In 2007, CDC had already been leveraging endpoints as a desktop replacement solution for a number of years when the manufacturer of its endpoints was acquired. Soon after that, the provider of dialysis services learned that the endpoints it has been using throughout its network of in-center dialysis facilities, outpatient access centers and in-home dialysis services would no longer be manufactured.

“We are a Citrix shop and wanted to be able to continue to use endpoints as a desktop replacement, so we began searching for another solution that would provide the same ease-of-use and manageability that we had become accustomed to with our previous manufacturer,” said Bob Kleiman, Network Specialist, Centers for Dialysis Care. “First, we looked at replacing our endpoints with models from another leading endpoint manufacturer but were disappointed in the failure rates, which topped 50 percent during testing.”

CDC selects linux-based Universal Desktops and Universal Management Suite Software

In early 2008, representatives from CDC’s IT organization attended the VMworld Conference where they were introduced to IGEL Technology and the IGEL Universal Desktop™ UD3 and UD5 Linux-based endpoints.

“Following the event, we procured a demo unit and tested it along with the IGEL Universal Management Suite,” said Kleiman. “We were immediately impressed with IGEL’s technology, as other endpoints solutions we had looked at required a significant amount of time and resources to manage and clone workstations. With IGEL, we recognized right away that we could save time and money due to the robust nature of the Universal Management Suite software, and that was a big selling point for us.”

After selecting the IGEL Universal Desktops and IGEL Universal Management Suite™ (UMS), CDC’s IT organization moved quickly to swap out its old endpoints with the new IGEL solution.

“IGEL helped to smooth our transition to the new endpoints by providing technical resources to help us with the initial configuration,” said Kleiman. “We knew from the start that they had a lot of experience working with organizations like ours, and their expertise in Citrix virtualization solutions has been especially helpful to us over the years. From providing guidance on building images to adjusting configurations when specifications change, we’ve developed a great relationship with both IGEL and its reseller partners.”

For CDC, IGEL has become a way of life

CDC currently uses IGEL UD3 and IGEL UD5 Universal Desktops across its 20 facilities located throughout Northeast Ohio. Leveraging Citrix XenApp 6.5, CDC has turned the IGEL UD3 and IGEL UD5 endpoints into a complete desktop replacement solution, delivering all of the applications its users need to IGEL and non-IGEL devices throughout the network.

“We have about 200 IGEL devices in operation today, and we also have a number of non-IGEL devices that are licensed with the IGEL UDC2 endpoint software,” said Kleiman. “Our employees use them for everything – from accessing e-mail to recording clinical data to using them as full desktop. And, because we’ve standardized IGEL across the organization, we no longer refer to these devices as thin terminals – we call them IGELs – a word is now part of our daily vocabulary here at CDC.”

CDC also leverages IGEL’s Universal Management Suite (UMS) to deploy and manage the IGEL UD3 and IGEL UD5 endpoints. “With UMS, we have found it to be very easy to manage the IGEL endpoints and IGEL software, and it also makes it much simpler for us to train our employees on how to use the endpoints and access the applications and data they need to more quickly and efficiently do their jobs,” said Kleiman.

CDC is currently in the process of a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) roll-out and continues to upgrade its IGEL endpoints to support this initiative with the help of IGEL Platinum Partner MCPc. “We have been installing new, more robust IGEL Universal Desktops and cycle out the older, existing models in order to achieve full, dual monitor support across our organization,” said Kleiman.

Additionally, through the VDI initiative, CDC is also looking to further reducing the amount of time it takes for its IT organization to manage hardware in the field. “With VDI, the end-user experience is the same, but we are able to manage everything on the back-end without delay or interruption for our employees,” said Kleiman. “For example, when an employee moves to a new location, or is working out of a different office on any given day, they simply sit down at their new IGEL device and are able to access their desktop without having to move their old desktop to the new location.”

Conclusion: IGEL UD and IGEL UMS provide CDC with reliability and cost savings

Since deploying IGEL Technology’s Universal Desktops and UMS at CDC, Kleiman reports that they have experience a less than 1% failure rate. “We’ve had only a handful of technical errors in the last seven years, which is very low for us,” he said.

In addition to IGEL Technology’s ease-of-use, manageability and reliability, CDC has also experienced a cost savings due to the flexibility of being able to choose between wired and wireless configurations. “In some cases, we have opened a new facility where it has been cost-prohibitive or time-consuming to re-wire the facility to support our technology requirements,” said Kleiman.

“With IGEL Technology, we were able leverage the IGEL UD3 wireless connectivity foot, which enables us to support the IGEL endpoints via a wireless network.”

To better support wireless connectivity and mobility throughout its facilities, CDC also uses battery-powered displays from DT Research that are loaded with the IGEL UDC2 endpoint software.

CDC also appreciates the ease associated with pre-configuring the IGEL Universal Desktops through the UMS prior to sending them into the field, and then being able to make changes remotely. “No longer must we send out a technical support engineer every time we need to re-configure a device in the field. When we make an update or change to the software, this is done automatically on the back-end through the IGEL UMS,” said Kleiman. “This helps us save time and resources that can be allocated toward more strategic projects and initiatives.”

Currently, CDC in the process of and has plans to continue to purchase additional licenses for the UMS through MCPc as it expands its footprint of IGEL-powered endpoint devices. “As part of our holistic IoT solutions, MCPc continues to recommend IGEL Universal Desktops and the IGEL Universal Management Suite to CDC, as well as our other enterprise customers. IGEL’s ability to save both time and money through simple, smart and secure endpoint security and optimization solutions is a natural complement to our industry-leading Secure Technology Logistics Services,” said Andy Jones, CEO of MCPc.