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CUSTOMER SUCCESS STORYFerguson empowersremote workers to serveNorth AmericaWith Azure NetApp Files andWindows Virtual Desktop fromMicrosoft, Ferguson expeditesits cloud journey to enable aremote workforce of 14,000in just one weekend, allowingthe company to maintain itsfirst-rate service levelsduring a crisis.Ferguson is committed to creating the best customerexperiences and keeping essential services operationalFerguson raises the bar for industry standards as thetop-rated and largest U.S. wholesale supplier of commercialand residential plumbing, lighting, and HVAC supplies.Customer satisfaction is the driving force behind everythingFerguson does. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia,with more than 1,400 locations and over 26,000 expertassociates across the United States, Ferguson is proud toprovide world-class products and services to a customerbase that is as vast and varied as its inventory.Ferguson is more than just a provider of products. It is a trustedpartner in communities and industries across North America.It’s a company that connects people with both expertise andhigh-quality. For more than 65 years, Ferguson businesses haveoperated across a multitude of industries, working together to helpbuild better infrastructure, better homes, and better businessesand driven by the desire to build a better nation.

“The results with Azure NetApp Files have been amazing. Our users have never been ableto get things done as quickly as they have been since integrating with Azure Cloud andAzure NetApp Files. We’ve been able to create an on-demand data strategy for our companyas well as provide that speed and capability to our users throughout the country.”Scott WrightSenior Cloud Architect, FergusonA behind-the-scenes ecosystempoised to support essential servicesThe pandemic has highlighted just how essentialclean water and clean air are to our health. Doctorshave recommended better ventilation and increasedsanitation as important steps in combatting thespread of disease. Hospitals, nursing homes,businesses, schools, and private homes rely on basicinfrastructure to function safely. Much of the time,we take running water and ventilation for granted inNorth America. It’s not until the turn of the tap resultsin no water that we start to consider our dependency.Then we call a plumber.But what if the plumber doesn’t have access to whathe or she needs?There is an often-overlooked ecosystem and supplychain that supports businesses that support society:plumbing, waterworks, heating ventilation and airconditioning (HVAC), and pipes, valves, and fittings(PVF). PVF and HVAC components, as well as the2Customer Success Storyspecialists who install and repair them, are criticalto fighting the spread of COVID-19, keepingessential services running, and operating ourbusinesses and homes.The products and services that Ferguson offersare the backbone of urban development andmaintenance. People interact with productsand services that Ferguson provides everyday, often without realizing it. From watermeters and water pipe infrastructure to HVACand fire and fabrication, businesses andhospitals, and homes all rely on Ferguson.For both homeowners and contractors, Fergusonmust make transactions quick and efficient,and be strategic with real-time inventorycalculations to ensure that the products theircustomers need are readily available. The inclinationto continuously improve and create the ultimatecustomer experience is what led Ferguson tostart its cloud journey.

“We’ve improved the experience for our supply chain, which translates into helping ourcustomers and our contractors.”Scott WrightFerguson’s cloud journey translates into animproved experience for users and customersFerguson’s transition to the cloud has been rollingout over the past 3 years. When it began, they lookedat the big three clouds – AWS, Google Cloud, andAzure. “We ultimately ended up as a Microsoft Azureshop,” says Wright. “Which of course was just onequestion answered. For us, it was then about ‘Whatcan we do from a cloud native perspective? Wherewere those offerings? And how could we adoptthings like SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS?’”Seeking answers to their questions led the Fergusonteam to explore Azure Data Lake and SQL DataWarehouse, and question how they could replicatesome of their on-premises data from their currentdatabases with tools like Attunity. From there, theyused Power BI to make that data readily available tobranches and their headquarters.The data and analytics allow Ferguson to have aclear view of inventory, performance, and locationavailability, and to accurately evaluate how theycan spread out the stock load and availability ofcomponent parts based on where they’re neededthroughout North America.They are continually looking at new ways to innovateas well as how they can impact their associates,customers, vendors, and anyone they work withclosely from an industrial perspective – right back tothe homeowner.3Customer Success Story

