CIO Focus

CIO F CUS HOW TOMORROW MOVES OCTOBER 2015

Network of the future Published by

INTRODUCING THE NETWORK THAT PUTS PEOPLE FIRST. This is how tomorrow moves.

www.arubanetworks.com/tomorrowmoves

CONTENTS A world without wires Mobility is one of the major driving forces today in the technology industry, and many businesses consider their wireless network to be their primary one, which represents a tectonic shift in enterprise networking strategy. Today, wireless connectivity is a business requirement, as IT decision-makers recognise ubiquitous access to wireless connectivity as being key to employee retention, productivity and greater cost savings.

As BYOD makes way for ‘bring your own everything’, the mandate for CIOs is to provide a network that provides flawless high-speed connectivity anywhere, anytime on any device. With the demand apparently insatiable, a new study from Aruba Networks found that the increasing need for mobile productivity also puts significant stress on IT personnel and budgets.

The study also highlights the need to change the way we think about networking. In the enterprise, people’s identities used to be defined by a port. Now, the workplace is filled with what Aruba calls #GenMobile employees on multiple devices running a variety of apps. As the port disappears, the way we think about users of the networks needs to change because your customers and workers engage differently with the wireless network as a source of information.

Wireless networks can be tricky to properly design and configure.

Capacity issues can arise when there are a high number of users on the network or a high-density in a certain area. In this booklet, we have featured organisations that have tackled this and implemented wireless networks to have a strategic and competitive advantage over rivals who are slow to adapt and shackle users to a traditional office culture of desks and cubicles.

Though there is still a long way to go achieve the vision of an all-wireless workplace, the term ‘office’ as we know it today will be obsolete in the near future with the advent of cloud and mobile.

Be prepared to redefine where and how work gets done, and we hope this booklet helps network administrators become the new IT heroes in the digital workplace.

Jeevan Thankappan Group Editor CPI Media Group Technology Division

Casestudies

05 Gulftainer 08 Emirates Palace 11 American University of Beirut 14 KFC 17 TECOM

The future is wireless

Ammar Enaya Regional Director Middle East and Turkey Aruba Networks, an HP company

Manish Bhardwaj Sr Marketing Manager Middle East and Turkey Aruba Networks, an HP company

In this day and age, the ability to connect whenever and wherever you are is no longer a luxury, but an expectation. Providing an optimal mobile experience is key to increasing customer satisfaction, and a game-changer in terms of productivity. In order to achieve this, a quick transition towards a mobile-first, cloud-first approach is imperative.

We observed a decade ago that the world, if it could go wireless, would do so, and would mark a major journey into ubiquitous mobility. Back then, workers were weighed down by the constraints of their desktop computers. Wireless networking has liberated them into mobile environments.

In the midst of this change, Aruba needed a partner who could help us scale up to meet the needs of demanding markets.

Having recently become part of HP, together we are now upending the traditional vendordefined approach to networking. Users can now define what they need their network to do to support their business, instead of taking the word of vendors who have based their estimates on the number of ports and square footage.

We provide a platform that delivers always-on access, mobile security, with unified policies and management. HP and Aruba are guided by the principle of open systems, where mobility context can be shared with developers, network admins and partners. This makes their existing solutions smarter in terms of devices, apps and users. All our solutions are designed to run on multi-vendor infrastructures, which serve to avoid vendor lock-in that has overshadowed networks of the past.

We see the need for a unified management console for Aruba wireless and HP wired infrastructure. We are also looking for a way to enable software-defined networking between wired and wireless infrastructure, and unify policies between the two.

The latest 802.11ac standard puts radio waves on a par with wired networks, exceeding 1Gbit per second. However, although wireless is gaining momentum, we don’t think wired will disappear altogether, but will instead be used primarily in back-end networks. In the near future, just about everything will use wireless communication, making the Internet of Things a reality. Companies who have digested the potential of these trends are already shifting their infrastructure away from wired to wireless.

When we look back at a time without wireless connectivity, it seems almost unthinkable how we managed. It’s only within the past five years that Wi-Fi has really impacted our lives, becoming available at home, work and countless places in between.

Aruba Networks knows as well as anyone how the digital world has the power to alter physical environments in both obvious and subtle ways. We create dedicated wireless infrastructures within enterprises, schools, hospitals, large public venues and other environments and have played a key role in this digital transformation.

Your infrastructure no longer has to be a burden that prevents you from enhancing your business with faster, more agile apps. As you create the digital workplace, move end-user computing to BYOD, and invest in smart buildings powered by IoT, you cannot assume that legacy proprietary network architecture models will be able to adapt. To keep up with the pace, and to simplify your network operations, the way you design networks has to change.

