HOMAG Group AG is the world's leading manufacturer of machines and plants for the woodworking industry and the skilled trades. As a global player, HOMAG has international production plants as well as sales and service companies. With around 6,100 employees, HOMAG is present in over 100 countries and has an estimated world market share of just under 30 percent.
The HOMAG Group's high-tech machines and plants are used by its customers to produce home and office furniture, kitchens, parquet and laminate flooring, windows, doors, staircases or even complete timber system houses. The product range extends from individual machines for craft businesses through to fully networked production lines for highly industrialized, individual furniture production. The HOMAG Group's portfolio is rounded off by numerous services related to the production machines and plants as well as the appropriate control software.
HOMAG recorded double-digit growth in order intake and profit in the 2016 fiscal year and was able to achieve new record figures. This enables continued high investments in research and development work.
HOMAG intends to build on this success and has therefore launched an innovation offensive. Among other things, the focus is on "Industry 4.0" with the areas of digitalization, networked production, cloud-enabled machines and the Internet of Things (IoT). HOMAG intends to be the driving force here in the coming years and has developed an IoT platform for this purpose, among other things.
At its site in Holzbronn, HOMAG manufactures horizontal panel-sizing saws with around 420 employees. A large team of product developers and engineers is working on new ideas for the future in cutting.
IT also plays an important role in Holzbronn. Despite the connections to the central IT of the HOMAG Group and to the IT of the parent company, DÜRR AG, production data is processed here directly on site and a high level of security is installed. This also includes physical IT protection
In 2011, a first concatenation of mini data centers was already delivered by Data Center Construction (business unit of the Data Center Group) to HOMAG in Holzbronn, where it served as a fireproof and access-proof backup. Regular maintenance is carried out by the Service Business Unit of the Data Center Group.
For the installation of the DC IT Safes, one of the IT rooms was specially enlarged by using an empty space above the staircase. In June 2016, an upgrade/modernization of the existing main data center took place and was completely accomplished within two weeks.
It's called "grown structure" when lines are laid down one after the other and the network spreads throughout the data center. In addition, the air conditioning above the systems on the wall had to be dismantled during ongoing data center operation.
Data Center Construction prepared a fully comprehensive design that included the following additional services:
1. splicing and shortening of the network connections
2. dismantling of the existing air conditioning technology and disposal
3. interface coordination with the building services in terms of conversions/door installations, electrical engineering
4. inspection of lightning protection and the entire electrical supply system
5. renewal of the maintenance contract - integration of the existing mini data center (price advantage)
6. dismantling and delivery of a new raised floor
7. integration of a monitoring system that can be expanded to also process energy data
8. delivery and connection of a new UPS system
9. base substructure for the DC IT Safe to be flush with the raised floor
10. relocation of the existing network cabinet to a new plinth substructure during ongoing operation - this was a special challenge, as online operation was not to be interrupted
