Case Study: AKRF achieves uninterrupted business continuity during Hurricane Sandy with Barracuda SSL VPN (Barracuda Networks)

AKRF, Inc. relies on Barracuda SSL VPN during Hurricane Sandy

AKRF is a New York–based environmental consulting firm with about 250 employees and five IT staff that relies on data‑ and graphics‑intensive CAD and GIS workflows. Remote access had been difficult: staff either had to work on‑site or use time‑consuming loaner laptops (about two hours to set up) with complex licensing, limited bandwidth that risked data corruption, and fragile continuity—issues that were amplified during major disruptions like Hurricane Sandy.

AKRF deployed the Barracuda SSL VPN to provide RDP access to on‑premises workstations (their “Matrix”), letting any PC or Mac act as a terminal to HQ machines so software and databases stay centralized. The change preserved data integrity, cut corporate laptop maintenance by roughly 50%, simplified licensing, and allowed staff to keep working during Hurricane Sandy via a disaster‑recovery site. The result: uninterrupted operations in a crisis, easier remote access, reduced IT overhead, and improved employee work‑life balance.

AKRF

Todd Biggins

Applications manager