Aruba’s leading wireless LAN technology and differentiated software solutions, and HP’s switching portfolio, offer innovative, agile solutions that are ideally positioned to solve customers’ toughest challenges in mobility, security and networking.

Gulftainer

Navigating the wireless world Gulftainer, the largest privately owned independent port management company in the world, implemented a centralised, smart and easy-to-manage wireless infrastructure.

I

n addition to the UAE operations it runs in Khorfakkan, Sharjah and Hamriyah, Gulftainer manages operations at Umm Qasr in Iraq, Recife in Brazil, Tripoli in Lebanon and in the Jeddah and Jubail container terminals in Saudi Arabia. The company also has recently signed a 35-year concession with the Canaveral Port Authority in Florida, marking Gulftainer’s first venture in the United States.

Towards the end of 2014, Gulftainer moved its headquarters to the Sarh Al Emarat office tower in Sharjah. While a move of this magnitude is usually an IT Manager’s worst nightmare, for Vinay Sharma, Group IT Manager at Gulftainer, the move was a blessing in disguise as it gave him and his team the ideal opportunity to make significant upgrades to the wireless network infrastructure. The network infrastructure at Gulftainer’s old headquarters was a piecemeal solution that had been gradually extended over the years to accommodate the company’s expansion. This fragmented solution required regular manual configuring of access points and troubleshooting on the part of the IT team.

The management of secure guest access for the wireless network had become a concern for Sharma and his team as each day over fifty guests were visiting the Gulftainer headquarters. These are a mix of one-time and returning visitors, and in each instance, an IT resource was needed to grant wireless access to the user. The new system has now automated this function thereby freeing up valuable IT manpower.

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Gulftainer

“ Requirements • Centralized 802.11ac wireless network and ability to manage all access points from a single intuitive GUI • Self Service Guest Wi-Fi Management system • Significant step-up in network security

SOLUTION • 1 Aruba 7030 Cloud Services Controller • 45+ Access Points (combination of Aruba 115 Series and 225 Series Access Points) • Aruba ClearPass Policy Management Platform 6.4.3

BENEFITS • Ability to support 160+ daily wireless users with average throughput between 144mbps and 270mbps • Single sign-on authentication for employees and self-service portal for Guest Wi-Fi management has greatly simplified user connectivity • 15% reduction in IT service desk ticket volume • Centralized system allows IT department to control network access and prioritize application delivery

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With the help of the Aruba 7030 Cloud Services Controller and over 45 Access Points, the Gulftainer IT team can now centrally support over 160 daily wireless users with an average throughput between 144mbps and 270mbps.”

ARUBA CLEARPASS – THE DECIDING FACTOR As an IT veteran Sharma carried out significant research on a number of the leading wireless network providers, assessing their products and services against Gulftainer’s business needs. The adaptability and flexibility of the Aruba ClearPass Policy Management Platform – a single foundational solution, with the ability to manage network policies, deploy AAA services, configure and secure personal devices, connect guest users and assess device health – made it an easy choice for the company.

Prior to the ClearPass platform’s installation, the Gulftainer team conducted over two months of extensive Proof of Concept (PoC) testing in a controlled environment. The results of the testing met their expectations and over a two-month period, between November 2014 and January 2015, Gulftainer, in partnership with Alpha Data Company, completed the implementation of the Aruba Enterprise Wireless LAN solution and Aruba ClearPass Policy Management solution at their new headquarters.

Two months into the implementation, Sharma couldn’t be happier with the results. “We adopted a ‘best in class’ approach and leveraged the most appropriate solution for each aspect of our IT infrastructure,” he says. “Aruba’s solution has been seamlessly integrated into our multi-vendor environment.”

With the help of the Aruba 7030 Cloud Services Controller and over 45 Access Points - a combination of Aruba 115 Series and 225 Series Access Points - the Gulftainer IT team can now centrally support over 160 daily wireless users with an average throughput between 144mbps and 270mbps. Users can now also connect to the network anywhere in the office via a single SSID. This has significantly reduced the number of ‘non value-added’ calls to IT and more importantly improved the user experience.

Using ClearPass, Gulftainer was able to implement the self-service portal for guest Wi-Fi management. Guest access can now be granted by authorized employees without the intervention of the IT team.

The Gulftainer team can now easily set policy based end-point network access for all employees and guests.

Furthermore, advanced end-point posture assessments and health checks ensure that all mobile devices are fully compliant prior to connection.

Finally, the Gulftainer IT team now has better visibility and more control over all network users, thereby enhancing network security.

