Management & Training Turns to Small Tree GraniteSTOR

For nearly 30 years, Management & Training Corporation (MTC) has been providing life changing opportunities via its successful job training program through the federal government’s Job Corps. Since 1987, MTC has also offered rehabilitative educational opportunities at privatized correctional facilities across the country. Part of the company’s continued growth can be attributed to its proactive marketing efforts, which includes an in-house video production department generating marketing tools the company distributes to existing and potential clients.

With three workstations running Final Cut simultaneously, and a fourth for graphic design using shared assets, project management had become a major issue for MTC’s video production unit as piles of external drives were daisy-chained across the facility. To eliminate copying files from one workstation to another, MTC installed Small Tree‘s complete GraniteSTOR shared storage solution, GraniteSTOR ST-RAID, a robust direct attached shared storage system designed specifically for Final Cut users looking for economical, functional and easy to manage storage technology, PEG6, a 6-port Ethernet card, and Edge-corE ES4528V, a 28-port Gigabit Ethernet switch. In addition to the Small Tree technology, MTC installed Final Cut Server.

"After installing Small Tree’s GraniteSTOR system we now can manage our projects much more efficiently without having to run external drives back and forth," said Dale Bradshaw, director of communications for MTC. "Our editors have all of the footage and assets they need right at their fingertips."

MTC recently switched to Panasonic P2 cameras to maximize the quality of the company’s training and marketing videos, along with the video magazines it produces each year to highlight best practices and latest developments of interest to its two main divisions. The switch to the P2 cameras facilitated the need to implement a system that could seamlessly handle HD footage without dropping frames.  

"We looked at the Apple Xsan originally, but it was too cost prohibitive," Bradshaw continued. "As an Ethernet-based system, GraniteSTOR saved us a tremendous amount of money. Rather than having to overhaul our entire infrastructure, all we needed to do was run some additional cable; for the most part, we just used the CAT6 cable that was already in the wall. It prevented a huge headache and was a big cost saver."

Each day, MTC helps tens of thousands of Job Corps students and correctional facility inmates to learn new skills. MTC’s track record has made it the U.S. Department of Labor’s largest contractor and the third largest operator of adult private prisons. MTC’s experience and fiscal strength allow it to consistently exceed the expectations of government customers and the public.