Fincantieri charts success with Computer Associates

Computer Associates International, Inc. (CA) today announced that Fincantieri, one of the world`s largest and most diversified shipbuilders, has implemented Unicenter Network and Systems Management to control its complex distributed infrastructure, and CA`s eTrust security solutions to protect its eBusiness applications and data.

Formed by the merger of eight shipbuilders and repair yards in 1959, Fincantieri has built more than 7,000 vessels of all types and boasts one of the world`s longest traditions of naval design and construction. The company employs about 10,000 people in its Cruise Ship, Merchant Ship and Naval Vessel business units throughout eight shipyards around the coasts of Italy.

In 1999, stiff competition from Asia and reductions in defense spending prompted a far-reaching restructuring program to rationalize corporate processes.

"The cornerstone of our renewal program was information technology," said Gianantonio Rui, CIO, Fincantieri. "We needed to optimize production and resource utilization at the various shipyards around the country, while taking into account the special requirements of our engineering department and naval design center, the largest of its kind in Europe."

Fincantieri`s distributed infrastructure comprises some 70 Windows NT servers handling data and communications for 1,800 Windows and 1,200 CAD workstations across the country. A special IT project dubbed "Operation Control Tower" was recently launched to identify and implement a more efficient system of network management and protection.

"We had three fundamental objectives: to standardize our information management capabilities, centralize control and strengthen security," said Domenico Pinasco, head of systems management, Fincantieri. "We also wanted market-standard solutions which were easy-to-use and preferably provided by a single supplier. Following an exhaustive analysis, we decided CA offered the most complete solutions in terms of product quality and diversity."

Unicenter Network and Systems Management provides a comprehensive solution for managing a heterogeneous and constantly expanding infrastructure like that of Fincantieri. It performs sophisticated event management and correlation across the entire network to proactively alert IT personnel to potential trouble spots while optimizing overall performance and ensuring availability of mission-critical systems.

"We adopted Unicenter Service Level Management to set up and track service levels to both internal and external customers," said Pinasco. "Unicenter Performance Management allows us to monitor network and application workloads and availability accurately in order to manage growth."

Fincantieri is deploying additional CA solutions to help optimize system administration and reduce total cost of ownership. Unicenter Asset Management automatically discovers hardware and software inventory information, allowing staff to map resource utilization, log configurations and monitor software usage for license compliance. Unicenter Software Delivery automates the delivery and management of software on remote PCs and servers, while Unicenter Remote Control lets Pinasco`s team intervene directly on remote desktops, significantly reducing the cost of help desk support.

"In terms of security, CA`s eTrust has proved to be the answer to our problems," said Pinasco. "We needed to protect our internal network from unwanted intrusions, while optimizing our access control policies on servers and applications. eTrust Access Control and eTrust Admin provide all the functionality we need to manage our entire security infrastructure."

eTrust Access Control regulates access to critical business assets, providing policy-based control of access to specific systems and greater safeguards over confidential information. eTrust Admin greatly simplifies security administration, allowing Fincantieri`s security officers to manage all systems and directories through a single console.

"CA`s Unicenter and eTrust solutions played a strategic role in the success of Operation Control Tower by enabling us to optimize management of corporate processes and create shareholder value in a rapidly changing and highly competitive global environment," said Rui.