Raritan Helps Data Centers Leverage ITSM Investment with New DCIM Connector for ServiceNow

SOMERSET, N.J., May 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Raritan, a leading provider of data center infrastructure management (DCIM) and rack power distribution solutions, today announced that its DCIM connector for ServiceNow is generally available.  Raritan is a ServiceNow Integration Partner.

"Data centers use DCIM, a subset of IT service management (ITSM), to manage their physical infrastructures, including assets, environment, power and network connections," says James Cerwinski, Director of Software at Raritan.  "Although DCIM and ITSM may be used independently, there is real value in tying the management of the physical data center to the general IT management framework.  By integrating the two, organizations can manage the workflow involved in changing servers and infrastructure elements more effectively, and gain more insight on IT services."

Raritan's bi-directional interface enables ServiceNow "change requests" to flow seamlessly into Raritan's DCIM change management and work order processes.  As a result, users can issue change requests from ServiceNow and monitor the status of these requests -- equipment adds and moves -- from start to completion.  The data center team has the ability to accept, modify, ask for clarification or reject "change requests".  Then issue a detailed work order with a rack elevation image, device specifications, power and network connection details, and placement information to ensure accurate installation by the data center operations technician.  This increases the efficiency and accuracy of the change process while ensuring a full electronic audit trail of all activity.

According to Gartner analysts April Adams and Federico De Silva, one of the "three areas where DCIM vendors will need to improve their offerings in response to, and anticipation of, evolving user needs in order to remain competitive is Enhanced Workflow Capabilities.  Currently considered a nice-to-have feature, the ability to integrate a DCIM solution with existing change management and incident management systems will soon be a requirement on the checklist with customers that want to get the full value from their DCIM solution.  Here, we look for the ability to generate a work order that indicates the rack and rack position where a device is to be installed, as well as what it will be connected to (such as power, LAN and cables) and, preferably, with clear installation instructions that can be assigned and automatically sent to a technician from within the software."*

As an open web-based solution, Raritan DCIM's workflow capabilities and connectors integrate well with ITSM software and operational support elements, such as CMDB, Service Desk, change-ticketing systems, and workflow engines.  By sharing information on processes and infrastructure, data centers gain more visibility into resources and improve workflow processes.

Learn how DCIM and ITSM work together and about Raritan DCIM.

About Raritan 
Raritan is a proven innovator of energy and infrastructure management solutions for data centers of all sizes.  In more than 50,000 locations worldwide, Raritan's award-winning hardware and software solutions – including intelligent rack PDUs and environment sensors; DCIM software; and KVM switch products – provide IT and facility directors, managers and administrators with the control they need to increase power management efficiency, improve data center productivity and enhance operations.  Based in Somerset, N.J., Raritan has offices worldwide serving customers in 76 countries.  Visit us at Raritan.com, RaritanDCIM.com, or follow us on the Raritan blog. 

Raritan is an active member of the Green Grid, Climate Savers Computing Initiative, and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design associations.  The EPA has recognized Raritan for its contribution to the agency's data center initiative.  A number of top industry analyst firms have recognized the company:  Raritan was named a "Cool DCIM Vendor" by Gartner; a "Major DCIM player worldwide" three times by IDC; a "Strong Value DCIM Vendor" by EMA; and, "Key DCIM player" by TechNavio.  Raritan's solutions have won numerous awards. 

^* Gartner "Market Trends: DCIM Product Managers Must Fine-Tune Tactics for a Changing Market", April Adams and Federico De Silva, March 6, 2015.

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SOURCE Raritan

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