“Thanks to the Aruba solution, we have seen a 15% reduction in our IT service desk ticket volume and are also closer to our goal of achieving ISO 27000 certification,” Sharma says.

Gulftainer

EXPANDING WIRELESS CAPABILITIES TO OPERATIONAL SITES With a centralized, secure, low maintenance, high-bandwidth wireless network in place at their headquarters, Sharma is eager to duplicate this success across the company’s three UAE operational sites. There are many challenges associated with such an implementation, including size of the site, outdoor location, RF interference. However, Sharma is confident that with Aruba as a partner, it is only a matter of time before Gulftainer has a seamless wireless network across all its UAE facilities.

“

Thanks to the Aruba solution, we have seen a 15% reduction in our IT service desk ticket volume and are also closer to our goal of achieving ISO 27000 certification”

Vinay Sharma, Group IT Manager, Gulftainer

“At Aruba, we do not consider ourselves a product company but rather a solutions provider - we see our customers as partners, truly understand their network challenges and then work with them to find a solution that will add real value to the business. This project with Gulftainer not only gave us the opportunity to partner with one of the leading port management companies in the region but more importantly gave us the opportunity to help them realize their target of becoming an all wireless workspace,” says Zeeshan Hadi, Territory Manager, Aruba Networks.

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Emirates Palace

Unwired for the future The Aruba mobility infrastructure improves and personalizes the guest experience.

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mirates Palace is a testament to the warmth and generosity of Arabian hospitality. It combines exquisite architecture and design with world-class facilities and the most advanced technologies to give its guests a truly unforgettable experience. In keeping with its commitment to excellence, the hotel continuously analyses and assesses the needs and preferences of its valued customers. Of these, the growing demand for high-speed wireless Internet connectivity has been a significant market trend.

While Emirates Palace was quick to cater to this requirement, its legacy Wi-Fi was not centralized and, therefore, required manual configuration of over 1,000 access points (APs) around the property. This was an especially daunting challenge that was exacerbated when the multitude of high-

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profile conferences and events were held at the iconic venue.

With 600-700 guests utilizing the network in an average day and peak usage rising between 1,200 and 1,400 daily users, the strain on the network began to cause noticeable performance issues.

As guests increasingly utilized bandwidth hungry video and multimedia-rich applications, both the speed and security of the network were brought into question.

Furthermore, the IT team at Emirates Palace observed that 100-150 users were connecting with gigabit Wi-Fi-enabled 802.11ac devices.

The need for an overhaul of the network was apparent and Emirates Palace, guided by local Aruba Networks partner MDS UAE, made a decision to simultaneously upgrade its wired and wireless infrastructure.

“We were determined to get our network up to the extremely high

standards that is the hallmark of the hotel,” says Mehmet Akdeniz, Director of IT and AV at Emirates Palace.

“Any upgrade to the network, however, requires on-the-fly changes to the implementation process so as not to cause any inconvenience to the guests,” he says. “This can be challenging and timeconsuming so we decided on a solution that would meet our requirements for the next 4-5 years.”

This forward thinking approach led Akdeniz and his IT team to consider an enterprise-grade 802.11ac wireless LAN, a decision that would make Emirates Palace the first hotel in the Middle East to deploy this cutting-edge Wi-Fi standard.

A standout solution Akdeniz and his team evaluated solutions from Aruba Networks, along with two other market leading vendors. Aruba stood out

Emirates Palace

as the only vendor offering 802.11ac technology. With a rising number of guests already utilizing devices that supported this standard, this would prove to be a distinct advantage to the hotel.

An Aruba 7000 Mobility Controller and over 1,000 Aruba AP-225 APs were rolled out across the property. MDS UAE also deployed the AirWave network management for visibility into the Wi-Fi network, enabling IT to proactively plan for capacity, optimize client performance and troubleshoot application issues.

Seamless integration with the wired network and minimal configuration led to trouble-free installation. Emirates Palace also availed of a one week training program offered by Aruba.

“Aruba helped our network engineers not only learn about their solution but also gave them a detailed understanding of broader market technologies,” said Akdeniz. “We are

Requirements

Solution

• Centralize the administration of the wireless network and eliminate manual configuration of individual access points.

• Overhaul the wired and wireless infrastructure to upgrade from 54 Mbps capacity to gigabit Wi-Fi speed.

• Enable advanced security features and customized network configurations based on the requirements of individual meetings and events.

• Build a platform for innovation to support ambitious future plans such as IPTV, online gaming, music streaming and smart device control of room facilities.

• Centralized Aruba 7000 Mobility Controller • 1000+ Aruba AP-225 wireless access points • ArubaOS™ operating system • Aruba AirWave™ network management

Benefits • Centralized configuration and management of all access points from a single intuitive GUI. • 1.3 Gbps Wi-Fi across the entire property, including the 1.3 km private beach.

