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EMKA and IBM set milestone for physical data protection


Data centre operators, telecommunications service providers and industrial customers around the world are likely to hear this announcement: EMKA and IBM cooperate and give the protection of switchgear and server cabinets or IT racks an extreme boost – and they are setting standards in terms of safety, reliability and extremely fast on-site service. From now on, the two world market leaders are working closely together to create synergy effects for customers worldwide and take physical data protection to a new level. It is based on EMKA's Agent E electronic locking solution. The global implementation and maintenance are handled by IBM Technology Support Services (IBM TSS). At the HANNOVER MESSE 2019, the partners – in persona EMKA owner Friedhelm Runge and IBM General Manager DACH Matthias Hartmann –presented their cooperation in detail.

Strategic cooperation between two world market leaders

This cooperation sets a milestone for worldwide data protection. EMKA and IBM have recognised: With the growing demands on data security, there is an increasing need across industries to control access to cabinets from a central location. For customers, this cooperation means: Worldwide service from the planning stages through commissioning to maintenance and complete service contracts as well as lightning-fast on-site service and rapid response to short-term customer requests or failures. The particular benefit of this collaboration for the customer, however, is that two experts from different industry sectors have joined forces: EMKA, the world's leading company in physical security locking systems – especially for industrial customers – and IBM with direct access to thousands of data centre operators across the whole world. Due to their global orientation, the two partners will reach out to almost every industry in the future.

Balancing act with synergy effects

Through this cooperation, the balancing act between the different target groups of both companies is now possible. The basis for this is the EMKA locking system Agent E, which, among other things, gives data centre operators radio-based access to server and control cabinets using wireless technology. The system logs all opening and closing procedures consistently. A monitoring software is used in order to track who had when access to the cabinet or IT rack at any time. Depending on the customer’s request, the closing function can also be controlled with the aid of an app, a pin-code-pad, a fingerprint sensor or a palm vein scanner, via remote access or Near Field Communication (NFC). EMKA's clients, who have been using Agent E successfully for years, include several major international banks.

Dr Ralph Kloth, Head of Sales Strategy and Marketing at EMKA, explains: “This cooperation brings together what belongs together: Both IBM and we at EMKA have outstanding expertise in our core markets. Our technology and IBM’s market knowledge complement each other perfectly. The technology behind Agent E is unique because there is no alternative on the market for the patented wireless solution. The combination with IBM's worldwide service network creates synergies that provide tremendous value to customers regardless of industry”.

At the HANNOVER MESSE, the two partners will explain the concept behind the joint solution at EMKA stand D30 in Hall 12 on April 2. EMKA owner Friedhelm Runge welcomes the General Manager DACH from IBM, Matthias Hartmann.

 

The following link will take you to IBM's press release: https://www-03.ibm.com/press/de/de/pressrelease/54884.wss

PDF: DE / EN