Partnering to set up and manage the cloud landing zone at scale

Solvay is an advanced materials and specialty chemicals company with over €10 billion in revenue in 2019. Solvay has selected Rappit as the global partner for its Google Cloud Operations. Setting up and managing its Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) “landing zone”. Next to the support, maintenance, and enhancement of all of its applications on the Google Cloud Platform. The result is a full end-to-end service delivery on Google Cloud from applications development and maintenance to cloud operations activities.

10x
Scale up of cloud projects
24/7
Global support & monitoring
100+
Applications migrated to the new landing zone

Their challenges

  • An increasing number of digital Google Cloud applications, not able to scale to operate. Each of these applications being built without centralized sharing of best practices & processes.
  • Manual creation and maintenance of cloud resources at a large scale for the various service lines in the company became cumbersome and time-consuming.
  • Need for accountability driven policies and user action traceability to ensure security and cost control.

 

  • Auditing was complex as the applications were scattered, without domain-specific grouping.
  • Need for standard monitoring and alerting policies on various levels like infrastructure, application, network, and security to detect threats and vulnerabilities and mitigate them.
  • Need for a highly-trained operations team that can provide 24*7 support and ensure service availability for mission-critical applications.

Our solutions

  • Establish a partnership with one vendor for full end-to-end service delivery on GCP from applications development, and maintenance to cloud operations.
  • Move from many scattered landing zones to one centrally professionally set-up and
    managed GCP landing zone where ‘security by design’ is the starting point.
  • Simplify and automate infrastructure provisioning and ensure infrastructure consistency through Infrastructure as Code (IaC).

 

  • Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) processes. Define and implement organization governance policies as part of the landing zone design.
  • Proper design and implementation of network architecture.
  • Implementation of mature monitoring tools that provide detailed insights and alerting on production security and performance.
  • Migrate all the 100+ apps built on GCP, as well as Tableau and Dataiku, to the new landing zone to cover them under the security and operations policies.

“We have selected Rappit as a strategic choice because of their expertise, comitment to quality, and agility in the Google Cloud service offering. We see this as a true partnership from both sides in which we can jointly build innovative solutions with quality and manage them in a professional way.”

Li-Lian Tan DevOps and Cloud Applications Services Manager, Solvay

Results

  • The centralized landing zone delivers significant consolidation, standardization opportunities, and contributes to Solvay’s Digital Transformation process.
  • Enterprise-wide security, resource visibility and utilization across workloads leading to improved security and an integral (hosting) cost reduction.

 

  • Significant improvement in service levels through 24*7 global support to do monitoring, preventive maintenance and follow-up on any potential disruptions.

Enabling 10x scale up of cloud projects

A short clip from the interview with Jennifer Vink (Google Cloud) and Li-Lian Tan Tellier (Solvay) explaining the cloud transformation journey of Solvay with the use of the cutting-edge technology of Google Cloud, with the help of Rappit.

Solvay

Solvay is a global leader in advanced materials and specialty chemicals, committed to developing chemistry that addresses key societal challenges. Innovation is a vital part of the company’s DNA and has been connecting people and scientific minds for 156 years. Headquartered in Brussels and employs over 24,500 employees in 62 countries.

Solvay’s products are used in planes, cars, batteries, smart and medical devices, and in mineral and oil and gas extraction, enhancing efficiency and sustainability. Its lightweight materials promote cleaner mobility, its formulations optimize resource use, and its performance chemicals improve air and water quality. Founded in 1863, Solvay today ranks among the world’s top three companies for the vast majority of its activities and delivered net sales of over €10 billion in 2019. Solvay is listed on Euronext Brussels (SOLB) and Paris and in the United States, where its shares (SOLVY) are traded through a Level I ADR program.

Curious how we can enhance your digital journey?