• Trouble-free integration with the newly deployed wired infrastructure.

• Vastly improved security and the ability to customize the network according to the needs of guests and business customers.

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Emirates Palace

now able to fully utilize the Aruba solution to simplify the management of what used to be complex tasks.

“Having a competent Aruba platinum partner carry out the implementation was a huge benefit to us,” he adds. “Even industry leading technology is only as good as its implementation and MDS UAE ensured that the entire network was configured for optimal performance.”

A mobility infrastructure for future innovation While the most noticeable advantage of the new network was a monumental increase in capacity from 54 Mbps to 1.3 Gbps, the centrally-managed Wi-Fi infrastructure was one of the most appealing features for IT. The Aruba 7000 Mobility Controller eliminates the need to manually configure individual APs and automates software updates for all APs. And with features like whitelist coordination, valid AP lists, control plane security certificates, and wireless intrusion protection, Emirates Palace has now achieved the highest level of security.

Through the Mobility Controller’s intuitive graphical interface, IT can make rapid changes to network and security settings.

This critical feature has enabled Emirates Palace to meet the specific needs of highprofile meetings and conferences.

“We no longer waste precious manpower tending to labour-intensive processes,” Akdeniz notes. “Everything is easily managed from one location and our newfound visibility into every element of the network has enabled proactive troubleshooting and reduced our reaction time.

“Complaints about poor network performance have virtually disappeared and our business customers are often amazed to find how quickly we can accommodate their connectivity requirements,” he adds.

Akdeniz believes that the Aruba mobility solution will act as a platform for further innovation. While the current Wi-Fi network supports Internet access, point-of-sale

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“

The Aruba mobility infrastructure lets us improve and personalize the guest experience in ways that nobody has ever considered. This is the kind of service excellence that the Emirates Palace is synonymous with and we credit Aruba as an enabler of our success.”

Mehmet Akdeniz Director of IT and AV, Emirates Palace

and digital signage, Emirates Palace is now considering the deployment of a wider range of guest services in the future.

In fact, plans are under way to offer IPTV, online gaming, Internet music streaming and smart-device control of in-room electronics. These services will rely heavily on the availability of bandwidth capacity and prioritization of specific traffic flows, which Aruba will easily handle for the foreseeable future.

“In the hospitality industry, it’s not just about providing Wi-Fi,” said Akdeniz. “It’s about providing Wi-Fi that’s trusted and reliable, which allows venues to create a high-quality mobility experience that guests will appreciate.”

“The Aruba mobility infrastructure lets us improve and personalize the guest experience in ways that nobody has ever considered,” he said. “This is the kind of service excellence that the Emirates Palace is synonymous with and we credit Aruba as an enabler of our success.”

American University of Beirut

Making the grade American University of Beirut’s new 802.11ac Wi-Fi network facilitates collaboration among 800 faculty members, 8,000 students, and ensures hundreds of staff, visitors, and patients of the Medical Center enjoy high performance Wi-Fi connectivity.

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o keep pace with the explosion in the number of Wi-Fi enabled mobile devices across its education and healthcare facilities, AUB recognized the obvious need to upgrade to the latest 802.11ac wireless standard, which offers Gigabit speeds and an ability to support the influx of those devices.

In an attempt to stay up-to-date with the latest wireless networking standards, AUB’s legacy wireless infrastructure, which was 11-years-old, had already undergone numerous refresh cycles. Over the years, this had resulted in a number of upgrades to the University’s legacy wireless infrastructure. Until recently, these upgrades were sufficient to keep the network up-to-date with the latest wireless networking standards.

But the University is now witnessing exponential growth in the number of Wi-Fi enabled devices being brought onto its premises. However, the legacy 802.11b/g Wi-Fi network suffers limited device capacity and limited mobility as it had been developed with an 11-year-old design based on portability of user devices rather than mobility. These shortcomings added weight to the management’s desire to introduce ‘smart learning’ solutions.

“Students want to stream video lectures from anywhere. High-performance, high density Wi-Fi is vital to this and we knew that it would offer us the opportunity to look at teaching in a new way,” says Mohammad Khaled Joujou, Assistant to the Dean for

“

Aruba’s customer-first, customer-last culture is very visible to us.”

