Overview

The client is a diversified conglomerate based in India, with a strong presence in various industries, including textiles, machinery, renewable energy, and engineering plastics. With a rich history spanning over six decades, the group has evolved and adapted to the changing business landscape, while maintaining its commitment to quality, innovation, and sustainability.

Requirements and Challenges

The customer has outlined specific requirements for a comprehensive solution that encompasses their Head Office and 10 branches. These needs focus on four primary aspects:

• Refreshing existing active infrastructure: The customer seeks to update and modernize their wired and wireless infrastructure to better support their growing and evolving business needs.
• A robust, resilient, and redundant backbone: The network must be designed with high levels of reliability and redundancy to ensure seamless operations, even in the face of unexpected events or increased demand.
• Scalability: As the customer's business grows and evolves, their network must be prepared to scale accordingly, meeting future demands without compromising performance or security.
• Network Access Control (NAC) solution: A critical element of the customer's requirements is a robust NAC solution that authenticates users and devices, providing visibility into connected endpoints and ensuring security by controlling network access.

In addition to these requirements, the customer faces several challenges with their current architecture:

• Lack of centralized network management: The absence of a unified management tool makes it difficult to have full visibility, manageability, and efficient troubleshooting across their network.
• Vulnerability to breaches: Without a proper network access control solution in place, their network and machines are exposed to potential security breaches, putting sensitive data and systems at risk.
• Guest access control: Ensuring secure and compliant guest access to their network is a pressing concern for the customer, as it directly impacts their security and regulatory compliance.
• High Mean Time to Repair (MTTR): The current infrastructure leads to longer repair times, which can impact the customer's productivity and overall business efficiency.

To address these requirements and challenges, a tailored solution must be devised that is easy for a non-technical person to understand, while effectively meeting the customer's needs for security, scalability, and manageability.  

Solution

Velocis took a holistic approach to address the customer's network requirements, designing a solution that ensures optimal performance, security, resilience, scalability, visibility, and cost-effectiveness. By leveraging Cisco Meraki network devices, Velocis crafted an easy-to-manage and future-ready network infrastructure.

The core components of the solution include:

• Three-tier architecture: Velocis implemented a three-tier architecture in the Campus Network, consisting of Core, Distribution, and Access layers. This design offers enhanced performance and scalability while simplifying network management.
• Redundancy and high availability: Switch stacking was performed at the core and aggregation layers to ensure redundancy. Additionally, dual firewalls were deployed in High Availability (Active/Standby) mode for enhanced security and uninterrupted network access.
• Wi-Fi solution for extensive coverage: A comprehensive Wi-Fi solution was designed to cover more than 300,000 sq ft of indoor and outdoor space, utilizing advanced access points for seamless connectivity.
• Network Access Control (NAC) with Cisco ISE: The integration of Cisco ISE provided a robust NAC solution, enabling secure network access and precise control over connected devices. The solution included checks for device identity, MAC address, and location before granting access to the network.
• ‍Meraki Cloud Dashboard: Administrators gained deep visibility and control over the network through the Meraki Cloud Dashboard. This user-friendly interface simplified network management and monitoring, enabling the IT team to focus on meeting business needs.
• Guest Access Management: A secure and controlled guest Wi-Fi access system was implemented, requiring sponsor approval and providing access for a defined duration, ensuring compliance and security.

By implementing this tailored solution, Velocis addressed the customer's requirements and challenges, delivering a secure, scalable, and easy-to-manage network infrastructure that can grow with their business. The intuitive nature of the solution ensures even non-technical personnel can understand and appreciate the benefits it brings to the organization.

Business Outcomes

The new solution provided by Velocis significantly boosted the client’s network security, reducing its vulnerability to breaches. The implementation of a robust Network Access Control (NAC) along with the Cisco ISE system safeguarded sensitive data, while redundancy measures ensured uninterrupted operations. This resulted in a resilient network capable of handling unexpected events or increased demand effectively.

Additionally, the solution improved the manageability and scalability of the network. Centralized network management through a three-tier architecture and the Meraki Cloud Dashboard streamlined operations, reduced repair times, and freed up the IT team for strategic tasks. The scalable infrastructure was designed to support the company's growth, future-proofing their network while maintaining performance and security. This optimized network boosted overall productivity and business efficiency, facilitating the client’s ongoing and future expansion.

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