Case study – NHS

The Business Challenge

With a large and complex organisation spanning multiple sites in the heart of London, this major NHS Trust had its own private data centre but was looking to aggregate data from across the Trust’s network. Secure back-up was key for a critical data point to point linking 2 key sites to their new state-of-the-art data centre in London Docklands.

The Solution

Geo was selected to advise the Trust in its initial search for a new data centre location. Several sites were considered and the Trust chose a state-of-the-art site in London Docklands which met cost considerations, but was also ideally located for the two hospital sites.

The Trust was looking for guaranteed dedicated fibre from both a financial and capacity perspective. Only Geo’s unique underground network deep in the sewers of London could provide the guaranteed capacity and availability the Trust sought. The Trust now had a network which provided both performance and cost predictability whilst allowing the flexibility of adding more sites to the dedicated network at any time.

And Geo’s dedicated fibre with the option to increase bandwidth as and when required, meant that the future capacity needs for current and future network requirements were assured.

Geo has a wealth of experience in the design, build and operation of fibre networks in the UK including the pioneering FibreSpeed project for the Welsh Assembly Government and the Digital Corridor project for the Manchester Digital Development Agency. Geo was able to provide this major NHS Trust with the expertise that comes from implementing more than 150 network projects.

The Benefits

As one of the UK’s most dynamic and largest NHS organisations the Trust needed to future- proof its data strategy. The solution needed to meet economic, security and availability demands.
Geo’s solution of dedicated fibre with dedicated equipment and a low server network have resulted in 100% availability in its first year of operation. The performance of Geo’s network has resulted in immediate efficiency savings offsetting the cost of planned network upgrades.
The Trust’s decision to go with Geo’s network ensures fixed pricing for all future network upgrades.

About the client

This leading NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s most pioneering, encompassing 8 sites in the South East. The Trust is a major centre for biomedical research in Europe, and is among the largest teaching institutions with an annual turnover of £600 million and around 6000 employees.

About Geo

Launched in 2004, Geo is at the cutting edge of the fibre network industry. Geo owns the newest network in the UK and in 2009 was rated in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100 as the 7th fastest growing technology company in the country. Geo has worked on a number of prestigious projects including a 15 year contract with the Welsh Assembly Government.