Earlier this year we decided that we didn’t want to die so we began taking our health more seriously. Besides our own health we began thinking of the health of our employees and how we might be able to make a difference in their lives. After talking to our team we learned some disturbing facts:

• More than half of the team is overweight (sitting at a computer all day isn’t very aerobic)
• More than half have not visited the doctor for a physical in more than five years
• More than half haven’t been to the dentist in more than a year.
• More than half don’t get any exercise
• More than half drink more than 5 sodas each day

We decided we would focus on our own behavior first. We began by hiring a trainer to help us work out three days a week. When we moved to our new office we built a gym and a shower so that we could work out everyday without leaving the office. We then began training daily and offered to let the employees join us. Next we hired a nutritionist to help design our diets. Then we asked to nutritionist to serve healthy meals to our staff each Friday. Then we decided that within one year our entire team would be tobacco free (we’ll keep you posted). Finally, we are experimenting with concierge medical services – bringing the doctor to our team on a regular and as-needed basis.

Our program is still in its infancy, but we are seeing some positive changes. One of our employees who has taken part in our exercise program has lost more than 30 pounds. Another has lowered his blood pressure from 161 over 98 to 118 over 70. I even stopped drinking Diet Coke (I was drinking 5-10 a day). The healthcare system in the United States is broken because we focus too much of our attention on the sick. If we spent more time and money on the supposedly ‘healthy’ we might live longer and healthier lives – it is an experiment. If you are interested in joining us stop by any Friday for lunch and we will show you around.

Two and a half months later our new NOC is coming together:

You are invited to come check out our new NOC, data center and corporate office later this month. Just visit the meetup page for the Startup Happy Hour 2.0 and RSVP for our happy hour on the 27th. We’ll offer you a drink and give you a tour.

Here are the desks under construction:

CCNA stands for the Cisco Certified Network Associate certification from Cisco. CCNA certification is a second-level Cisco Career certification. CCNA certification validates the ability to install, configure, operate, and troubleshoot medium-size routed and switched networks, including implementation and verification of connections to remote sites in a WAN.

To achieve CCNA certification, one must earn a passing score on Cisco exam #640-802, or combined passing scores on both the ICND1 #640-822 and ICND2 #640-816 exams. Passing the ICND1 grants one the Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician (CCENT).

The CCNP is considered proof of having the ability to work with medium-sized networks with technology such as QoS, broadband, VPNs, and security-minded features. In addition to CCNA exams, professionals must pass either four separate exams, or a composite exam along with two separate exams.

Starting in October we are changing the venue and the format. Moving from the High Tech Bar to our new offices in Campbell Centre the event will now feature a short program and guest speaker each month. We are also opening up sponsorship opportunities. We are simply attempting to cover our hard event costs (primarily beverages).

Our October event is already filled 48 entrepreneurs on the event wait list. Learn more here: http://www.meetup.com/Dallas-Startup-Happy-Hour/

Specifically, we would like to invite you to join Architel® as one of our featured sponsors. There will only be four year-long featured sponsorship opportunities. Featured sponsorship includes:

• M2 Banner (as seen to right) with logo and art acceptable to you (co-branding to include small Architel logo at bottom) displayed in the venue for 12 months.
• Each featured sponsor will be allowed a short 5-minute presentation during the program portion of the each event three times during the 12-month sponsorship.
• Monthly recognition at start of program.
• Ability to distribute ‘schwag’ at each event.

Cost: $3,000 (beverage costs for each event average $1,000 x 3 events). Banner is $512 from Displays to go. Email jdonica@architel.com to let us know if you are interested.

We aren’t the same company we were ten years ago. Today Architel owns and operates it’s own state-of-the-art network operations center and data center. Our facilities are staffed by highly trained ITIL professionals and meets SAS-70, PCI DSS and ISO 9001 requirements. We are one of the largest MSPs in North Texas and operate in six cities around the United States supporting more than 10,000 end-users. Finally, our local philanthropic efforts include support for the Chiapas Project, TREC FightNight and the Entrepreneurs Foundation of North Texas.

Realizing that we aren’t the same small company that we were a decade ago we have decided to expand our product and service offerings. Over the coming months we will formally announce partnerships with Microsoft, Cisco and Level(3) that will enable us to expand our managed services offerings to include a) outsourced NOC services, b) managed voice and data services, c) managed video surveillance services and d) software and hardware sales. By the end of 2010 we will have sold more than $6,000,000 in Microsoft products and related hardware, $3,000,000 in Cisco equipment and more than $2,500,000 in voice and data. By expanding our offering to include these associated products and services we will more than double the size of our company in fiscal year 2011.

For many companies, managed video surveillance is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. Just as your email, web and file servers are managed – your video surveillance needs the regular monitoring and management our managed services team can provide. Most businesses can leverage our 8 or 16 camera system to provide complete indoor/outdoor surveillance coverage. Our managed security service is offered at two levels. The Silver offering includes an eight camera digital video server and associated cameras ($900 setup fee). The Gold offering includes a sixteen camera digital video server and associates cameras ($1800 setup fee). In both cases we work with you and your cabling vendor to install the necessary cables and wires to the appropriate locations. Both the 8 and 16 camera systems are managed and monitored 24x7x365 by our Network Operations Center located in Dallas, TX. Our standard managed security service is $250 per month per system.

With our managed surveillance system you can monitor up-to 16 cameras at once from your home or office computer. You can even monitor your cameras from your iPhone, Android or Windows Mobile smartphones. The mobile application is included in your standard monthly service fee and they allow you to take full control of your system from your smartphone. Our digital video server will allow you to review footage from one or more cameras based on time of day, day of week or other scheduled activity.

See the iPhone App in Action:

For an additional monthly rate our ‘Digital Security Guards’ can provide real-time, live monitoring of your security camera. All monitoring is done by licensed and highly trained security guards. Our security guards are trained to react to events as they occur. They can contact local authorities and possible stop crime before it even happens. Digital Security Guard also emails event reports to you in real time. Why wait for the alarm to go off (if it goes off) and have the authorities show up after the crime occurred? Imagine having your own on-site security guard, there at your front door, only better and for a fraction of the cost. Instead of having an on-site security guard that can only be in one place at a time, our security guards can see everything at once. They can monitor the inside, outside, front and back of your facility, all at the same time. We can provide additional services like two way audio, employee supervision, monitor open and closing of your business and even remote access control. Please contact us for specific pricing.