• Business: Ochoco West Water & Sanitary Authority
• Location: Prineville, Oregon 

Ochoco West Water and Sanitary Authority (OWWSA) runs a remarkable number of essential services with a very small team. The Oregon Authority manages water and sewer facilities for a community of roughly 526 parcels. Nearly 500 residents rely on the work of just two full‑time and two part‑time employees. Because the district’s office sits in a rural area between Prineville and Madras in Deschutes County, technical issues can quickly disrupt operations. After repeated struggles to get timely on-site support, OWWSA Office Manager Kathy Friese turned to Paladin Date Corporation® Managed Services for help.

“We had some local support – a local guy with a family-run business – but there were times we were down for days,” Kathy recalls. With only a couple of newer PC terminals and aging equipment, outages were frequent. “We had problems all the time.” Facilities Manager Jamie Helms remembers it even more clearly. “There was a point where not one machine in this office was working,” she says.

One of the district’s board members, who had a strong IT background, helped stabilize the system temporarily. But he ultimately recommended partnering with Paladin Data Corporation, whose support center in nearby Bend could offer reliable, responsive service.

PaladinMSP™ quickly modernized the district’s infrastructure – installing a new router, switches, and a firewall to dramatically improve performance, reliability, and security. The new setup included three desktop computers, three laptops for remote fieldwork, and two printers. Paladin also configured three dedicated Wi‑Fi networks: one for district operations, one for the POA, and a guest network. This simple change eliminated a major source of daily frustration.

Jamie says switching to Paladin has been “a lifesaver.” The improved systems have enabled her to move to computerized testing for water services and helped the office move away from cabinets full of paper files.

The benefits weren’t just operational, security improved dramatically as well. Shortly after the transition, the office received what looked like a legitimate email from the district’s attorney.

“Everything looked right – her name, her number, everything,” Jamie says. “The only thing that seemed off was how she sent the PDF attachment. It was a phishing scam. The firewall stopped it.”

For Kathy, that experience reinforced the value of the partnership: “It helps with peace of mind, knowing our records are safe. Paladin is just so good. They’re our first call when anything comes up. They even walk us through steps to take care of our computers. They’re just a phone call away, and they’re always ready to help.”