Security Service Federal Credit Union Revitalizes Data Storage With IBM

Founded in 1956, Security Service Federal Credit Union (SSFCU) serves over 600,000 members through 42 locations across Texas and Colorado. SSFCU requires a robust data storage platform to archive loan contracts, account agreements, checks and other financial documents for its members. However, rapid growth caused the credit union to surpass its optical data storage capacity and retrieval system. As a result, end users couldn't access images of financial documents, records and banking information exactly when they wanted. They experienced longer wait times for such data and images to be retrieved -- up to a day in some cases. There was limited scalability and frequent system downtime due to maintenance.

SSFCU turned to IBM Premier Business Partner Mainline Information Systems to find a new way to archive its data efficiently. Mainline considered SSFCU's stringent data retention and security policies and recommended the IBM System Storage DR550. Designed to provide a security-rich, scalable and cost effective solution, the DR550 is a policy based system that maintains data as non-erasable and non-rewritable until deletion is permitted by retention policy. Since the implementation was completed in 2006, SSFCU has met its storage goals to improve reliability and manageability. Employees don't have to wait for a day to retrieve their work or stand by to make sure that the archive system operated properly which immediately freed up valuable time and resources.

"Mainline Information Systems delivered the service only a local solution provider can deliver, with the backing and support of a 19-year relationship with IBM. We found the best data storage solution to meet our needs. Now I don't have to worry about whether I have the storage capacity to meet SSFCU's growing image archive every day of the week," said John McFall, Assistant Vice President, Network Services, SSFCU. "With the IBM System Storage DR550, requests are handled instantaneously which dramatically reduces retrieval times, improves productivity and increases storage capacity."-IBM