Cloud services
Global SD-WAN rollout case study
How we helped a big business move with the agility of a small one.
May 08, 2020
3 minutes
Cloud services
Global SD-WAN rollout case study
How we helped a big business move with the agility of a small one.
May 08, 2020
3 minutes
This company needed a better way to manage their network from a central, cloud-based system without losing speed. They also wanted a way to reduce the cost of WAN.
We’ve perfected the art of custom installations to each site. It now only takes a week for our team to create a design, which means the company’s sites experience zero downtime.
The company’s business applications, data, devices and people are better connected than they’ve ever been before. And they can now embrace new technologies on-the-fly.
How can a big business move with the agility of a small one? This is the conundrum we helped one of our largest customers solve.
While every startup dreams of growth, expansion comes at a price. Big firms have more people to organise and more to lose by taking risks, so it takes them longer to adapt to change.
That’s exactly what this multinational company wanted to avoid. The team needed a better way to manage the network from a central, cloud-based system, without losing speed. They also wanted a way to reduce the cost of their wide area network (WAN).
The change would give the team better network visibility, so they could make smarter business decisions and react faster to their customers’ needs.
We helped them roll-out this next-generation network worldwide, so they could behave like a startup at scale.
The challenge
We helped the company test and vet the latest SD-WAN technology in an on-site lab.
Working closely with their team gave us an important insight into the network’s complexities. And it meant our team was perfectly positioned to help with the rollout – while limiting the overall risk to the business. But it was still a mammoth challenge.
The company wanted to upgrade 85 sites around the globe. These ranged from factories with complex IT and operational technology (OT) environments to 24/7 offices for thousands of people who couldn’t afford any downtime. And because we had to work with different local vendors, no two installs were the same.
We’ve streamlined the way we work over the course of the project. The boost in efficiency encouraged the company to let us take on more responsibilities. Now, we’re also handling the design and delivery of infrastructure for each site.
As well as procuring and commissioning hardware, this means configuring vEdge routers to work with existing systems. We also oversee the handover to the company’s operations team and decommission old hardware when they need it.
In the beginning, the company’s local engineering teams helped us create templates in Cisco Viptela vManage and push out the configurations. But after the first few implementations, they trusted us to carry out the process from end to end without any oversight.
The solution
First, we had to make sure each unique site was set up correctly. We put together a team of nine project managers and 13 technical designers to handle the challenge.
Our experience working with large global enterprises meant we already understood their internal systems and processes, so we could quickly roll out the new system. We could also meet the company’s internal procurement, audit, operations and security expectations – without shaking things up for people on the ground.
And because we’d simplified the infrastructure, the company’s network operations centre could easily manage everything from one place once the SD-WAN was up and running.
We’ve perfected the art of custom installations to each site. It now only takes a week for our team to create a design, which means the company’s sites experience zero downtime during delivery.
The result
Phase one of the rollout has been a real success.
We delivered a total of 65 sites in just over a year, with 50 of those in less than nine months.
The company can now:
- resolve problems faster
- give their users better network security
- work more efficiently using cloud applications.
It’s already saved the company $15m in operating costs, and helped them advance their cloud-ready strategy.
Phase two is already underway. Over the next six months we’ll roll out to 50 more sites.
The best news is that the company is completely satisfied with the results so far. With more network visibility and control, SD-WAN has given them all the tools they need to succeed. Their business applications, data, devices and people are better connected than they’ve ever been before. And they can embrace new technologies on-the-fly, including mobile connectivity.
The new system has made it easier for the whole organisation to collaborate and innovate, so they can accelerate their growth like a startup.
