MAKING A DONUT
One picture is worth a thousand words.
What’s in a name?
It was 2001 – a time when every color-noun name combination had been gobbled up by would-be domain squatters hoping to strike it rich. Chuck Loughry was trying to find a domain name that would have that cool tech-like feeling, but also give meaning to his vision. He didn’t want to be the next blueFrog, blackGoat, or purpleOnion. He wanted something different.
After spending a few weeks searching, Chuck became frustrated. He began to wonder if that magical name would eventually pop into his head. Chuck was working at his computer with the TV on in the other room. A commercial began playing on the TV and asked a question, “Inventors, do you have an idea?” and Chuck recognized the commercial with the picture of a caveman building a stone wheel.
Chuck thought to himself, “I wish I could invent an idea for a name. Just like that caveman had the idea to build that wheel out of stone, which looks more like a doughnut.” And with that, the magic had arrived. Chuck had created a name that would satisfy his cool tech-like desire as well as provide inspiration for his company’s vision.
StoneDonut was born.
What’s in a name?
It was 2001 – a time when every color-noun name combination had been gobbled up by would-be domain squatters hoping to strike it rich. Chuck Loughry was trying to find a domain name that would have that cool tech-like feeling, but also give meaning to his vision. He didn’t want to be the next blueFrog, blackGoat, or purpleOnion. He wanted something different.
After spending a few weeks searching, Chuck became frustrated. He began to wonder if that magical name would eventually pop into his head. Chuck was working at his computer with the TV on in the other room. A commercial began playing on the TV and asked a question, “Inventors, do you have an idea?” and Chuck recognized the commercial with the picture of a caveman building a stone wheel.
Chuck thought to himself, “I wish I could invent an idea for a name. Just like that caveman had the idea to build that wheel out of stone, which looks more like a doughnut.” And with that, the magic had arrived. Chuck had created a name that would satisfy his cool tech-like desire as well as provide inspiration for his company’s vision.
StoneDonut was born.
Our Story
The Making of a Donut
Chuck Loughry was working as a Solutions Architect for an international consulting firm when the first release of Microsoft’s BizTalk Server middleware product was announced. The price of the middleware tool was pretty affordable compared to other products on the market at the time, so he began putting the product through its paces to see how it would work.
Chuck saw an opportunity to bring enterprise level integration to the SMB marketplace. In May of 2002, he left his consulting position and created StoneDonut, LLC. He built a mobile rack on wheels with four servers and began demonstrating the power of middleware to potential clients.
Letting the Dough Rise
StoneDonut continued to expand their capabilities and provide greater value to their client base. Through their years of experience working with their clients, they identified common issues that plagued most integration projects. They created the StoneDonut Integration Framework, an alerts and monitoring application, which complemented “zero touch” solutions to minimize the amount of overhead needed to support failed messages.
They began looking at the messages they were processing from a holistic perspective – moving information to and from the enterprise – insuring that the right information was processed at the right time. Once again, the company expanded their vision. They were no longer an integration consulting firm. They had become an Information Management consulting firm.
The StoneDonut is Ready
If Chuck and Michael received a nickel for every time they were asked about how they came up with the name StoneDonut, they could have retired by now. It has generated interest since it was created back in 2002 and for that they are grateful. There is meaning behind the name:
Think of the first wheel ever created – carved out of stone and shaped more like a donut than its well-rounded successors. The first wheel is considered one of the most simplistic and innovative mechanical inventions in the history of mankind. And the wheel continues to provide the same innovative and lasting value to this day.
The stone “donut” symbolizes the principles of our company – identifying simplistic and innovative solutions which produce significant and lasting value to our customers.
StoneDonut was created by a group of IT professionals who have worked together in the industry for over 30 years. Their passion for technology and creativity form the basis of this organization. Each team member within StoneDonut provides specific talents and skills and their combination forms a powerful delivery mechanism for any organization looking to advance their Information Management capabilities.
Finding the Right Ingredients
StoneDonut provided integration, infrastructure, and application development services to their client base. As their client base grew, the company became more focused on the integration-specific opportunities and expanded their use of integration solutions using other tools like TIBCO, IBM Websphere, and practices like SOA. They began integrating with many different ERP systems like Microsoft’s Dynamics AX, SAP, Oracle, JDE, custom AS/400 systems, and many others.
They created their own development methodology – Xecute – that they refined in order to help them deliver repeatable solutions with a high level of quality. They formed partnerships with ERP vendors and ERP implementers – allowing their partners to focus on the ERP implementation process, while StoneDonut took on the task of “connecting” the ERP system to other business systems and trading partners.
Into the Oven
Chuck’s business partner, Michael Schenck, had a strong background in Data Warehousing, having managed Data Warehouses for OfficeMax, Moen, Key Bank and Progressive Insurance. So they leveraged his expertise to expand their paradigm to include Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence solutions for their clients. The company’s knowledge of data migration and integration solutions dovetailed nicely into the DW/BI offering.
The company also expanded into developing solutions in the cloud – implementing Logic Apps solutions in Microsoft Azure and integrating into Microsoft’s D365 ERP and other third party systems. They became a Microsoft Gold Certified Application Integration partner with Microsoft and partnered with Microsoft on enterprise level projects.
The holistic approach to integration changed the paradigm of the company and created a new way of crafting the solutions they provided to their clients. This has created productivity increases and new forms of revenue streams that were never considered.
Our Story
The Making of a Donut
Chuck Loughry was working as a Solutions Architect for an international consulting firm when the first release of Microsoft’s BizTalk Server middleware product was announced. The price of the middleware tool was pretty affordable compared to other products on the market at the time, so he began putting the product through its paces to see how it would work.
