Press Room

15 July 2010

The Architect Registration Board Build A Relationship With Databarracks

The Architects Registration Board is the body set up by Parliament as the independent UK regulator of architects. Anyone who is involved in designing and constructing buildings and describes themselves as an architect must be registered with ARB.

ARB’s responsibilities are set out in the 1997 Architects Act and include, amongst others, deciding what qualifications are required to become an architect, keeping the UK register of architects, setting standards for education and professional practice, and investigating complaints about an architect’s conduct or competence.

With these statutory obligations to deliver to stakeholders that include over 33,000 architects, consumers, and schools of architecture, ARB considers the uptime of IT systems and security of data to be vital. A lack of confidence in data backup systems that rely on tape storage media and are susceptible to human error led ARB to seek alternatives. An automated online backup solution appeared to be the most logical to ensure that ARB's IT systems and data were being protected by a dependable, robust and cost efficient service. After substantial research into prospective suppliers and reviewing their Disaster Recovery (DR) requirements, ARB consulted Databarracks for guidance.

ARB is a public interest body that collects and processes significant quantities of personal, confidential and sensitive data as part of its day-to-day business activities. Deploying a system with a high level of security was therefore essential and fulfilling this demand was the initial challenge for Databarracks. Other requirements included removing the potential for human error whilst remaining within the organisation’s testing Recovery Time Objectives (RTO).

With all of this in mind, Databarracks proceeded to design, recommend and package a solution that would enable ARB to completely remove any human interaction in the backup process. Backups are encrypted to military standards, they run automatically without the need for the physical removal and storage of backup media, and are backup operations which are constantly monitored by the Databarracks support team.

ARB is now reassured that backups of critical servers including File/Print, Exchange and SQL are monitored round the clock by consummate professionals. The backup solution, centred around Databarracks’ Asigra-based software, seamlessly integrated with ARB’s Windows- and Linux-based platforms, ensures complete and comprehensive coverage.

Karen Holmes, ARB’s Deputy Registrar said, “as an organisation with limited IT resources, we were keen to outsource this important but often mundane and time-consuming process to dedicated professionals. Since the service was deployed, our IT staff has been less strained, allowing us to focus on adding value to the organisation as well as bolstering our Business Continuity. Like any other business, the financial implications of receiving an enterprise level of service might have raised a few eyebrows; but with Databarracks’ completely transparent, fixed monthly rate model, we have found it easy to build this into our expenditure plans. We find the service to be excellent value for money.

« Back to Company News