Case Study: Dis-Chem achieves zero downtime and always-on dispensary and POS operations with Stratus Technologies ftServer

National South African Pharmaceutical Group Relies On Stratus To Ensure Dispensary And POS Solutions Are ALWAYS ON

Dis-Chem, a South African pharmacy chain with nearly 100 stores, was suffering frequent store-level IT downtime that disrupted payments, loyalty, inventory and dispensary systems. Remote failures required costly, time-consuming on-site repairs and hardware replacements, causing revenue loss, customer dissatisfaction and compatibility issues when servers were swapped.

Working with First Technology Group, Stratus replaced multiple store servers with ftServer platforms running VMware, using lockstep hardware and an Automated Uptime Software Layer that monitors 500+ components and supports hot‑swappable replacement units. The deployment eliminated downtime, protected revenue, simplified management and support, improved staff operations through remote monitoring, and will be rolled out to new stores as they open.

Dis-Chem

Kim Sim

Group IT & Projects Executive