Attwoods Packaging Sends Citrix Packing With AWS Workspaces

Retiring Obsolete Access Technology

Packaging distributor Attwoods Packaging has modernized its remote access software with a seamless migration to AWS Workspaces handled with precision by Lancom Technology. As a result, Attwoods has left application access problems in the past, improving convenience for its people, and improving organizational security. At the same time, the company has avoided steep price increases, while directly reducing monthly recurring costs by some 25%.

About Attwoods

Attwoods is a packaging supply specialist providing solutions for customers ranging from large commercial operations to retail and small business across New Zealand. The company provides tailored packaging solutions designed to fit specific business requirements from ordering and stock management to advice and support.

"Cost savings are definitely a factor. But more importantly for people at work, easier, more secure access without the lag and without getting booted out randomly, means no frustration and happier workers. "

Bjorny Avery / Financial Controller

Inherited And Unloved

While appropriate in its day, Attwoods’ Citrix remote access software was showing its age. “We inherited Citrix donkey’s years ago and always knew it would come to end-of-life. The biggest issues were security and sluggish access; among multiple hijinks, simple things like Teams meetings would be impossible because of lag. We’d end up using smartphones, because going through Citrix became a nuisance.”

With more than 40 people depending on the software, minor dissatisfactions combined to cause wider malaise. As a result, Avery confirms, there wasn’t a lot of love for the remote access system.

“There was probably only one person who didn’t complain about it, and that’s the database administrator. Probably because they only need data access,” she notes. “But for everyone else, frustration was building.”

Furthermore, she says a hard licensing deadline was looming: It was either retire Citrix or pay for a sharply increased annual renewal.

Roadmap To A Better Way

As an existing AWS user, Attwoods’ knows what to expect, so when Lancom recommended Workspaces, traction was immediate. “Working with Lancom Technology, we roadmapped our IT requirements while introducing a new finance package as part of a broader modernization,” explains Avery.

“Along with upgrading to Windows 11, there was a clear opportunity to leave the niggly access issues in the past.’

A careful plan starting with a Proof of Concept, and a comprehensive checklist of all requirements and expected actions, along with a phased rollout and go-live saw the delivery and migration of AWS Workspaces over a period of three months. This, says Avery, gave Attwoods ironclad confidence.

“Going live didn’t make me nervous in the slightest,” she smiles. “Our people know Lancom, and they know who to call in the event of any problems. It just wasn’t a worry.”

Avery’s confidence was well placed. Minor teething problems saw an engineer dispatched for on-site attention, and ticket analysis identified and soon resolved a root cause issue.

“Probably the biggest niggle was the discovery that some machines simply weren’t compatible, requiring unplanned upgrades. While it feels a bit like we’ve been dragged into the modern world, it’s a good thing that we’re here,” she quips.

Unquestionably Better And A 25% Cost Reduction

Even before factoring in the annual price increase from Citrix, the new AWS Workspaces solution makes sense from a numbers perspective. Dropping slightly more than 25% of the monthly cost for remote access software means a total payback in around two years (excluding the cost of new hardware).

“Cost savings are definitely a factor,” Avery confirms. “But more importantly for people at work, easier, more secure access without the lag and without getting booted out randomly, means no frustration and happier workers.”

One thing she says nobody misses is the previously common ‘spinning circle of doom’. “Working remotely is just so much smoother. And once again, we’ve seen that if and when there are any issues, Lancom gets stuck in and comes up with a resolution.”

Safe to say AWS Workspaces is a success? “Definitely. It’s so much faster,” Avery concludes.

Services Used

Managed Services

IT Managed Services
Cloud Computing
Cloud Managed Services

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