FEATURE : DATA STORAGE
Olivier Tardy , Head of Infrastructure and
Operations , Andra systems , our team needed to undergo training to get comfortable with the technology .
And finally , over the last couple of years , sustainability and energy efficiency have also become critical issues for our organisation . We wanted to counter misconceptions about the environmental impact of nuclear waste management and focus on being an environmentally conscious agency . This meant we had to evaluate the carbon footprint of our entire IT stack , including storage .
We sought to address these challenges by partnering with Pure Storage . Their modern high-performance infrastructure has been designed to improve data security , simplify management and enhance energy efficiency , aligning perfectly with Andra ’ s mission and environmental goals .
NEEDLESS TO SAY , WHILE EASE OF USE AND PERFORMANCE ARE CRITICAL , THE REALITY IS THAT COSTS ARE ALWAYS A FACTOR . LUCKILY FOR US , PURE MANAGED TO HIT THE TRIFECTA .
What stood out in Pure Storage ’ s solutions that aligned with Andra ’ s business goals for greener data centre operations ?
Interestingly , out of three vendors invited to be part of the RFP , Pure ’ s solution was the first that we did a PoC with , and they set the bar exceptionally high . The Pure Storage user interface was very simple , but what really blew us away was the demo they did for us – we were in a data centre in Paris , in front of a production array , and the Pure team removed power , SSDs and memory cards , while the array continued to work . We requested similar demos from the other vendors but they declined . For us the decision was clear as day – Pure was the way to go .
Of course , performance was also key and Pure stood out in this aspect . For example , HPE informed us that their solution provided a specific pre-set data deduplication ratio . And , by comparison , Pure first installed software at our sites to analyse our data and demonstrated the data reduction rate in real-time , which turned out to be an impressive 7:1 .
Needless to say , while ease of use and performance are critical , the reality is that costs are always a factor . Luckily for us , Pure managed to hit the trifecta . The other vendors wanted to replace the whole array at the end of five years , while Pure Storage said we could buy a storage array and at regular intervals upgrade our controllers , non-disruptively , as part of their Evergreen programme . So , while Pure Storage had a higher upfront cost , when we factored in the additional expenses associated with data migration and forklift upgrades for the other two vendors , Pure ultimately had the lowest TCO .
How did Pure Storage help facilitate the reduction in Andra ’ s carbon footprint , and can this go further ?
One of the most significant changes we saw following the implementation of the Pure Storage arrays was the reduction in total energy consumption . With Pure , we were able to cut the energy usage of our data centre by 20 %. This not only lowered our operational costs but has also contributed significantly to reducing our overall carbon emissions .
Our physical data centre footprint also scaled back appreciably – from 30U to just 3U . This reduction translates directly into lower energy consumption and cooling needs , further decreasing our carbon footprint .
In total , Pure ’ s platform has helped cut our CO 2 emissions by four tons per year . And because we ’ ve signed up for Pure ’ s Evergreen programme , we can manage product lifecycles more sustainably – Pure ’ s innovative approach allows for non-disruptive software and hardware upgrades , meaning we can extend the lifespan of our equipment and significantly reduce e-waste .
Given that we are committed to setting the gold standard for the industry when it comes to sustainability , Pure Storage is an invaluable partner .
How does Pure Storage ’ s technology enhance Andra ’ s data protection strategy , particularly in mitigating the risks posed by cyberattacks ?
Given the nature of our operations , cyberattacks are a major worry for us . Pure Storage has been a great help in reducing this risk with its SafeMode feature on FlashArray . This feature automatically creates unchangeable , read-only snapshots of our data at
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