The Challenge

Headquartered in the Midwest, a global logistics provider helps companies expand market access through worldwide supply chain management. With over 2,000 employees across 100+ locations in Asia, Europe, and North America, the organization provides freight, customs, and logistics services for industries from retail to manufacturing.

After years of growth and multiple acquisitions, the company’s legacy IBM iSeries-based systems and outsourced data center infrastructure were limiting scalability and agility. The organization needed to unify its technology stack across regions and enable faster onboarding of new acquisitions—without compromising security or compliance with local data regulations.

Key challenges included:

• Scalability constraints: Legacy physical infrastructure couldn’t keep up with rapid expansion and new global acquisitions
• High operational costs: Hardware maintenance, software licensing, and third-party disaster recovery added unnecessary expense
• Integration complexity: Legacy iSeries systems were difficult to connect with modern cloud workloads
• Performance reliability: Remote offices required consistent access to applications with low latency
• Future readiness: The organization needed a global, compliant platform capable of supporting containerization and modern DevOps practices

Recognizing the need to modernize, the logistics provider chose AWS as the foundation for its future growth.

The Solution

After evaluating multiple cloud partners, the logistics provider selected UTurn Data Solutions, an AWS Advanced Tier Consulting Partner, to design and execute the migration. UTurn’s experience in large-scale enterprise migrations and AWS Well-Architected frameworks made them an ideal partner to deliver the project on a tight timeline.

To accelerate the process and minimize costs, UTurn leveraged the AWS Migration Acceleration Program (MAP), securing AWS funding to cover key migration phases: Assess, Mobilize, and Migrate & Modernize.

Phase 1: Assessment and Planning

UTurn began with a detailed Optimization and Licensing Assessment (OLA) to evaluate compute, networking, storage, and licensing costs across on-premises and AWS environments.

Key findings included:

• The logistics provider’s infrastructure was 99% Microsoft-based, including SQL Server and SharePoint under an Enterprise Agreement
• By consolidating servers and repurposing licenses, UTurn identified $15,000/month in potential savings ($180,000 annually)
• Developed a comprehensive migration plan for 181 servers, organized into seven “waves” over a two-week cadence, each including detailed workload priorities and progress tracking

Phase 2: Mobilization and Proof-of-Concept

One of the biggest concerns was latency between the existing iSeries systems and the workloads migrating to AWS. UTurn designed a Proof of Concept (PoC) connecting the iSeries to key AWS application servers.

The results were better than expected: latency between iSeries and AWS workloads was lower than latency within the provider’s on-prem data center, validating AWS as a viable and superior platform.

Phase 3: Migration and Modernization

Starting in April 2021, UTurn completed the migration of all 181 servers across seven waves—three weeks ahead of schedule.

Key activities included:

• Designing and deploying Terraform-based AWS environments for automation and repeatability.
• Migrating mission-critical Windows-based workloads and databases to AWS.
• Implementing performance and monitoring optimizations aligned with AWS best practices.

After the initial migration, the logistics provider continued working with UTurn through the Architect-in-Residence (AiR) program to extend AWS capabilities internally. This included Terraform training and enablement, DevOps enablement sessions, and ongoing architecture guidance to support application modernization and cost optimization.

Application Modernization – Panther Logistics Integration

Following a recent acquisition, the logistics provider asked UTurn to modernize an on-premises application from the acquired logistics division. UTurn applied the same MAP framework to assess, containerize, and migrate the app to AWS—updating its database schemas and data access layers for cloud-native performance. This modernization reduced maintenance effort, improved deployment speed, and simplified integration into the provider’s unified AWS environment.

Tech Stack:

AWS EC2 · AWS Landing Zone · AWS CloudWatch · AWS IAM · Terraform · Amazon RDS · AWS MAP Framework · AWS DMS · Docker Containers · Rocketry Rapid Launch · Architect-in-Residence (AiR)

Measurable Results

The logistics provider’s migration and modernization delivered tangible business and technical outcomes across performance, cost, and agility:

• 15% reduction in IT infrastructure operating costs through server consolidation, license optimization, and resource automation.
• $180,000 annual cost savings identified during the OLA phase and implemented post-migration.
• Eliminated the need for a third-party disaster recovery solution, further reducing ongoing costs.
• Improved application performance and reduced latency between systems—even across regions.
• Accelerated onboarding of new acquisitions and office locations through Infrastructure-as-Code (Terraform).
• Reduced provisioning and deployment time from days to minutes.
• Increased ability to scale workloads and applications on demand.
• Empowered internal teams through hands-on training and DevOps enablement.
• Simplified governance and security oversight via AWS Landing Zone architecture.

“UTurn’s expertise and partnership were key to making our global cloud migration a success. Their team not only delivered the project ahead of schedule but also helped us strengthen our long-term AWS strategy.”

– IT Leadership Team

Why UTurn

The global logistics provider selected UTurn for its AWS-certified expertise, structured MAP methodology, and ability to deliver large-scale migrations on time and on budget. Through deep collaboration and technical rigor, UTurn turned the organization’s migration into a catalyst for ongoing transformation—helping them build a scalable, secure, and modern foundation for continued growth and global expansion.

UTurn’s Architect-in-Residence (AiR) and Rocketry Rapid Launch programs continue to provide the logistics provider with ongoing guidance, training, and best practices to maximize cloud performance and realize new opportunities for innovation.

Ready to modernize your infrastructure and accelerate business growth? Partner with UTurn to build scalable, AWS-powered environments that unlock cost savings, agility, and long-term value.