Mohammad Khaled Joujou Assistant to the Dean for Laboratories and Facilities, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, AUB

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American University of Beirut

BENEFITS Upgrading Wi-Fi infrastructure: • Helps AUB realize its BYOD ambitions • Utilizes the latest 802.11ac standard which ensures Gigabit speeds and future-proofing • Serves staff, visitors, and patients with seamless mobile connectivity throughout Medical Centre facilities • Forms a robust platform for the delivery of the latest smart learning and collaboration solutions in a high device density environment

BUILDING A WLAN PLATFORM FOR INNOVATION

wireless experiences. The standard takes many of the best techniques that the Wi-Fi industry has learned about 802.11n/a/ b/g/n and adds a number of impressive enhancements to them.

These improvements include wider channels, higher-rate modulation, and higher-level MIMO. All of them are evolutionary and together they offer a top speed that is 10 times that of 802.11n.

Because Wi-Fi is a shared resource, the added capacity delivered by 802.11ac comes in handy as wireless device density and bandwidth consumption grow simultaneously. The effects of this trend are especially intense on university campuses and medical centers such as those of AUB.

To prepare its network for this projected growth and to be able to leverage the wireless infrastructure as a platform for innovation in smart learning and collaboration, AUB decided to invest in an 802.11ac Wi-Fi solution that could meet both present and future requirements. 802.11ac, also called Gigabit Wi-Fi, considerably enhances

Building on Success with Best of Breed for Future Needs Being an IT veteran and having used Aruba’s 11a/b/g/n solutions in the past, Abbass was already solidly convinced of the quality, performance, and reliability of Aruba Networks’ technologies. He was particularly impressed by the performance

Laboratories and Facilities, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, AUB. Students weren’t the only ones keen to use mobile smart devices on campus.

“University employees use the network for administration, meetings, and events. It’s common to see everyone surfing on laptops and tablets,” said Mohammad Abbass, Network and Data Communication Director, AUB. “We forecast over 27% growth in the number of devices on campus and its adjoined Medical Center every year and we need to make sure that our Wi-Fi network is ready for it.”

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that Aruba’s 802.11ac solution could deliver across the University campus and Medical Center. Focusing on the ultimate goal of moving to a complete 802.11ac infrastructure, Abbass and his team turned once again to Aruba for the upgrade. “We’ve relied on Aruba since 2004,” he said. “Aruba’s customer first, customer last culture is very visible to us.

Pre and post-sales, the products and the support have always been excellent.”

The University’s pre-existing Aruba wireless infrastructure meant that the new solution could be easily integrated.

“Aruba maintains backward compatibility,” Abbass says. “This allows us to upgrade as gradually as required to meet our budget goals. That’s a sizable value for us.” He also outlined the market leading capabilities of the Aruba 802.11ac product line and its unique Client Match algorithms and strong Deep Packet Inspection engines; the fruitful 11-yearlong relationship with the vendor; and the dedicated support extended by both Aruba and its local partner Triple C; as the main factors behind his decision to stick

American University of Beirut

“

As one of the leaders in higher education and healthcare, AUB was quick to adopt 802.11ac technology to address the growth in the number of Wi-Fi enabled devices and enhance the services and functionalities of our wireless ecosystem. AUB also saw this deployment as essential to empowering the growing AUB private cloud and enabling the BYOD concept.”

Mohammad Abbass Network and Data Communication Director, AUB

with Aruba. Working directly with Aruba Networks and its partner Triple C, the AUB IT team rolled-out the implementation that took on average 2-3 weeks for each of the two buildings.

Intelligent Wi-Fi for Optimized Performance.

Aruba Networks’ software-based Adaptive Radio Management technology automatically assigns channel and power settings for all access points on AUB’s wireless network and carries out patented client match algorithms which ensure that every device is connected to the best access point and best band. The solution also enforces channel load balancing to evenly distribute clients across available channels in a given area in order to avoid overloading a single channel or access point. “All this is done automatically and without the need for manual intervention,” says Abbass. “We have, therefore, been able to realize far superior performance improvement without addition to management overheads.”

In late 2014, 2,400 unique devices were connected to the new 802.11ac part of

the wireless network with an average of three to five devices per student and university employee. The number of concurrent users peaked at 600 in that part alone. “During high-density events like registration and final exams, we see upwards of 800 users on the 802.11ac part of the network - all at the same time.

Despite this, the performance has always been first-rate,” Abbass says.

drive student learning in and out of the classroom.

“Aruba is helping us realize our goal of keeping all of these users connected in a stable and secure manner, anytime and anywhere, across the entire campus. The solution and its robust management tools have been extremely critical in making this happen.”

