Best Practices in Data Backup for Your Architectural or Engineering Firm

Engineers and architects will tell you that their data storage and management needs are vastly different from nearly any other type of business — and they’re right. The massive file sizes, the need for intricate backups and versioning and quick-access requirements make defining a backup and recovery structure a challenge for any IT department. Creating a solution that ticks all the boxes and ensures compliance can be exorbitantly expensive, especially for an in-house technology team. Here are some suggestions for keeping your files securely tucked away, yet easily accessible when you need them.

How Much Does Data Backup Cost?

As with nearly any technology project, there are ranges of costs that you can encounter with a data backup and recovery program. Depending on the size and structure of your data, whether you decide to go with an on-premise or cloud-based solution, and whether you archive or backup your data (or both!) are all factors that will be a part of the pricing conversation. What’s important to note is that there is a very tangible cost associated with not employing a data backup solution: and thousands of companies pay that price every year. With GDPR and other compliance requirements in full effect, the cost of missing data continues to skyrocket for organizations.

What Type of Problems Do You Have with Data Backups?

Users often complain about the quality of data storage and backups, and that’s especially important when you consider the highly intricate and detailed drawings that engineering and architectural firms require for their daily work. Complaints such as the difficulty in accessing information from a remote location, or the challenges with ensuring that you are always looking at the most recent version of a file are not uncommon. These issues can be handled cleanly with the right technology partner supporting your data architecture and storage needs. Rigorous de-duplication of your data helps protect the integrity of the information while keeping your data storage solution from becoming overwhelmed. Proactive data management and maintenance also aid the speed of searching — another key concern cited by users and administrators alike.

Another difficulty cited by many in-house IT departments is the ability to quickly failover their phone systems in the event of heavy storms or other emergencies. With business continuity planning in place, teams are able to quickly utilize the advanced features of SD-WAN to protect the integrity of your vital business communications systems.

On-Prem v. Cloud-Based Data Backups

On-premise solutions do require additional power, cooling and space requirements which may be difficult depending on your physical location. However, they do offer near-immediate access to your data in a way that facilitates immediate transfer regardless of the file size. Cloud-based solutions may be more flexible, allowing your team to maintain data integrity while creating incremental backups of the data-intensive processes. Cloud-based storage provides other benefits, including:

• De-centralized, redundant storage
• Tightly managed security at data storage locations
• Ability to quickly scale up or down based on changing business needs
• Economical option as you’re only paying for the storage that is actively in use

Data backups provide your team with the peace of mind knowing that their critical files will not be lost in the event of a fire, flood, cybersecurity breach or other disasters.

Review of Data Storage and Backup Solution

Architectural and engineering files are not the only considerations in your data backup strategy — you also must keep in mind the critical communication content that allows you to stay in touch with customers, staff members, and vendors. Without adequate phone system coverage, your organization is at a heavy risk of lost productivity due to human error and cybercrime as well as natural disasters. With the AllWorx alwaysUP Disaster Recovery Services, Centerpoint IT proactively manages your phone systems for emergencies such as sudden storms, leaping into action to rapidly restore your communications infrastructure in the event of an outage.

Who Offers the Best Data and Telephony Backup Solutions in Atlanta?

At Centerpoint IT, our team has put together the best data backup solutions in Atlanta, providing safe, secure data management and archiving for data-intensive businesses. Dropped calls and poor call quality are the hallmarks of a telephony system that needs to be fine-tuned, including the addition of SD-WAN backups. While broadband internet connections are considered “best in class”, VoIP still doesn’t offer the call quality of a direct line. It requires the addition of SD-WAN to make the real-time adjustments that improve call quality overall.

Similarly, traditional data backup solutions may provide the base functions that you need, but without the enhancements that help keep your business operations flowing smoothly. If you’re looking for the best data and telephony backup solutions in Atlanta, GA, look no further than Centerpoint IT — where we make IT simple for you. Contact us today at (404) 777-0147 for your free complimentary consultation or to learn more about our backup and disaster recovery solutions for data and telephony.