Microsoft Intune Suite Streamlines Global Device Management and Cuts IT Costs for Industrial Equipment Manufacturer

Krones AG, a global powerhouse in beverage and liquid food packaging technology, manages over 25,000 Windows devices and 11,000 iOS devices across its worldwide operations. As the company expanded, its reliance on multiple third-party vendors created a fragmented management environment that hindered efficiency and security. This patchwork approach resulted in sluggish security patch rollouts, inconsistent software updates, and an overwhelming IT workload dominated by manual device provisioning and maintenance tasks.

Krones began its transformation in 2017 by adopting Microsoft Intune Suite, a unified, cloud-native device management platform. The company systematically phased out third-party tools in favor of Intune's integrated capabilities, including Windows Autopilot for remote device provisioning and recovery, Remote Help for IT support without requiring physical presence, Enterprise Application Management for centralized app deployment, and Endpoint Privilege Management to enhance security controls while eliminating privileged access vulnerabilities. The deployment also incorporated a Zero Trust security model, ensuring devices continuously meet compliance standards and security protocols before network access. Real-time visibility, automated security patches, and orchestrated software updates freed IT teams to focus on strategic business initiatives rather than routine maintenance.

The implementation delivered substantial business impact across operations, security, and employee experience. Krones reduced annual IT costs by a six-figure sum, eliminated multiple third-party vendors, and doubled its device management capacity from 16,000 to 25,000 devices without increasing IT staff size. Administrative work per device decreased dramatically from 3–5 hours to 5 minutes, and service technicians now reset devices on site within hours instead of days. Self-service capabilities empowered employees to independently manage routine device tasks, reducing daily IT support requests and improving employee satisfaction. By automating patch management—which previously required manual testing per patch—the company now delivers updates to all devices by day five automatically, fundamentally transforming IT operations efficiency and allowing innovation investments to accelerate digital transformation initiatives.