Source: Intel.com

Graham’s the Family Dairy, a renowned Scottish dairy, integrated Intel vPro platform manageability features into their existing PC fleet to optimize farm operations. This transformation maximized IT support capabilities for dispersed endpoints, enhancing the efficiency of their global production and distribution network.

Summary: Graham’s Streamlines Farm Operations

Founded in 1939 by Robert Graham in Bridge of Allen, Stirlingshire, Graham’s the Family Dairy stands as Scotland’s largest independent dairy farm. After three generations, it remains family-owned, known for its award-winning dairy products enjoyed locally and globally.

Ranked as the #2 “Most Chosen Scottish Brand” in 2022, Graham’s is a household name in Scotland, with products available in supermarkets, cafes, restaurants, and via door-step delivery. The IT department, consisting of just two people, supports the technology needs of 200 employees, over 85 partner farms, and an extensive global distribution network.

“Intel vPro was another tool in our toolset and, for us, it turned out to be an invaluable one.”

Daniel Baird, Head of IT, Graham’s the Family Dairy

Amidst continued growth and limited IT resources, Graham’s recognized an opportunity to revolutionize their technology infrastructure. Having standardized their workforce on Intel vPro® platform PCs, they leveraged hardware-based remote manageability tools: Intel® Active Management Technology (Intel® AMT) and Intel® Endpoint Management Assistant (Intel® EMA). These features enable the IT team to address technical issues remotely in real-time, reducing downtime and maintaining productivity as the brand expands and therefore optimize farm operations.

The Challenge: Growing Business with Limited IT Resources

Global dairy operations today face significant challenges, including supply chain management, food safety, and timely delivery. Connected PC infrastructure is crucial for controlling milk flow, printing shipping labels, and transmitting data to handheld devices used by delivery personnel. With partner farms and customers spanning Scotland and reaching as far as Hong Kong and Singapore, Graham’s IT team of two faced unsustainable pressures providing manual tech support across the network.

Daniel Baird, Head of IT at Graham’s, emphasized the essential role of PCs in nearly all production and distribution aspects. Frequent travel to various facilities for endpoint management was taxing and inefficient. Baird identified the need for a cost-effective, easy-to-manage, and sustainable remote management solution to manage all devices centrally, enhance network security, and ensure consistency across the PC fleet.

Solution: Activating Intel vPro® Platform Manageability Features

Standardizing workforce PCs on the Intel vPro platform positioned Graham’s to activate remote manageability tools: Intel AMT and Intel EMA. Intel AMT provides persistent out-of-band connectivity, allowing fixes to system issues even when the OS is down. Intel EMA adds mobile flexibility to manage devices remotely and securely from the cloud. These tools were integrated with Graham's existing systems to enable remote management of PC endpoints in production facilities far from the IT office, helping to optimize farm operations.

“With Intel EMA software and Intel AMT, we can resolve problems quicker from wherever we are.”

Daniel Baird, Head of IT, Graham’s the Family Dairy

Results: Around-the-Clock Remote IT Support

Activating Intel AMT and Intel EMA boosted productivity and reduced costs for Graham’s. Remote real-time response to technical issues minimized employee downtime, supporting business demands efficiently. Reduced need for IT team travel translated to significant cost savings and streamlined system troubleshooting. For instance, when a depot PC controlling milk flow went down, Intel AMT and Intel EMA enabled remote access and resolution, avoiding costly delays and loss of sales.

The improved manageability features allowed the IT team to focus on strategic initiatives like Robotic Process Automation for more efficient order entry and record-keeping.

Conclusion: A New Era of Endpoint Management

For Graham’s, the Intel vPro platform was a pivotal investment, enhancing remote manageability and supporting business growth. High performance, stability, and reliability from the Intel vPro platform facilitated a seamless IT transformation, enabling the business to adapt to remote and hybrid working effectively.

What is the Intel vPro Platform?

PCs powered by the Intel vPro platform are built for business, offering professional-grade performance, multilayer security, modern remote management, and reliable stability. Intel Active Management Technology and Intel Endpoint Management Assistant simplify remote IT support, reducing disruption for employees and enhancing overall business efficiency.

Graham´s The Family Dairy Experience: Optimize Farm Operations

Graham’s the Family Dairy, Scotland’s largest independent dairy farm, integrated Intel vPro platform remote manageability features to optimize IT support for dispersed endpoints. This transformation enhanced their global operation's efficiency, ensuring continued growth and productivity amidst increasing business demands.