Besting the BYOD Challenge Like many other institutions, AUB has been experiencing a dramatic increase in the number of personal, mobile, and wireless devices its students and staff are bringing onto its campus and Medical Center. The newly deployed 802.11ac WLAN infrastructure plays a pivotal role in providing these users with exceptional connectivity. “We now have students bringing an average of three wireless devices per person to campus for communication, entertainment and academic purposes,” says Abbass. “In addition, we encourage our faculty to use the network and mobile devices to

A Start for Smart Learning “Our students rely very heavily on computer-based lessons, so if networks go down, or if students can’t connect through a steady connection, there is a direct impact on their learning experience,” says Abbass. “But the stability and speed of Aruba’s 802.11ac solution ensures that our students do not face any such issues. It has also given us the confidence to expand the deployment of Aruba 802.11ac across campus and the Medical Center and to start looking at new smart learning solutions for which such a Wi-Fi infrastructure is a prerequisite.”

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KFC

Wireless for all KFC leverages Aruba Networks to offer free Wi-Fi to customers.

K

FC, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, is the world’s most popular chicken restaurant chain. With more than 600 stores across Australia and New Zealand, the chain employs over 25,000 employees in Australia alone.

In a highly competitive environment, KFC was looking for a solution that promoted engagement with customers and increased the time customers spent in-store. The organisation was also looking for a new avenue to deliver tailored marketing and promotional offers. Witnessing a rise in the number of mobile devices in-store, KFC realised that having a stable and highperforming Wi-Fi network needed to be at the core of its solution.

According to Saqib Hussnain, Enterprise Systems Manager at KFC, “KFC is a contemporary brand, that aims to please and satisfy customers. With the increased desire from customers to use handheld devices such as their smartphone, anytime, anywhere, we knew it was essential to provide an effective Wi-Fi service in store.”

Research conducted by Aruba Networks, on the topic of mobility, supports this observation. The global research uncovered a new generation of digitally savvy employees and customers. Dubbed

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#GenMobile, this new generation prefers to connect via Wi-Fi (60%) at the expense of other connections, at every opportunity.

The study also found that #GenMobile is comfortable carrying and connecting multiple devices at once. The research revealed 86% of respondents own two or more connected devices, 64% own three or more and 39% own four or more.

ROLLING OUT A MEMORABLE WI-FI ENABLED BRAND EXPERIENCE FOR CUSTOMERS KFC’s IT department required a solution that provided strong security for customers and allowed an enhanced user experience.

To deliver this, KFC implemented Aruba’s ClearPass solution that not only enabled KFC Wi-Fi access branding, yet also ensured users and devices were granted the right data access privileges.

With an access point in each store, deploying and onboarding devices has been a simple process. ClearPass traffic is securely tunneled via the in-store remote access point to a centralised Aruba management controller, which is scanned

by KFC’s content filter.

According to Hussnain, Aruba’s ClearPass solution has enabled his IT department to ensure only secure data can be accessed

via its in-store Wi-Fi, managed centrally by a content filter.

“It is important the family-friendly environment in our restaurants is extended in the free Wi-Fi offered. With Aruba Networks, we have been able to incorporate a filter that works seamlessly with the advanced technology ensuring unsafe content is not accessible to user devices.”

Underpinning the Wi-Fi on premise is the Aruba Networks AirWave solution, which provides KFC with centralised monitoring and reporting through a single pane of glass. It offers KFC’s IT team the ability to set alerts in the event of device failure and gives transparency into the number of users

KFC

“

KFC is a contemporary brand, that aims to please and satisfy customers. With the increased desire from customers to use handheld devices such as their smartphone, anytime, anywhere, we knew it was essential to provide an effective Wi-Fi service in store.”

Saqib Hussnain, Enterprise Systems Manager at KFC

they can now easily access a fast and highperformance Wi-Fi network,” said Hussnain.

connecting, popular locations, data usage and device types.

KFC implemented the Aruba Wi-Fi network in 2011, initially powering ten pilot stores to test the uptake and use of the Wi-Fi. During an initial trial, on average, a total of 45,000 sessions were recorded on the KFC free Wi-Fi network over a fourweek period. These sessions consumed 1,711,132 minutes of browsing and 139,197.35 megabytes of data transferred.

The trial phase also identified the types of devices accessing the network, which include iPhones, iPads, Android phones, tablets and laptops.

As expected, the desire for the Wi-Fi

network became evident and the Aruba Networks solution was rolled out to all the company owned stores across Australia at the beginning of 2012.

The result is a secure and stable wireless network. KFC now provides customers with free, no obligation Wi-Fi for 15 minutes, with 50 megabytes of download when they visit the store. If they wish to obtain 100 megabytes of download and have access to one hour of free Wi-Fi, customers need to simply enter their email address.