Chuck saw an opportunity to bring enterprise level integration to the SMB marketplace. In May of 2002, he left his consulting position and created StoneDonut, LLC. He built a mobile rack on wheels with four servers and began demonstrating the power of middleware to potential clients.
Finding the Right Ingredients
StoneDonut provided integration, infrastructure, and application development services to their client base. As their client base grew, the company became more focused on the integration-specific opportunities and expanded their use of integration solutions using other tools like TIBCO, IBM Websphere, and practices like SOA. They began integrating with many different ERP systems like Microsoft’s Dynamics AX, SAP, Oracle, JDE, custom AS/400 systems, and many others.
They created their own development methodology – Xecute – that they refined in order to help them deliver repeatable solutions with a high level of quality. They formed partnerships with ERP vendors and ERP implementers – allowing their partners to focus on the ERP implementation process, while StoneDonut took on the task of “connecting” the ERP system to other business systems and trading partners.
Letting the Dough Rise
StoneDonut continued to expand their capabilities and provide greater value to their client base. Through their years of experience working with their clients, they identified common issues that plagued most integration projects. They created the StoneDonut Integration Framework, an alerts and monitoring application, which complemented “zero touch” solutions to minimize the amount of overhead needed to support failed messages.
They began looking at the messages they were processing from a holistic perspective – moving information to and from the enterprise – insuring that the right information was processed at the right time. Once again, the company expanded their vision. They were no longer an integration consulting firm. They had become an Information Management consulting firm.
Into the Oven
Chuck’s business partner, Michael Schenck, had a strong background in Data Warehousing, having managed Data Warehouses for OfficeMax, Moen, Key Bank and Progressive Insurance. So they leveraged his expertise to expand their paradigm to include Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence solutions for their clients. The company’s knowledge of data migration and integration solutions dovetailed nicely into the DW/BI offering.
The company also expanded into developing solutions in the cloud – implementing Logic Apps solutions in Microsoft Azure and integrating into Microsoft’s D365 ERP and other third party systems. They became a Microsoft Gold Certified Application Integration partner with Microsoft and partnered with Microsoft on enterprise level projects.
The holistic approach to integration changed the paradigm of the company and created a new way of crafting the solutions they provided to their clients. This has created productivity increases and new forms of revenue streams that were never considered.
The StoneDonut is Ready
If Chuck and Michael received a nickel for every time they were asked about how they came up with the name StoneDonut, they could have retired by now. It has generated interest since it was created back in 2002 and for that they are grateful. There is meaning behind the name:
Think of the first wheel ever created – carved out of stone and shaped more like a donut than its well-rounded successors. The first wheel is considered one of the most simplistic and innovative mechanical inventions in the history of mankind. And the wheel continues to provide the same innovative and lasting value to this day.
The stone “donut” symbolizes the principles of our company – identifying simplistic and innovative solutions which produce significant and lasting value to our customers.
StoneDonut was created by a group of IT professionals who have worked together in the industry for over 30 years. Their passion for technology and creativity form the basis of this organization. Each team member within StoneDonut provides specific talents and skills and their combination forms a powerful delivery mechanism for any organization looking to advance their Information Management capabilities.
MEET THE TEAM
Chuck Loughry - President
Chuck Loughry has over 30 years of IT experience within the Advanced Technologies area. Chuck created the concept for StoneDonut in 2001 where he designed the Xecute Delivery Framework and began focusing on providing integration solutions to small and mid-sized businesses utilizing Microsoft’s Biztalk Server product and supporting technologies.
Chuck was also a Director of Technical Solutions Architecture with Cap Gemini where he created a successful track record within the areas of planning, designing, and implementing various IT solutions for mid-sized and large enterprise organizations such as Goodyear, Rubbermaid, Firestone, and Diebold.
Michael Schenck – Delivery Services Manager
Michael has over 35 years of IT experience in the manufacturing, retail, insurance and banking industries. Prior to joining StoneDonut, he served for 25 years in IT leadership roles as either IT Director or IT Manager, leading IT organizations in large, medium and small corporate environments. The focus of his experience has been on high performance team building, business and IT strategic planning, and business process improvement / re-engineering, for all of which he has received numerous accolades.
As part of his leadership responsibilities, Michael garnered 15 years of IT project management experience. He has managed IT development projects leveraging a variety of formal methodologies, with an emphasis on Business Intelligence, Data Warehousing, and Web Application Development. He also led a multi-year project integrating ERP systems to legacy systems.
OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM
Chuck Loughry - President
Chuck Loughry has over 30 years of IT experience within the Advanced Technologies area. Chuck created the concept for StoneDonut in 2001 where he designed the Xecute Delivery Framework and began focusing on providing integration solutions to small and mid-sized businesses utilizing Microsoft’s Biztalk Server product and supporting technologies.
Chuck was also a Director of Technical Solutions Architecture with Cap Gemini where he created a successful track record within the areas of planning, designing, and implementing various IT solutions for mid-sized and large enterprise organizations such as Goodyear, Rubbermaid, Firestone, and Diebold.
Michael Schenck – Delivery Services Manager
Michael has over 35 years of IT experience in the manufacturing, retail, insurance and banking industries. Prior to joining StoneDonut, he served for 25 years in IT leadership roles as either IT Director or IT Manager, leading IT organizations in large, medium and small corporate environments. The focus of his experience has been on high performance team building, business and IT strategic planning, and business process improvement / re-engineering, for all of which he has received numerous accolades.
As part of his leadership responsibilities, Michael garnered 15 years of IT project management experience. He has managed IT development projects leveraging a variety of formal methodologies, with an emphasis on Business Intelligence, Data Warehousing, and Web Application Development. He also led a multi-year project integrating ERP systems to legacy systems.