Data recovery and information technology (IT) are neglected areas for small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa, owing to a lack of capital for such programs.

Turnkey IT and telecoms provider Reflex Solutions launched a business continuity centre, in Randburg, in September, with a 64 000 virtualised server capacity targeted at SMEs to deal with the challenge.

“We have invested about R500 000 to set up the centre and already have other equipment on our premises to support the initiative. It took us a year to set up the system, as the technology [needed to be tested] to ensure a high level of efficiency,” says Reflex Solutions MD Greg Wilson.

The 20-seat syndicated centre, with live synchronisation, provides clients with a disaster recovery service and data backup, which provides security and business continuity during times of disaster or shutdown.

Wilson says clients can choose to have exclusive seats or shared seats, depending on clients’ needs and the size of the companies.

“In the event of a telecoms disaster, where telephone lines are dysfunctional, clients’ calls get directed to our business continuity centre. This is while we wait for the client to dispatch its staff to our premises to resume work, without the client having to lose on business.

“The centre has the necessary infrastructure, including a data centre, generators and uninterrupted power supply 24/7,” he says.

Reflex Solutions says the centre can be used for downtime tests or when clients’ offices are undergoing renovations. “The centre can also be used in the event of clients needing more space for temporary employees to run additional campaigns,” he says.

The company tapped into this market because there was no provider of such services to SMEs. “Our mission is to improve the end user’s experience through a turnkey IT solution in the SMEs market, which is technologically neglected,” he says.

“Depending on clients’ requirements, the company has the capacity to back up clients’ data on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. When companies have data recovery and business continuity abilities, they avoid losses during failures. This is due to the ability to conduct their business even when faced with unforeseen circumstances at their premises,” says Wilson.

Reflex Solutions says launching the centre is part of its business growth strategy.

“Currently, we have two of our existing clients using the system and, so far, no disaster has occurred, but we are confident of our technical abilities to recover the data, while providing them with premises and infrastructure to continue doing business,” he says.

To ensure the correct diagnosis of clients’ IT and telecoms systems, the company provides a system audit to locate technology weaknesses before recommending the appropriate solution.

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