“The technology allows us to monitor usage and report on the uptake of Wi-Fi in our stores. Feedback from store owners and customers has been very positive as

MORE THAN JUST A NETWORK The Aruba Networks solution not only facilitates the secure onboarding of guests, but also provides the capability for proximity marketing.

This allows KFC to extend its specials and deals to customers’ mobile devices when they are connected in-store. When customers access the Wi-Fi network after accepting the terms and conditions, they are immediately directed to a page featuring a KFC special offer.

According to Hussnain, this marketing capability has enhanced the customer engagement with special offerings. “We conducted an analysis and found the uptake of deals in Wi-Fi stores were much higher compared to the non-Wi- Fi stores. The ability to deliver marketing through video advertisements or discount offers was a key

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KFC

BENEFITS: • Leverages Aruba Networks access points for secure, high performance wireless that supports onboarding customer devices in store • Efficient and constantly reliable Wi-Fi • Fluid remote management of the network via the Aruba Networks Virtual Controller • Enables the ability to onboard any device type used by customers including iPads, iPods, Android phones, tablets and laptops • The ability for customers to access secure Wi-Fi • The ability to control and limit access • The ability to implement proximity mobile marketing • Utilize ClearPass with AirWave Management Software 7.7 • A new channel to connect and engage with customers

driver in KFC choosing Aruba’s solution. With links to a CRM system, these messages could be a personalised and unique offering.”

The Wi-Fi value-add for consumers has been a huge success for KFC, with Aruba’s solution providing a point of differentiation against competitors. By offering a reliable digital experience to consumers, KFC is at the forefront of a highly competitive retail market,

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meeting growing needs for connectedness and brand engagement.

The Wi-Fi network has been such a success that KFC corporate and franchise stores are now implementing Aruba’s solution nation-wide.

KFC franchise stores are excited to offer Wi-Fi throughout their stores as by doing so, franchisees can gain visibility among their locally registered users, and further push marketing initiatives to interact with customers on a deeper level.

Along with these business benefits, brand standardisation is another driver for rolling out the Aruba Wi-Fi across all stores.

On choosing Aruba Networks, Hussnain states, “Aruba was absolutely co-operative price-wise and solution-wise. They provided a customisable solution which met specific configurations of the KFC environment.

Following an extensive international vendor review, we approached Aruba Networks in Australia and were impressed by the technology and the complete package offered. The solution has been tailor-made to minimise operational impact in our stores and we didn’t require any additional cabling or wiring because the access point runs over the network.”

Aruba Networks has changed the way KFC is perceived in an aggressive retail landscape, as it allowed the food outlet to grow and further engage with customers.

Hussnain says, “Aruba Networks is an easy-to-use Wi-Fi provider that has changed the way KFC conducts business. Aruba

has provided a solution to drive in-store engagement and deliver highly tailored interactions with consumers via a guest access wireless network.”

Looking ahead, KFC is exploring opportunities to further integrate Wi-Fi with its CRM system, and on-board all stores in Australia.

“The uptake of the wireless network by both store owners and customers has been impressive. We see significant opportunities to extend this further and engage with customers to provide tailored offerings and connectivity instore to enhance the dining experience,” Hussnain adds.

According to Steve Coad, Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand, Aruba Networks, retailers need to respond to the needs of #GenMobile customers who demand free and secure Wi-Fi when in-store.

“Here at Aruba Networks, we’re rolling out the new generation Wi-Fi networking standard, 802.11ac, combined with ClearPass to allow Australian retail companies to securely on-board and manage customer guest Wi-Fi access instore, enabling the capability for proximity marketing,” Coad says. The latter being a true value-add for retailers. This enables an all-wireless workplace and customer environment. This is being driven across all sectors, led by the increasing demand by businesses and consumers for Wi- Fi that’s fast, secure, reliable and stable enough to withstand significant demand at any one time.”

TECOM

Raising the bar Real estate master developer, TECOM Investments upgraded its legacy wireless infrastructure to support BYOD and enhance user-experience.

A

t the heart of their business is a commitment to growing Dubai’s knowledge industries, and today TECOM Investments manages 11 Free Zone and non-Free Zone business parks which includes Dubai’s Internet City (DIC), Media City, Knowledge Village, Biotechnology and Research Park and most recently, Design District (d3).

THE NEED TO UPDATE LEGACY WIRELESS INFRASTRUCTURE Prior to the Aruba implementation, the TECOM Investments IT department relied on four decentralized, disparate wireless networks to provide wireless Local Area Network (LAN) service to TECOM employees across the company’s two office locations. With over 1,000 employees and the growing popularity of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), the TECOM Investments’ IT department began to see an exponential growth in number of PCs, tablets and smartphones connecting to its network.

