In the rapidly evolving industry of insurance, robust and efficient data management isn’t just a technical requirement—it’s a business imperative. Tawuniya, a leading Saudi Arabian insurer also known The Company for Cooperative Insurance, knows this reality firsthand.  Every day, it manages massive amounts of mission-critical data, from customer policies and claims to audit logs generated by its core EDGE policy administration platform.  

As the company’s business grew, so did its data.  Logging databases grew significantly, reaching over 80 TBs of LOB (Large Object) data stored on high-performance Exadata Database Machine infrastructure, which was rarely accessed.  The result? Soaring storage costs and a growing operational burden for IT teams.

The Challenge: When Growth Pushes Infrastructure to Its Limits

– Expensive Storage Pressure: 95% of logging data sat idle, consuming costly Exadata resources.

– Mixed Data Makes for ineffective resource use: Active transactional data was intermixed with cold, historical records—consuming the same premium storage.

– Manual Overhead: Without automatic compression, DBAs were bogged down by manually moving seldom-accessed data and compression tasks.

Tawuniya’s goal was clear: implement a smarter, more cost-effective way to manage data lifecycle and storage spend—without compromising performance or compliance.

The Solution: Smart Automation with Oracle ILM, HCC, and Advanced Compression

Enter Oracle’s advanced data lifecycle management technologies. Tawuniya, in collaboration with Oracle, implemented a comprehensive Information Lifecycle Management solution built on:

– Oracle Heat Map: Monitors data usage patterns and access frequency.

– Automatic Data Optimization (ADO): Automates data movement and compression based on policies.

– Hybrid Columnar Compression (HCC) and Advanced Compression: Delivers space-saving options tailored to data activity levels.

How it works:

– Hot Data: Remains in fast OLTP format—no compression applied for peak performance.

– Warm Data: Auto-compressed after 1 month without access.

– Cold Data: Handled via monthly partitions and compressed based on data age and modification access.

– LOB (Logging Data): JSON, SOAP, and error message type data stored as secure files and compressed across all partitions to slash storage needs while maintaining access speed.

Automated policies classify and manage all data appropriately—without manual intervention. All compression and data movement happens is scheduled during non-peak hours to provide business continuity.

Behind the Scenes: Robust, Scalable Architecture

Tawuniya’s data landscape is anchored by three on-premises Exadata X10M systems: two elastic configurations for production and disaster recovery, and a smaller system for development and testing.

This setup, coupled with Oracle ILM, allowed Tawuniya to scale efficiently and manage costs. 

The Results: Dramatic Savings & Efficiency Gains

– Over 66% Storage Savings: Reduced one database from 88 TB to just 30 TB—slashing storage expenses.

– Faster Performance: OLTP processes sped up thanks to reduced I/O contention from legacy log data.

– Effortless Operations: Automated data tiering and compression policies freed up DBA resources for other strategic tasks.

– Cost & Compliance Control: Audit data retention needs fully met, all while reducing storage costs.

Tawuniya’s Perspective

“Oracle’s ILM solution with Heat Map and ADO transformed our data management strategy. We now automatically optimize storage based on real usage, reducing costs while maintaining performance. This was a game-changer for our Exadata environment,” says Haitham Khalifa, Database Director, Tawunyia.    

The Takeaway

Through Oracle’s ILM solution, Tawuniya not only achieved dramatic storage and cost savings by leveraging Hybrid Columnar and Advanced Compression, but also built an intelligent, scalable data management foundation. The result is a more future-ready insurance organization that can better support innovation and change—without worrying that its data will get in the way.

Co-Author Haitham Khalifa, Database Director, Tawunyia    

Haitham is an accomplished data and database leader with over 18 years of experience in architecture, administration, and strategic solutions. Renowned for expertise in high availability systems, data security, and cloud-based solutions, with certifications across Oracle, IBM, and AWS platforms. He is a proven leader in overseeing complex database projects, optimizing system performance, and mentoring technical teams. Haitham is adept at developing and implementing strategies for data lifecycle management, scalability, and disaster recovery.