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T : 0333 241 2526
E : salessupport@utopiatechnology.co.uk

T : 0333 241 2526
E : salessupport@utopiatechnology.co.uk

Eventcity upgrade their infrastructure

Challenge

When EventCity Manchester opened in 2011, their mission was to provide the best exhibition services in the country. Initial efforts focused on creating a unique and versatile space with all the physical requirements that major events require. However, the company was not expected grow so quickly (for example, winning the X-Factor Live Manchester auditions), so the initial ICT infrastructure was soon feeling the strain. It rapidly became apparent that to provide the services demanded by exhibitors and visitors, EventCity needed an ultra-fast, reliable, and flexible network. Although its customers requirements can vary based on the type of show, there is a consistent need for reliable and high- speed networking to provide services such as high-speed Internet access, VPN access, online payments/point of sale transactions, remote office access, video conferencing, CCTV, and IPTV.F

Solution

EventCity and their parent company the Peel Group, enjoy an excellent working relationship with Huawei partner The Hub Group, and sought their advice on the best way to upgrade their infrastructure. While this project initially focused only on EventCity Manchester, Peel understood that to achieve its worldwide growth goals in property, ports, media, hotels, advertising, renewable energy, etc., it would require an innovative, dynamic, flexible and global ICT provider. Peel also needed better economies of scale from a full-service ICT vendor that could standardise ICT solutions across the entire company.

Therefore, Hub recommended Huawei’s 10G Campus Network Solution should serve as a model for future network upgrades across the Peel Group. The Huawei network deployed by EventCity Manchester consists of 2 Huawei S6700 24 EI Mainframe used as the core switches, 1 Eudemon 200e-X3 AC Host Firewall with content manger license, 6 Huawei S5700 28c PWR EI Mainframe switches, and 3xHuawei S5700 52c PWR EI Mainframe switches.

Value

The new network helps EventCity attract major exhibitions that would have been impossible without the high-bandwidth provided by the 10Gb Campus Network. A great example of this was the Play Expo Video game exhibition, held in October of 2012, with over 250 exhibitors. Each one required an ultra-fast/low latency connection for video game demonstrations and contests. Another key benefit of the Huawei solution was support for BYOD. With the Huawei Eudemon firewall and content manager license in place, EventCity Manchester is now able to offer BYOD to its customers and visitors safely and securely. Green IT and environmental responsibility are not just slogans for EventCity and Peel, rather these are critical parts of their business. The Peel Group is a major power utility in the north of England, with large investments in low-carbon technologies such as wind, tidal and hydro.

And for EventCity, power consumption is a critical business expense, with any savings being passed on to their customers. Finally, Huawei offered a Total Cost of Ownership that its competitors simply could not match. The Huawei 10G solution was priced competitively with other vendor’s 1Gb network offer, making it significantly more cost- effective.