These devices put tremendous strain on the existing wireless infrastructure, resulting in very slow connectivity, which ultimately impacted employee productivity.

In addition to hindering the user-experience, the lack of mobility and security posed additional challenges for the IT department.

Exasperating matters was the growing financial costs due to a number of annual service contracts and additional man-hours required to maintain the network.

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TECOM

REQUIREMENTS • Centralized, streamlined wireless network • High-bandwidth, high-density network to support growing number of PC, tablet and smartphones • Improved security and mobility

SOLUTION • 2 Aruba 3600 Mobility Controllers • 124 Aruba AP-93 Access Points • 6 Aruba AP-105 Access Points

BENEFITS • Centralized network with increased bandwidth resulting in improved connectivity and better user experience • Flexible and adaptable system that could be tailored to the organization’s IT requirements • Significant security upgrade • Reduction in infrastructure management costs

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ARUBA NETWORKS – A ROBUST, FLEXIBLE AND SECURE SOLUTION Given the challenges posed by the existing network, it was apparent to Mohamed Sabah, CIO, TECOM Investments, that a complete overhaul of the wireless infrastructure was necessary. After four months of extensive Proof of Concept (POC) testing of the top WLAN technology vendors in the market, a decision was made to go with Aruba Networks. One of the key reasons for selecting Aruba was for enhanced enterprise mobility. “Aruba’s Secure Enterprise Mesh solution provides a flexible, wire-free design, allowing access points to be placed wherever they are needed whether it be indoors or outdoors,” says Sabah. In addition to being easily adaptable to the network requirements of the organization, the improved security of the Aruba solution was another factor that set Aruba apart from the competition.

According to Sabah, “Aruba’s system performs authentication, access control and encryption for users and devices, delivering state-of-the-art wireless security.”

SEAMLESS IMPLEMENTATION Working with EMITAC, Aruba’s Silver level Value-Added Reseller (VAR) in the UAE, TECOM executed the implementation in two phases. Phase 1 involved the deployment of 2 Aruba 3600 Mobility Controllers and 64 Aruba AP-93 wireless access points at the TECOM DSC location. Phase 2 involved the deployment of another 2 Aruba 3600 Mobility Controllers, 60 Aruba AP-93 access points and 6 Aruba AP-105 dual-band, dual radio access points at TECOM’s DIC4 DC location. The entire implementation, which included structured cabling work, took two months - a credit to the network services team that managed the entire implementation.

To ensure that the TECOM IT team completely understood the Aruba technology, Sabah took advantage of Aruba’s training services and had the entire network team attend one course on Mobility Controllers (MBC) and two courses on Aruba ClearPass.

TECOM

IMMEDIATE RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI) Since the implementation, the Aruba solution has outperformed expectations; highlighted by the fact that the system scored 34 out of a possible 36 points on TECOM’s network test protocol. The Aruba solution has helped the TECOM IT department overcome all the challenges posed by the earlier network infrastructure. For one, the higher bandwidth has had a positive impact on user connectivity and productivity. Secondly, having a centralized network infrastructure has significantly reduced maintenance costs while increasing control. The TECOM IT department now has the capability to control wireless user access and monitor and report per application usage of their wireless corporate users. Finally, Aruba Networks’ Wireless Intrusion Detection capability has greatly improved security within the company.

PARTNERS FOR THE FUTURE Sabah couldn’t be happier with how smoothly the implementation has gone and how well the new solution has met

“

TECOM Investments selected Aruba Networks to provide the latest, new generation wireless technology to employees and we have been extremely pleased with their services. ”

Mohamed Sabah, CIO, TECOM Investments

TECOM’s wireless network needs. “TECOM Investments selected Aruba Networks to provide the latest, new generation wireless technology to our employees and we have been extremely pleased with their services,” he says. “Aruba’s wireless technology is cost-effective and has provided a seamless and efficient wireless experience to all of our corporate users.”

While the implementation is still only a few months old, Sabah is already planning the next project with Aruba which will include an upgrade to Aruba’s 7200 series of mobility controllers – a testament to the quality of Aruba’s products and services.

“TECOM Investments is the perfect example of a forward thinking organization that is adapting to its increasingly #GenMobile workforce and bringing its wireless network capabilities up to world class standards,” says Zeeshan Hadi, Territory Manager, Dubai and Northern Emirates, Aruba Networks. “The initiative is in line with the UAE government’s ‘smart city’ vision.

Wireless technologies will be a key enabler of the ICT transformation within the country.

We are happy to have been selected as the vendor of choice and will continue to assist TECOM with future wireless infrastructure modernization projects.”

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Contact us: mktg-info@arubanetworks.com @ArubaNetworksEU