Expanding Analytics Horizons: SAS Viya in Azure Cloud

Company Description

Relais Colis is a leading French company in the parcel delivery and logistics sector, specializing in deliveries to private customers and pick-up stations. To efficiently leverage ever-growing data volumes, the company increasingly relies on modern, cloud-based analytics platforms to optimize its logistics processes.

Project Description

The project entailed deploying SAS Viya in an Azure Cloud environment, representing a significant stride in cloud-based analytics for Relais Colis. My roles as a Cloud Architect and DevOps Engineer were instrumental in both the planning and execution phases. A robust Azure infrastructure was designed and scaled using Kubernetes and Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).

Team Size

The project was executed by an agile, 4-person team of experts, consisting of:

1 Cloud Architect: Responsible for infrastructure design, Azure provisioning, and security concepts.
1 DevOps Engineer: In charge of automation, Kubernetes deployment, CI/CD pipelines, and Terraform scripting.
1 Data Engineer: Focused on connecting data sources and integrating third-party tools.
1 Project Manager: Responsible for agile management and coordination with the client's business departments.

Tools & Technologies

SAS Viya Azure Cloud Kubernetes (AKS) Docker Helm Terraform Linux / Shell Git Azure Entra ID VPN / Cert-Manager

Project Task

The primary tasks included:

Azure Cloud Infrastructure Provisioning: Setting up the necessary cloud infrastructure in Azure for optimal performance and scalability.
Kubernetes-based Deployment: Utilizing Kubernetes (Azure AKS) for the deployment of SAS Viya, ensuring high availability and ease of management.
Secure Network & Integration: Establishing a VPN connection to seamlessly integrate local resources into the cloud environment, and implementing Azure Entra ID as the identity provider for secure access management.
Data & Third-Party Tools: Linking multiple data sources to SAS Viya for comprehensive analytics and seamlessly integrating various third-party tools to enhance platform functionality.

Results / Achievements

The project led to the following successful outcomes:

Robust Analytical Platform: Provision of a powerful, scalable SAS Viya environment within the Azure Cloud.
Integrated Infrastructure: Seamless connection of cloud and local resources via secure VPN connections.
Enhanced Data Accessibility: Connection of various data sources, resulting in richer insights and more efficient analytics.
Secure Access Management: Successful implementation of robust identity management with Azure Entra ID guaranteed highly secure operations.