Ducati successfully copes with smart working thanks to its cutting-edge IT infrastructure

In 2019, the Bologna motorcycle manufacturer embarked on an innovation project aimed at enhancing the performance and layout of its IT architecture and increasing the resilience of the services provided. To conceive and implement the developments, Ducati also made use of the collaboration of two leading IT companies in their respective sectors: Aruba Enterprise and Lenovo.

Aruba Enterprise created a project with Ducati that has completely revised traditional architectures and logics, to give space to a new concept of data centre, characterized by maximum customization. Thanks to this collaboration, Ducati now has an on-site data centre, that is a local server environment, in Private Cloud mode and a second data centre with a completely dedicated environment that guarantees the highest level of security and secrecy. In addition, it acts as a Disaster Recovery environment within the Aruba Global Cloud Data Centre for the most important Ducati applications.

At the same time, Lenovo worked side by side with Ducati to design and implement the upgrade of its high-performance computing (HPC) cluster, based on Lenovo ThinkSystem servers equipped with the latest generation processors. In parallel to the HPC project, Ducati used Lenovo technology in the configuration of the two new data centres: one at the Borgo Panigale (Bologna) headquarters and the other at the Disaster Recovery site in Ponte San Pietro (Bergamo). This configuration allows failover procedures to be applied in case of sudden interruptions in operation, that is the switching of services onto a similar and redundant remote structure, limiting discontinuity to a minimum.

Thanks to foresight in the design of the new IT infrastructure, Ducati has been able to successfully transform from a desk-centric company into a mobile-first company in a few days, while maintaining operations and performance intact. The latest generation technologies used today allow you to work remotely quickly and without loss of performance; for example, access to information, remote services and work files occurs immediately, while previously it could take a few minutes.

The customized infrastructure can be exploited to maximum advantage, as Ducati has complete freedom to use the computational resources duplicated in the Disaster Recovery site as if they were primary resources. In this way, the company can have greater computing power, necessary for its engineers who, even in smart working, have continued to develop new projects.

"Using the most advanced technology is part of Ducati's DNA." said Konstantin Kostenarov, Ducati Chief Technology Officer. “Relying on the best technologies made available through our partners has significantly contributed to the overall improvement of processes, while at the same time increasing the value of the results achieved. The choices made two years ago and the projects that have been carried out since then have allowed us to tackle the various complexities of this moment and demonstrated the solidity of the choices made together. The partnership with Aruba and Lenovo is one of the winning cards for Ducati's continuous technological evolution and for facing future challenges by aiming for the excellence that has always distinguished us".

"Among the technologies that have emerged as a result of Covid-19, the cloud is undoubtedly one that has made it possible to better face crisis situations; an internally commissioned survey reveals that 59% of those who were able to use cloud solutions during the emergency considered its use to be fundamental”, said Giorgio Girelli, General Manager of Aruba Enterprise. "The sharing and combination of the latest technologies between the three companies involved, leaders in distinct and specific sectors, has given life to a very innovative project focussed on the common goal of obtaining maximum performance".

"The emergency that we have experienced in recent months and that we are still experiencing globally has forced companies to implement and strengthen their remote working practices,” said Alessandro de Bartolo, Lenovo Data Center Group's Country General Manager for Italy. “Our collaboration with Ducati is making full use of our latest ThinkSystem technologies to support business continuity and, above all, promote remote work also for workloads such as automation, design and mathematical modelling that require great computing power and cannot be slowed down even when working remotely. We are particularly pleased with the effective and synergistic collaboration that has been established between everyone involved in the project".