Sysmex Diagnoses Network Performance With PRTG

Sysmex America, Inc. is a global leader in the design and development of high-quality, reliable and innovative clinical laboratory systems and solutions, including clinical diagnostic hematology, coagulation and urinalysis instrumentation and information management systems.

In 2006, laboratory professionals ranked Sysmex hematology analyzers the most reliable for the seventh year in a row. Today, the company continues its tradition of innovation and dedication to excellence through the integration of diagnostics systems and informatics to improve the use and presentation of test results to physicians and other clinical decision makers.

Ensuring network resources are operating at optimal performance is critical to Sysmex’s reputation as a leading provider of reliable diagnostic systems for medical laboratories worldwide.

Mr. Braune and his team first considered using MRTG, open-source software for monitoring and measuring the traffic load on network links. However after evaluation, Mr. Braune felt it fell short on support requirements.

“We were looking for a solution that was similar to MRTG, but we wanted a solution that was supported by an actual company,” said Mr. Braune.

After further evaluation, Mr. Braune selected Paessler network monitoring solutions.

Using Paessler network monitoring solutions, Mr. Braune and his team are gaining valuable insight into how network resources are being used. The Sysmex IT team has created automated system-monitoring routines. These processes help log the amount of data flowing through routers, gateways and firewalls, including the collection and analysis of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and NetFlow data and server performance monitoring on Sysmex’s development and production servers. Automated alerts and trending reports help the team identify load imbalances, which could cause service disruptions or performance problems.

“My team and I are the first ones to know that a problem exists and are able to deal with it in an intelligent manner by selecting the correct course of action out of the gate. We are then able to notify the business of an issue, as opposed to the business bringing the issue to our attention,” says Mr. Braune. “I want my monitoring tool to tell me I have a problem before a user does. Being informed is far better than being uninformed. It’s worth the cost.”

• Faster diagnoses and resolution: Paessler network monitoring solutions provide Mr. Braune and his team the ability to monitor network activity in real-time.
• Automatic alerts notify administrators when usage spikes occure or there is unusual activity which can mean potential virus or malicious behavior.
• Improved communication between IT and business: The ability to generate reports based on bandwidth usage and network availability has been important to Mr. Braune’s ability to demonstrate overall network performance and how his team responds to issues and risk.
• Improved planning and performance optimization: Network traffic analysis is used to support business cases for implementing IT changes such as adding bandwidth or hardware, deploying server load balancing solutions and implementing best practices.
• Accurate data for Better Strategies: By tracking and documenting short term changes in network performance, as well as long term usage trends, Mr. Braune and his team can implement strategies and best practices that not only diagnose network problems quickly and effectively, but that also help mitigate risks before they occur, optimizing overall network performance.

“Being in tune with the network and being able to show ‘uptime’ numbers and metrics on a monthly basis is invaluable,” says Mr. Braune. “It shows the business that we respond in an intelligent, coordinated manner when issues arise. I have already recommended Paessler network monitoring solutions to several of my colleagues.”