Micro Focus Products Solutions Support & Services About Us Let's Talk Search &nbsp;Customer story &nbsp; Download PDF Hastings Direct Hastings Direct deploys FileXpress to grow B2B file transfers and strengthen data security. Quick View Problem Corporate growth required supporting the diverse file transfer needs of more business partners, complying with additional security regulations, and simplifying file transfer management. Solution Deploy FileXpress to address daily, monthly, weekly, and ad-hoc file transfers with diverse business partners while also providing the centralized auditing and high-level security required for regulatory compliance. Results Strengthened security and facilitated regulatory compliance. Enabled faster, more reliable file transfers. Simplified file transfer for third parties. Reduced staff time and realized print savings of £500K per year. Overview Hastings Direct is one of Europe’s fastest growing insurance groups, employing more than 1,500 people and retailing general insurance and related financial services products. The company has recently seen its customer base double in size to 1.3 million customers. As an expanding company, Hastings Direct needed a way to ensure data security and address the escalating file transfer demands of new business partners. FileXpress file transfer software was able to help with both goals. FileXpress’s centralized auditing, end-to-end automation, streaming of data on the fly, and ease of use were some of the key features that made Attachmate (now a part of Micro Focus) the right choice during our supplier evaluations. Martin Chrusciel Head of IT Delivery Hastings Direct Problem Hastings Direct’s multiple business units regularly transmit large amounts of data between themselves and a growing number of external partners. These transmittals sometimes occur as frequently as every 10 to 15 minutes. The company had used various transfer methods, including FTP, but wanted to better manage the risks that accompany data in motion. It also wanted to achieve these strategic goals: Grow its customer base, which required addressing the diverse transfer needs of more business partners. Continue to comply with growing security regulations. Reduce the management and support burden for employees tasked with setting up new business partners, investigating queries, writing scripts, and ensuring compliance with security mandates. For phase one of the project, Hastings Direct identified 49 different file transfers to business partners. These transfers were categorized by transfer frequency: Daily: 14 partners Monthly: 26 partners Weekly: 2 partners Ad hoc: 7 partners To accommodate these partners, the team wanted a solution that would support: Multiple protocols, including FTP, FTPS, SFTP, HTTP, HTTPS, and AS2. High-level encryption. Easy setup of new transfer requests, including the addition of expiry dates. Centralized management, monitoring, and auditing of internal and external transfers. Defined time limits for ad-hoc transfers. A two-way branded web portal for Hastings Direct and its partners for ad-hoc transfers. End-to-end automation, including error handling, notification, and file resubmission. Any-size, any-type transfers. Advanced delivery assurance (with confirmation and prevention of collection after a specified time). Easy report generation from a central SQL audit data base for specific SLAs and investigations. FileXpress met all their needs. “FileXpress’s centralized auditing, end-to-end automation, streaming of data on the fly, and ease of use were some of the key features that made Attachmate (now a part of Micro Focus) the right choice during our supplier evaluations,” said Martin Chrusciel, head of IT delivery at Hastings Direct. Solution After initial testing, the system was rolled out to encompass an additional 233 existing managed transfers, leading to an overall project delivery of 282 transfer types: Daily: 32 partners Monthly: 66 partners Weekly: 3 partners Ad hoc: 181 partners The implementation consisted of FileXpress Internet Server, FileXpress Platform Server, and FileXpress Command Center. With Internet Server installed in the DMZ and Platform Server installed internally, all file exchanges with external partners were now fast, reliable, and secure. Streaming files to the chosen internal servers removed duplicate tasks from the transfer process, prevented files from being stored within the DMZ, and provided true end-to-end automation. What’s more, Internet Server made it possible for Hastings Direct staff to perform secure ad-hoc transfers via the corporate web portal. The scope of work grew when Hastings Direct employed FileXpress to support a second project—the outsourcing of print production. With Micro Focus’s help, Hastings Direct set up a dedicated VPN to the third party. Then FileXpress Platform Server was installed at two Hastings Direct sites and at the third-party site. Now files are automatically transferred from their target applications to the third-party FileXpress Platform Server. Hastings Direct IT staff can access detailed information—sent time, receipt time, delivery notifications, failed transmissions, and recovered transmissions—about every file transfer. Once files arrive on the third-party Platform Server, they are automatically incorporated into the print production process—thanks to FileXpress’s end-to-end automation capabilities. In addition to enabling the successful delivery of more than 1 million automated files in the first 7 months, FileXpress plays a key role in an implementation that saves about £500K per year. Results Today, FileXpress is an integral part of core operations. Hundreds of thousands of files are automatically transferred reliably and securely through FileXpress. Because multiple file transfer formats and protocols are supported, Hastings Direct can choose partners based on their business model rather than their technology footprint. Finally, FileXpress provides the centralized auditing and high level of security required to comply with a variety of security regulations. In short, FileXpress has given Hastings Direct a process for monitoring the entire lifecycle of any file that is transferred to or from the company. “What started out as a relatively small project has now grown into a business-critical process that improves efficiency, reduces costs, and provides compliance,” said Chrusciel. What started out as a relatively small project has now grown into a business-critical process that improves efficiency, reduces costs, and provides compliance. Martin Chrusciel Head of IT Delivery Hastings Direct Connect with us Facebook Linked-In Google+ Twitter YouTube SlideShare © 2015 Micro Focus Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use Careers