AVA Augsburg: Secure and Compliant Storage Infrastructure for a Critical Infrastructure Company

Saving Resources, Generating Energy

“The environment in good hands.” Guided by this principle, AVA takes responsibility for the environment every day and ensures modern, sustainable, and safe waste recycling in the greater Augsburg area. In its own waste-to-energy plant, waste is disposed of safely and in an environmentally friendly manner, and valuable resources are recovered. After the incineration process, a large proportion of the ferrous and non-ferrous metals contained in the waste are recovered in the company’s slag processing plant and returned to the recycling loop. With the energy generated in the incineration process, AVA also makes an important contribution to a decentralized, environmentally friendly supply of electricity and heat.

Time Pressure in KRITIS Implementation

As a company operating in the municipal waste management sector, AVA will be required to comply with all provisions of the revised German Critical Infrastructure Regulation (KRITIS) by April 2026 at the latest. KRITIS is a German term for “critical infrastructure” and refers to organizations and facilities that are essential for maintaining vital societal functions, such as hospitals, water utilities, and municipal waste management companies. These entities are responsible for ensuring the continuity of daily life, even in disasters or emergencies.

With the latest amendment to the KRITIS Regulation, German lawmakers have established new frameworks and requirements for companies operating in these critical sectors. Notably, the revised regulation also applies to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), whereas previously only large organizations were affected.

This means AVA will have to meet stricter requirements, particularly in the area of cybersecurity, to safeguard operations and ensure the resilience of essential services.

In this context, AVA’s IT manager, Thomas Eberhard, worked with his team and external experts to develop a concept for a fundamental modernization of AVA’s IT landscape. “The goal was to make our IT KRITIS-compliant in a short period of time, taking into account the diverse operational requirements of the various divisions,” says Eberhard. The storage systems were also renewed as part of the infrastructure. The aim here was to introduce modern solutions that the IT team could manage easily and quickly, with a reasonable economic and personnel investment. “Our main concern was to establish a manageable and controllable storage environment,” says Eberhard.

Solution: All-Flash Storage as the Foundation of IT Modernization

After careful strategy development and planning, AVA sought the right modernization partner through a public tender process. “We started this shortly before Christmas 2024,” recalls Thomas Eberhard. “Our list of requirements was extensive and demanding, as we needed a solution that would meet both our technical and operational needs and comply with strict legal requirements.”

From this intensive application process, AVA selected Huawei and its long-standing partner esko-systems. The combination of Huawei’s innovative technology and esko’s expertise in implementation and operation was a winner. AVA chose two models from the Huawei OceanStor Dorado 5000 series, which serve as the basis for the new storage infrastructure and are designed as an active-active cluster system. This ensures that access to data continues seamlessly and without interruption for the user or application in the event of a storage device or service failure.

Another advantage of the Huawei solution was that it supports all common network protocols, such as Network File Share (NFS), Common Internet File System (CIFS), and Fibre Channel. “This means we will still be free to decide what we want to use in the future,” says Eberhard. esko-systems worked closely with AVA and Huawei to quickly set up the new storage environment. The decision was made to operate via NFS, which is more cost-effective than Fibre Channel and offers the same data throughput in properly configured networks.

Advantages: Efficiency, Scalability, and Sustainability

Huawei OceanStor systems are seamlessly integrated into AVA’s new IT infrastructure, which comprises around 150 virtual servers, various operating systems, SQL and Oracle databases, and several ERP systems. With 100 TB, the solution offers ample storage space. It can be scaled quickly and easily to accommodate future data growth driven by, for example, ongoing digitalization or the use of innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI). Another advantage is that data compression and deduplication are integrated into the Huawei solution as standard, which reduces storage requirements and increases efficiency.

Close cooperation with esko-systems also proved to be an advantage. The IT service provider’s extensive expertise in Huawei technologies and products contributed significantly to the rapid success of the project. In addition, Huawei’s support scores points for its customer focus and fast, uncomplicated assistance. “The collaboration between the manufacturer, system integrator, and us is running perfectly and ensures optimal processes for commissioning and managing the storage solutions,” says Eberhard.

Well-Equipped for the Digital Future

In line with its focus on sustainability and innovation, AVA’s IT is now more energy-efficient than before. Data compression and deduplication mean less hardware and space are required in the data center, reducing energy consumption. In addition, the durability and robustness of Huawei components support AVA’s sustainability goals.

With its new storage infrastructure, the company is now optimally positioned. Huawei OceanStor Dorado provides a reliable foundation for digital transformation and the use of data-intensive technologies such as generative AI. “It helps us operate our infrastructure in compliance with KRITIS requirements and is an important lever for our future viability,” Eberhard sums up.