Cremo: Transforming from Ransomware Attack to IT Excellence
Overhauling the IT Infrastructure in Just One Year
In the summer of 2022, Cremo fell victim to a ransomware attack that had a substantial impact on its operations. Through a close partnership with BNC, Cremo embarked on a remarkable journey to revamp its IT infrastructure swiftly. In the span of just a year, Cremo emerged from this crisis with a modern, secure IT environment. Leveraging the "IT Manager as a Service" program, Cremo successfully shifted its IT landscape from a complex mix of systems to standardized solutions. This transformation encompassed diverse areas, including network security, computing, and telecommunications.
Cremo SA
Cremo SA, headquartered in Villars-sur-Glâne, is a renowned Swiss company in the dairy processing industry and ranks among Switzerland's top dairies. The company is celebrated for its extensive range of high-quality dairy products, including butter, various dairy items such as milk, UHT cream, milk-based beverages, and yogurts. Furthermore, Cremo offers a diverse selection of hard and semi-hard cheeses like Gruyère AOP, Vacherin Fribourgeois AOP, and Raclette. In addition to these products, Cremo also manufactures various varieties of milk powder and protein concentrates that are utilized in the food industry, both domestically and abroad.
Cremo holds a prominent position in the Swiss corporate landscape and operates not only in Villars-sur-Glâne but also has production facilities in Sierre and Le Mont-sur-Lausanne.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
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Initial Situation
Over the years, IT at Cremo has transitioned from playing a mere supporting role to becoming a central component in both administration and production. However, the previous IT infrastructure was lacking scalability and, as a result, couldn't keep up with the growing demands.
"Prior to this transformation, our IT served more as a 'means to an end' rather than a strategic instrument. The increasing market and customer demand for data pooling presented us with the challenge of rapidly establishing a cutting-edge IT infrastructure, all while working with very limited resources, in order to swiftly implement application solutions that could meet these demands. It became evident quite swiftly that tackling this challenge alone was a formidable task. Therefore, we made the decision to enter into a strategic partnership with a company that not only possessed exceptional technical expertise but also had the required human resources. In this context, BNC provided invaluable support and successfully orchestrated and executed the entire transformation with their expert teams," said Pascal Fellay, Head of Finance and a member of the executive management at Cremo.
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Objective
Cremo SA, therefore, made the strategic decision to embark on a comprehensive modernization of its IT infrastructure to establish an efficient and reliable platform for its employees and customers, spanning across administration, logistics, and production.
Under the BNC "IT Manager as a Service" mandate, we initiated several key projects. These projects included the overhaul of the foundational infrastructure, which involved site and building cabling, the implementation of a Managed Print Service, and the development of a telephony successor solution. Furthermore, internal IT processes were meticulously examined and, when necessary, revamped. This encompassed the refinement of IT policies, on-call procedures, and the introduction of a ticketing tool.
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Approach
Nevertheless, even before these initiatives could be fully realized, in the summer of 2022, Cremo faced the repercussions of its outdated IT infrastructure. On a Friday afternoon, they became the target of a ransomware attack. All of their data was encrypted, and their operations could only be partially sustained. In collaboration with BNC and other external partners, Cremo made the strategic decision to expedite the revitalization of their IT infrastructure with the highest priority, following the restoration of the most critical services as temporary solutions.
"The network segmentation had been conceptualized prior to the ransomware attack. Thanks to this groundwork and the close collaboration between Cremo's proficient IT team and BNC, it was possible to completely rebuild the infrastructure and successfully implement the planned projects within a year," stated Erik Lüthi, Sales Director Bern at BNC.
The following projects were executed in record time:
- Complete reconstruction of the Active Directory, including onboarding to Microsoft 365.
- Establishment of a new virtualization cluster for all application servers.
- Network segmentation and introduction of firewalls between the networks.
- Upgrade to Windows 11 on all client devices.
- Replacement of the core network with the Aruba CX platform.
- Introduction of IT security policies and employee training.
- Implementation of an MDR Checkpoint solution.
In an impressively short period of only six months, Cremo managed to emerge from the crisis with a fully modernized and more secure IT infrastructure.
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Solution
Our Multi-Provider Solution
As IT Managers as a Service, we partner with highly skilled providers specializing in specific fields, enabling us to offer customized solutions tailored to the unique needs of our clients.
A compelling example of this approach is the modernization of the production facilities in Sierre, which are subject to extreme conditions such as high humidity and temperature fluctuations. These facilities must maintain seamless communication with the servers, demanding a reliable networking solution. BNC assumed the responsibility of promptly delivering the necessary network infrastructure to Cremoand the manufacturer of the production equipment. In close collaboration with Cremo, our project management team meticulously aligned with the precise requirements. Our Solutions Architect identified the requisite hardware, and our engineering team prepared the devices. The on-site installation and commissioning were executed smoothly in the final stages.
Conclusion
Following the ransomware attack in the summer of 2022, Cremo SA swiftly rejuvenated its IT infrastructure with the support of BNC. This comprehensive process encompassed migrating to Microsoft 365, establishing a virtualization cluster, implementing network segmentation, deploying firewalls, conducting Windows 11 upgrades, and introducing IT security policies.
"Cremo required a partner who comprehends the needs and transformations of a major dairy company and can efficiently and cost-effectively implement them. The cyberattack posed a significant challenge to Cremo. However, through mutual trust and the active participation of everyone in the Cremo-BNC IT team, the damage was mitigated," Erik Lüthi, Sales Director Bern at BNC, succinctly summarized.
Cremo emerged from this crisis strengthened, now equipped with a modern and secure IT infrastructure. The "IT Manager as a Service" mandate allowed Cremo to transition from a complex IT landscape to standardized solutions, with a particular focus on areas such as network security, computing, and telecommunications.
"The collaboration with BNC promptly provided us with a secure and efficient IT infrastructure, an achievement that would have taken significantly longer to realize with our internal resources alone. Moreover, the issues resulting from the cyberattacks could have had far more severe consequences for the company had we not tapped into BNC's resources," remarked Pascal Fellay, Head of Finance and a member of the executive management at Cremo.
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