When COVID-19 struck, Ferguson was readyto go remote in one weekend with AzureNetApp Files and Windows Virtual Desktop“We looked at Windows VirtualDesktop and Azure NetApp Files,long before a lot of folks did, andpaired the two. And that helped uswith the COVID-19 impact. It putus out there, way in the front.”Scott WrightFerguson was already heavily invested inmodernizing and simplifying its architecture. In2019, they looked at Windows Virtual Desktop(WVD) as part of a private preview. “We werelooking at it as a way to get off of our existinglegacy virtual desktop infrastructure,” saysWright. “That was our first introduction to AzureNetApp Files – through its potential with WVD.”In March, when COVID-19 first hit the United States,Ferguson could not risk disruption. Contractorson the ground and their supply chain needed tobe equipped to meet critical infrastructure needsfor hospitals and emergency services. Fergusonwas forced to rapidly enable a remote workforce.“Organization-wide, that immediately impacted about14,000 to 15,000 of our employees. But, as we werealready well along on our cloud journey, we werewell-poised in how we were going to handle a crisis,”says Wright.“Over the course of a weekend,between the cloud and ourVPN solutions, we were ableto accommodate between14,000 and 15,000 employeesto work out of the comfort oftheir own homes and provide ourbusiness with key initiatives andcapabilities that ultimately allowedus to service our customers.”Scott WrightAzure NetApp Files was a problem-solver for theFerguson team with regard to how to move usersinto WVD, provide access to files, and move internalusers (like the finance department and the naturaldisaster specialist) off of an existing VDI solution andcreate a cloud-native path solution. Now they canwork from anywhere, on any device, and supportcustomers in need.The team put that data locality and the presentationlayer together in the same region in Azure – a choicethat paid off in dividends across the board. Fromthere, they also looked at how Azure NetApp Filescould help some of Ferguson’s other use casesthat have CAD and large renderings or drawings.The team asked, “How can we take that distributed4Customer Success Story

model we have today with DFS, and centralizeit with something like Azure NetApp Files?”“The big thing that was helpful was that wewere ahead of the curve,” says Wright.“We had already stood up Windows VirtualDesktop. We had already stood up AzureNetApp Files. It put us in a good position.”Ferguson executives expect that users are going tobe working remotely for quite some time. Lookingbeyond the pandemic, Wright states, “The days ofour users being required to be physically in an office,unless they need to deal directly with the customer,are probably something that’s in the past for us.”That has made the company look at operationalissues, such as bridging the gap betweenbusiness continuity and disaster recovery. Howcan they make that data available, in multipleregions, by using replication and cloud syncto migrate from on premises into Azure?5Customer Success StoryWhere can we go next, together?Wright recognizes that “NetApp is playing a keyrole in how we are designing and distributingdata throughout not only our on-premisesenvironment, but also our cloud-based Azureenvironments and regions across the country.”The Ferguson team was so impressed with AzureNetApp Files performance capabilities and the Azureand NetApp partnership that they’ve started tolook for where else they can take advantage of it.“The future looks very bright, between the workthat we’re doing today with Microsoft, andNetApp and Azure NetApp Files,” says Wright.“We’re looking at ways that we can push datato the edge with NetApp Global File Cache.We’re looking at how we can utilize block-basereplication, and how we can do things alongthe lines of business continuity and disasterrecovery across our environments, making thatdata recoverable from region to region for ourend users. Azure NetApp Files industry-leadingcapabilities allow us to pivot based on our businessrequirements and our customers’ requirements –ultimately delivering best-of-breed solutions.”

Azure NetApp Files is a first-party service,fully managed and supported by Microsoft,native in the Portal“We’ll continue looking at how Azure and NetAppcan take us further, identifying ways we can getthe data to the edge, and serving our customersand our associates simultaneously,” says Wright.what we’ve done on-premises with NetApp, and athow we can utilize Azure NetApp Files in the cloudfor many other applications,” says Wright. AzureNetApp Files is helping Ferguson forge an innovativepath, creating more impactful and meaningfulcustomer experiences – which is the reasonFerguson began its cloud journey in the first place.Ferguson’s goal is to be out of its data centers withinthe next two-and-a-half years and be a 100% cloudbased business. “Azure NetApp Files is a true PaaSoffering, which gives us the capability to look atCheck these links to learn more:Azure NetApp FilesNetApp Global File Cache - Azure 1 877 263 8277About NetAppIn a world full of generalists, NetApp is a specialist. We’re focused on one thing, helping your business get themost out of your data. NetApp brings the enterprise-grade data services you rely on into the cloud, and the simpleflexibility of cloud into the data center. Our industry-leading solutions work across diverse customer environmentsand the world’s biggest public clouds.As a cloud-led, data-centric software company, only NetApp can help build your unique data fabric, simplifyand connect your cloud, and securely deliver the right data, services and applications to the right people—anytime, anywhere. To learn more, visit www.netapp.com 2020 NetApp, Inc. All Rights Reserved. NETAPP, the NETAPP logo, and the marks listed at http://www.netapp.com/TM aretrademarks of NetApp, Inc. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. CSS-7152-1020

Ferguson is committed to creating the best customer experiences and keeping essential services operational Ferguson raises the bar for industry standards as the top-rated and largest U.S. wholesale supplier of commercial and residential plumbing, lighting, and HVAC supplies. Customer satisfaction is the driving force behind everything Ferguson .