSELL wanted to streamline its technology processes and infrastructure, particularly when it came to software delivery. As a project-based design practice, HASSELL regularly has to deploy project-specific software

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applications to its employees. For instance, if an architect needs access to a design tool that is not part of the standard image, the technology team at HASSELL needs the agility to rapidly deploy it. The practice also wanted to be able to remove applications from computers when they were not in use, as a way to manage software licenses to maximise economics and remain in compliance with licensing terms. “We live and die by projects and needed a more supportable environment across geographical locations—we wanted more manageability and control,” explains Rue.

SolutionIn July 2009, with guidance from Microsoft Gold Certified Partner Gen-i, HASSELL decided to upgrade to the 64-bit version of the Windows 7 Enterprise operating system. It created a standard operating system image base, which comprises the operating system, Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007, some internal line-of-business applications, a virtual private network (VPN) client for portable computers, and the Windows Internet Explorer 8 browser.

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A Successful Pilot DeploymentHASSELL started its deployment project with extensive application-compatibility testing of its robust software portfolio. Through the testing process, the practice found that very few applications required any remediation. Any issues were quickly resolved either by applying service pack updates released by software vendors or by making minor configuration changes to application settings. HASSELL also took the opportunity to analyze its software inventory and eliminate applications that were no longer used.

After application testing, the practice started with a pilot deployment to 100 computers in its Australia studios. Impressed with the initial deployment success, HASSELL decided to deploy the operating system across its entire practice in July 2010, including to its design studios in Asia. It started by deploying the operating system to employees who already used 64-bit hardware and to project groups that required specific 64-bit applications.

The design practice did not need to upgrade any of its hardware to run Windows 7, though it is upgrading to 64-bit hardware as part of the regular computer refresh cycle. HASSELL reimaged its computers running on 32-bit hardware to also run Windows 7 Enterprise and will upgrade to 64-bit technologies on those computers as part of its regular refresh cycle. By April 2011, the design practice deployed Windows 7 Enterprise to more than 90 percent of its computers. In April, the organisation was in the final stages of installing Windows 7 language packs for its

design studio in China so that the user interface will be localised with simplified Chinese and plans to standardise its entire client computing environment on the operating system by June 2011. Steps Toward Streamlined OperationsDuring the pilot deployment, HASSELL used the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010, which includes guidelines and a common set of tools for automating desktop deployments. After the pilot deployment, HASSELL implemented Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 R2 to automate broad-scale deployment and management of its client and server environments. “We used Windows 7 as a springboard to streamline and simplify our technology environment, including how we manage our infrastructure, and System Center Configuration Manager is a key part of our overall solution,” explains Rue.

To further simplify its technology environment, HASSELL plans to upgrade to Microsoft Application Virtualization, part of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack for Software Assurance. The organisation consolidated its application portfolio to only a core group of applications for the base operating system image, delivering many through virtualisation technology. “During our application compatibility testing, we found several applications that are no longer in use, so we eliminated those entirely. In other cases, we made the decision to virtualise applications that are not used by every employee,” explains Rue.

When HASSELL finishes rolling out Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit as its standard operating system, it plans to implement DirectAccess, a feature in Windows 7 and

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“We used Windows 7 as a springboard to streamline and simplify our technology environment, including how we manage our infrastructure, and System Center Configuration Manager is a key part of our overall solution.”

Bill Rue, Chief Information Officer, HASSELL

Windows Server 2008 R2 that employees can use to connect to the corporate network through any Internet connection, without the need for a VPN. With the bi-directional capabilities in DirectAccess, systems administrators can also better manage remote computers, even when the computers are not connected to the network. BenefitsAs a result of upgrading to Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit and standardising its operating system across the organisation, HASSELL has improved overall system performance and is able to take full advantage of its 64-bit software applications. The design practice has streamlined its technology support model, resulting in greater technology efficiency and the ability to focus more on strategic tasks that support the core design business. In addition, the performance and technology efficiency gains have contributed to increased employee productivity.

Improved System PerformanceEmployees at HASSELL report dramatic improvements in system performance with Windows 7, including startup and resume sequences and application response times. The design practice is also able to take advantage of 64-bit performance in its existing applications. “We had the 64-bit applications before, but we weren’t getting the performance enhancements that we should have because we were running a 32-bit operating system,” explains Rue. “We tested Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit with one of our CPU-intensive graphics-rendering software applications, and the speed compared to a 32-bit operating

system, or even other 64-bit operating systems, was impressive. The speed at which that particular software application rendered graphics was a great improvement compared to our previous operating system.”

Increased Technology EfficiencySince standardising on Windows 7, and implementing System Center Configuration Manager, HASSELL has streamlined its technology support model. The technology department can deploy, update, and manage remote computers from a centralised location. It can also deploy and remove virtualised software applications to employees on a project-by-project basis. “If a design team starts a new project, and they require a specific software application that is not part of the standard image, we can quickly deploy the software with System Center Configuration Manager,” explains Rue.

In addition, the technology team can better support the design practice—helping to ensure business continuity. “By standardising our operating system and vastly reducing the number of applications in our base image, we can focus on more strategic efforts and better support the design business,” explains Rue. “After implementing Windows 7, we saw an initial reduction in calls to the help desk, which also strengthened our ability to direct our efforts to high-value services to the business.”

Boosted Employee ProductivitySince HASSELL upgraded to Windows 7, employees across the design practice have reported improved productivity. They

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“By standardising our operating system and vastly reducing the number of applications in our base image, we can focus on more strategic efforts and better support the design business.”

Bill Rue, Chief Information Officer, HASSELL

attribute the increase in productivity to two elements: the improved performance of the operating system and business-critical 64-bit applications, as well as the streamlined technology support. If a call to the help desk is unavoidable, technology personnel in the technology department can now more quickly resolve issues for employees.

“With a standardised operating system image, our technology staff know how each computer is going to react,” explains Rue. “They can quickly replicate any issue without taking into consideration multiple variables that we might have had with several operating system images and resolve the problem right away. With Windows 7, our employees are more productive—instead of worrying about troubleshooting system issues, they can just focus on the business of design and meeting customer needs.”

Windows 7Works the way you want: Windows 7 will help your organization use information technology to gain a competitive advantage in today’s new world of work. Your people will be able to be more productive anywhere. You will be able to support your mobile workforce with better access to shared data and collaboration tools. And your IT staff will have better

tools and technologies for enhanced corporate IT security and data protection, and more efficient deployment and management.

For more information about Windows 7, go to:www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7

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For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers in the United States and Canada who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:www.microsoft.com

For more information about Gen-i products and services, call 61 1800 803 755 or visit the website at:www.gen-i.com.au

For more information about HASSELL products and services, call +61 3 8102 3000 or visit the website at: www.hassell.com.au

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published May 2011

Software and Services Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack− Microsoft Application Virtualization

Microsoft Server Product Portfolio− Windows Server 2008 R2− Microsoft System Center

Configuration Manager 2007 R2

Technologies− DirectAccess− Windows Internet Explorer 8

Partners Gen-i