CDW's 'Tech Twister' Makeovers Transform Five Small Businesses with Technology from Intel, Lenovo and Linksys
Leading Technology Provider's Program Showcases Small Businesses Deploying New Technologies to Enhance Efficiency, Productivity and Customer Service
VERNON HILLS, Ill. - November 03, 2005 - CDW Corporation (NASDAQ: CDWC), a leading provider of technology products and services to business, government and education, today announced the winners of "Tech Twister," a technology makeover program designed for businesses with fewer than 100 employees. The CDW Tech Twister program demonstrates how technology can transform and enable small businesses to be more productive, competitive and responsive to their customers. Each makeover was valued at up to $75,000 in custom solutions that include wireless, desktop, server, networking and storage products and services from Intel Corp., Lenovo and Linksys.
2005 Tech Twister winners are:
- Blanton & Associates, Inc., an Austin-based provider of a broad range of environmental consulting, planning, and project management services
- E.L. Johnson Investigations, a Chicago-based provider of investigative services
- Flow Dynamics, a Scottsdale, Arizona-based state-of-the-art liquid and gas flowmeter calibration laboratory
- Laughing Seed, Inc. in Asheville, North Carolina
- Numoda Corp., a Philadelphia-based global drug development company
A special Web site with video and case studies showcases the benefits the Tech Twister winners have achieved from their new technology (www.cdw.com/techtwister). Makeover recipients say the technology they received has enhanced their companies' efficiency while reducing costs, improving productivity and streamlining their information sharing, scanning and printing capabilities.
Following the technology installations, CDW is continuing to support each winner with a dedicated account manager to continue to provide assistance with the company's evolving technology requirements. In addition, winners receive a host of free e-commerce and other services from CDW that all customers enjoy including 24x7 telephone technical support and access to CDW systems engineers in areas such as security, storage and networking.
"CDW created Tech Twister to shed light on how technology helps small businesses tilt the playing field in their favor by enabling them to bring products and services to market faster, uncover new opportunities and improve their ability to more effectively bid for bigger and better projects," said Adam Reiter, senior director of small business sales at CDW. "Tech Twister exemplifies our ongoing desire to be more responsive to customers' needs, allowing them to run more efficiently and serve their customers better."
Increased Productivity
Blanton & Associates' environmental consultants frequently produce large data-intensive field reports comprised of files shared across the network. Among other technology implementations, the installation of a new server simplifies report production, minimizes data access bottlenecks, and eases file transfer and document production. Prior to receiving the Tech Twister package of technology goods, transferring a large file and printing a report would take several hours. Now consultants can share information and create reports in less than one hour with zero downtime, enabling them to meet client deadlines more quickly than before.
Reduced IT Service Costs
E.L. Johnson sought to minimize system crashes, improve employees' productivity and increase business profitability with new technology. The wireless laptops, desktops, server, networking, and storage solutions provided by CDW featuring technologies from Intel, Linksys and Lenovo have helped the company reduce overtime and IT service costs and has markedly increased business efficiencies. Productivity has also improved. Employees can now access client databases from their own desktop, instead of from the one office PC that they previously shared for this task.
"We estimate that the new technology will save us $60,000 per year on an ongoing basis resulting from elimination of overtime, third-party IT support costs and increased employee productivity," said Stacey Johnson, executive vice president, E.L. Johnson Investigations. "The efficiencies gained from the makeover were a major factor in helping us win an important customer contract."
Increased Revenue
Flow Dynamics hoped to increase workflow efficiency and grow its business through IT improvements. The company needed tools to maximize customer relationships and increase productivity through process automation throughout the company. Wireless laptops received from CDW and its partners now help engineers perform analysis on the manufacturing floor and enable the mobile sales team to stay connected on the road. A new server allows collaboration among design engineers and provides more reliable data access for all employees. In the two months following receipt of the Tech Twister makeover, revenue increased 20 percent in new business driven by improved delivery time to customers.
"The flow meter industry average for throughput is about 10-15 days, but we've got it down to under five days and our customers love it," said Michael Wusterbarth, vice president of sales, Flow Dynamics. "We're on pace to double our business in the next year which we could not have done without the great products and services from CDW, Intel, Lenovo and Linksys."
Anytime, Anywhere Network Access
Laughing Seed has increased the efficiency and effectiveness of its daily business operations with the installation of a virtual private network (VPN) that allows staff to gain convenient and secure network access using a remote desktop connection from any computer, even from home. Network-attached storage (NAS) provides backup and saves time when accessing schedules, inventory reports and employee records. Wireless Internet access empowers staff to work throughout the restaurant and its offices, without being encumbered by phone lines, extra cords or external modems.
"We have noticed a significant reduction in time and expense as a result of the network and storage technology that CDW and its partners provided," said Mark Lindzy, Laughing Seed's dining room manager. "And our customers enjoy being able to surf the Web while they eat and socialize."
Improved Speed and Data Quality
Numoda's technology package has assisted the company in better integrating clinical trial procedures between all of its systems, groups, suppliers and participants. The upgraded technology from the CDW Tech Twister makeover has significantly increased computing power and wireless capabilities, essential qualities for a service provider that requires ample storage and server space for frequent number crunching and document management projects. Since the makeover, Numoda continues to deliver on its commitment to keep costs down while improving speed and data quality for the life science industry.
About Tech Twister
CDW created the Tech Twister makeover program as a platform to exchange lessons learned to improve the customer experience with small businesses, as well as to showcase the benefits available through new technologies. More that 1,300 small businesses participated by completing questionnaires about how they would benefit from a technology makeover. The Tech Twister program selected businesses with unique challenges and obstacles that could be solved through the deployment of new technologies. As part of the makeover, a Tech Twister consultant visited the selected companies to conduct a needs assessment, then developed a tailored solution based on each company's specific needs.
For a complete list of the winning Tech Twister technology solutions, go to www.cdw.com/techtwister.
About CDW
CDW® (NASDAQ: CDWC), ranked No. 347 on the FORTUNE 500, is a leading provider of technology products and services for business, government and education. CDW is a principal source of technology from top name brands such as Adobe, APC, Apple, Cisco, HP, IBM, Microsoft, Sony, Symantec, Toshiba and ViewSonic.
CDW was founded in 1984 and today employs approximately 4,100 coworkers. In 2004, the company generated sales of $5.7 billion. CDW's direct model offers one-on-one relationships with knowledgeable account managers; purchasing by telephone, fax, the company's award-winning CDW.com web site, customized CDW@work™ extranets, CDWG.com web site and macwarehouse.com web site; custom configured solutions and same day shipping; and pre- and post-sales technical support, with approximately 120 factory-trained and A+ certified technicians on staff.
Additional information can be found by visiting CDW.com.
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