Ferriere Nord – Gruppo Pittini

Uninterrupted Servicies: Efficiency Starts in the Data Center

The Pittini Group relies on the consultancy of VEM Sistemi and on Schneider Electric solutions for the setup of a new reliable Data Center, ensuring Business Continuity.

The Pittini Group is an Italian leader in the production of low-carbon long steel products for construction and industry. With 13 plants in 3 countries, the group produces over 2 million tons of steel per year, covering the entire cycle from scrap to finished product—a process that allows for high-quality standards. The choice of low-carbon steel aligns with energy efficiency and environmental sustainability, in a production model where recycling plays a crucial role in all stages.

The group, with over 1,200 employees, is headquartered in Osoppo (UD), at a campus where a new Data Center was recently built to serve the ICT needs of all other locations and facilities, delivering all services centrally. This approach reflects the group’s Information Systems organization and its chosen management model: a centralized, high-performance, highly reliable Data Center with zero downtime, supporting operations across offices and production sites. This objective was achieved also thanks to VEM Sistemi, chosen by the group to build the new IT environment, where all supporting infrastructure—racks, UPS systems, air conditioning and power distribution—complies with Business Continuity requirements. VEM, a company specialized in ICT consulting for business support, designed and provided the Pittini Group companies with a technology platform based on Schneider Electric solutions, ensuring uninterrupted service availability and unprecedented operational impact.

The opportunity to create a dedicated Data Center room came with the construction of a new office building at the Osoppo campus, which included a dedicated space designed with the best technologies and infrastructure to fully leverage a tailor-made project. “The Pittini Group generates just under one billion euros in annual revenue,” says Cristiano Di Paolo, Head of Information Systems. “Our production plants operate 24/7, the logistics and shipping departments for 15 hours a day—not only in Osoppo, but across all group companies in Italy and abroad. Any Data Center downtime would impact the entire organization.” More than 600 users across the group’s companies are connected to IT systems and use enterprise resources and services. “None of us can afford a Data Center failure—it must always be active and performant.”

In such a scenario, even a migration from an old to a new infrastructure can pose problems if not supported by a Data Center architecture that enables a seamless transition and minimizes risks. In this phase, collaboration between the Pittini Group’s team—Di Paolo and colleagues Davide Bronzin and Massimo Di Lenardo—and VEM Sistemi technicians made the difference, delivering a successful project.

The original Data Center had already been enhanced with redundancy as part of an investment that provided two parallel infrastructures—so that in case of failure, the redundant one could automatically take over network management. That setup already included a Schneider Electric UPS, now replaced with a Symmetra PX All-In-One 16kW (N+1) system, scalable up to 48 kW. The existing InRow RD cooling system was doubled to guarantee (2N) redundancy, ensuring the Data Center remains in optimal conditions. “We took advantage of designing the Data Center from scratch to add several architectural improvements,” adds Di Paolo, “starting from two separate power lines ending in two isolation transformers, the air conditioning system, and seismic isolators supporting the structure.” This technique, typically used in operating rooms, protects server rooms from electrical discharges and stray currents. The space was dimensioned to allow a future doubling of equipment, increasing reliability to a 2(N+1) level.

From an energy efficiency perspective, the new Data Center is aligned with the same principles used in the new office building, which adopts advanced technologies like cogeneration using plant water for heating, and the use of natural aquifers beneath the headquarters for cooling. “The choice of Schneider Electric’s InRow cooling system, which cools only the critical hot spots and not the entire room, reflects our philosophy of maximum efficiency and environmental respect,” says Di Paolo. “Even though it accounts for just a portion of overall company energy consumption, the Data Center is part of our broader effort to eliminate energy waste.”

Everything is housed within an InfraStruxure Data Center containment system, which integrates power and cooling, and allows for the assembly of standard components into modular, flexible, and easily expandable configurations. “With Schneider Electric’s solution, we were able to optimize space and manage details such as cabinet cabling via top-mounted conduits, avoiding underground placement,” Di Paolo highlights. This setup simplifies future reconfiguration and speeds up interventions, reducing errors thanks to the organized cabling layout. “With Schneider Electric best practices and internal skills, we gained complete control over the Data Center’s components, labeling every cable and optimizing cabinet-to-cabinet transitions. This not only benefits current operations, but will make future changes much easier.”

The new Data Center’s aesthetic appearance also reflects its functionality, efficiency, and orderly cabling. “The result is very satisfying visually as well—an outcome of the attention given to the project and the overall system efficiency,” Di Paolo continues.

Once the new space was ready, data migration was carried out, gradually moving all services from the old to the new infrastructure, again with the help of VEM Sistemi. “After months of testing, simulating data transfer speeds and migration techniques, we moved systems and storage over a single weekend, migrating the group’s network core live,” Di Paolo adds. The operation, carefully planned down to the smallest detail and despite some unforeseen events overcome thanks to team experience, allowed Pittini Group to launch a new phase with a future-ready infrastructure. “VEM is a partner with whom we’ve built a valuable relationship—starting with a request for a new UPS, and evolving into a major project,” concludes Di Paolo. “Their attention to planning, responsiveness to our specific needs, and the ability to discuss technical aspects with highly competent specialists led to a partnership that is now extending into other activities, to the benefit of both parties.”