HP customer case study: Global manufacturer turns to HP Thin Clients
Industry: Manufacturing
Global operations made easier with HP
Lifetime Products uses HP Thin Clients to improve workplace security and efficiency
Lifetime “Using HP Thin Clients helps us achieve our business goals and provide
Products a secure, standardized platform while maintaining a lower total cost of
ownership.”
– John Bowden, CIO, Lifetime Products
When John Bowden became CIO of Lifetime Products,
he recognized that reducing the cost of technology Objective:
ownership and standardizing the company’s Lifetime Products sought to reduce overall cost of
computing equipment were necessary to help make the technology ownership and standardize the
Utah-based company more competitive. He also company’s computing equipment.
wanted to create a more secure companywide
computing environment. Approach:
“We were looking for the best fit, a solution that would Company acquired 500 HP Thin Clients, with
help us meet our goals while providing enhanced plans to add more units to replace nearly all
security,” says Bowden. “With our double-digit annual existing desktop PCs.
growth, we also needed an agile, scalable solution.
HP Thin Clients met all of our needs.” IT improvements:
• Increased network efficiency reduces service time
• Reduced hardware maintenance
• Centralized control of network-based
applications
• Reduced maintenance costs
• Longer life cycle for technology hardware
Business benefits:
• Secure computing platform reduces outside
threats
• Improved business efficiency via standardized
platform
• Reduction of duplicate data and applications
• Lower cost of ownership

Customer Efficiency, reliability, security Bowden’s pitch to management emphasized the value
Unlike standard desktop PCs, HP Thin Clients do not of centralized control of software, files and
at a glance have hard drives, nor do they have programs installed applications; savings on maintenance and support;
About Lifetime Products on the device. Instead, software is installed on a easy setup and deployment; reduced user-support
Lifetime Products is the world’s network server. Employees are granted access to requirements; longer hardware life cycles; and remote
largest manufacturer of
polyethylene folding tables, chairs applications via IT administration. management of all devices.
and picnic tables. It is also the
world’s largest maker of residential The IT efficiency benefits are substantial. Hardware To manage its HP Thin Clients, Lifetime Products relies
basketball equipment. The Utah- profiles are more streamlined, and there’s no need to on Altiris® Deployment Solution™, a standards- and
based company’s products can be
purchased around the globe from update applications on each device. Rather, all users web-based tool designed for use with all HP t5000
retailers in more than 50 countries. are updated simultaneously through the network server. series thin clients. This tool also helps accelerate setup,
For more information, visit with functions such as mass-deployment imaging and
www.lifetimeproducts.com.
“With HP Thin Clients, I can complete a system-wide
easy migration of user-specific data.
software update in less than a day,” Bowden notes.
“It’s a standardized platform – everything works the “Using HP Thin Clients helps us achieve our business
Contact the HP Customer
same. It used to take weeks to get everyone fully goals and provide a secure, standardized platform
Reference Program,
updated and on the same page, working through the while maintaining a lower total cost of ownership,”
281-514-5755, for more
glitches and hardware problems that certain PCs might says Bowden.
information.
encounter.”
Lifetime Products powers its network using several HP
Because HP Thin Clients operate only through an products, including HP ProCurve switches and wireless
internal network, they are considerably more secure access points.
than traditional desktop PCs. Users cannot install
High performance, small form factor
software on the terminal, nor can they infiltrate the
The HP Compaq t5720 is equipped with a low-power,
network.
high-performance AMD Geode™ NX 1500 processor,
“There are a lot of malicious programs and files lurking designed to deliver desktop-like features and support
around on the Web,” Bowden notes. “You also have for local applications. Each HP Thin Client device is
the issue of unauthorized people accessing a PC and equipped with Flash memory and 512 MB of DDR
tampering with sensitive data, either in the office or RAM to support multiple applications running
remotely. The likelihood of these activities is greatly simultaneously.
reduced by using HP Thin Clients.”
Just 10 inches high, eight inches long and under three
Centralized control saves money inches in width, the space-saving form factor of the HP
As Bowden points out, however, replacing existing Thin Client makes it easy to position on a desktop,
desktop PCs with thin clients does require education under a desk or adjacent to a monitor.
and orientation to familiarize users with the unique
For added protection and ease of use, every HP
features inherent to thin client platforms.
Compaq t5720 device ships with Sygate Security
“When I presented the HP Thin Client solution to Agent preinstalled, making it easier for IT managers to
senior management, I really had to take the angle of a lock down user settings and parameters.
cultural shift within the company,” says Bowden. “It’s
definitely a unique, wide-sweeping alternative to
traditional computing. With HP’s support, I was able
to present the Thin Client solution as a definitive new
path in terms of secure, standardized computing.”
To learn more, visit www.hp.com
© 2007 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change
without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements
accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional
warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.
This customer’s results depended upon its unique business and IT environment, the way it used HP products and
services and other factors. These results may not be typical; your results may vary.
Altiris is a registered trademark, and Deployment Solution is a trademark of Altiris, Inc. in the United States and
other countries.
AMD, AMD Geode NX and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
4AA1-3686ENW, June 2007