Patrus and Harbor IT Partnership: Enabling Growth and Innovation
Patrus Transportes Urgentes is a company with 40 years of experience and success in the field of road freight distribution, handling both partial and full loads. It acts as a link between industry and retail, and in recent years has also begun connecting industry directly to end consumers, partnering with companies that engage in direct sales, such as Natura, Mary Kay, Jequití, and Dafiti.
Its headquarters are located in Contagem, Minas Gerais, but the company operates 74 branches across nine states in Brazil, with a presence in the South, Southeast, and Northeast regions.
In Patrus' line of business, efficiency in serving clients requires agility and security. This need extends beyond transportation tasks to encompass the company's entire IT system, ensuring that services can be properly managed and monitored. For the company's logistics to function seamlessly, impeccable technology is essential—for example, enabling the issuance of invoices within 24 hours.
Operating across the country, Patrus faces the significant challenge of maintaining a centralized IT environment that is simultaneously accessible and secure for users throughout Brazil. All of the company's IT services are generated and managed from its headquarters in Contagem but must be accessible to branches and remote users.
Unlike many companies, Patrus chose not to rely on closed networks, which are often more expensive and create dependency on a single provider. To meet its IT needs, a structure was developed to connect branches and users via the internet. This project, built on a Cisco platform, predates Harbor's founding but was developed by its co-founders, Sandra Ramos and André Mulato, who continue to maintain and update the entire environment.
With the infrastructure in place at Patrus, the company can select the best provider based on region and circumstances and integrate them into its WAN network. Harbor IT is responsible for the configurations, updates, and support of Patrus' secure WAN environment, adhering to the client's established guidelines and facilitating all processes.
Recent updates and the adoption of cloud-based application storage have made the challenge even greater, as access permissions via the cloud must function differently from those on-premises. However, with these system adaptations, Patrus' environment has become even more accessible and agile without compromising security, which remains a critical factor.
Testimonial from Manuel Landeiro – IT Manager at Patrus Transportes Urgentes
“Our partnership with Harbor IT began right when the company was founded. Four years ago, they took over control of our system with great success. Harbor gave us the security to grow. Sandra was already very familiar with our environment, and André possesses fantastic technological expertise. With this project developed and managed by Harbor, we achieved our ultimate goal: growth, increasing availability while maintaining security to prevent any unauthorized access. Within the same environment, Patrus has already doubled its operational size.
The idea for the project to be implemented was developed by Patrus itself, but the solution to make it feasible was entrusted to Harbor. We explored several companies in the market, but Harbor was one of the few that managed to meet 100% of our requirements from the start. In addition to continuing the work that was already underway, Harbor IT helped us improve in many ways: we started using cloud storage and implemented Office 365, for example.
Our system presented new demands that were promptly addressed by Harbor IT without deviating from the initial scope of our project. This was crucial to ensure we didn’t stagnate with an outdated system design. With Harbor’s help, we are constantly innovating and evolving.
For me, the key strengths of Harbor and its entire team lie in their availability, flexibility, and commitment to excellent service. They put themselves in the client’s shoes and seek effective solutions that align with the company’s reality and rules. In addition to their undeniable technical expertise, they truly understand what they’re doing.”