Case Study: Router Migration and Network Optimization

Customer:
A Major Food Manufacturer in Pennsylvania

Problem:
The manufacturer needed to complete a significant network overhaul while simultaneously maintaining support and availability for their existing network. They were tasked with implementing an ATM backbone at their main campus headquarters and rolling out over one hundred Cisco routers to all their plants and sales offices as well as Ethernet and Token-Ring switches, DHCP/DDNS, network management software and remote troubleshooting software. Although the deployment effort had already been through a careful planning and organization effort, the manufacturer was concerned about the time and resource constraints of integrating new technologies into their legacy environment. The manufacturer was also running out of IP addresses and needed to take quick action to remedy the problem.

Solution:
Chesapeake played a key role in the migration effort by working along side the manufacturer's network infrastructure group and network deployment consultants. Chesapeake's initial assignment was to migrate the network's routing protocol from RIP to EIGRP at three major network locations, allowing support for VLSM which was needed to alleviate the IP addressing shortage. Chesapeake was then asked to assist with the migration from static IP addressing to DHCP/DDNS to ensure a smooth transition between the two standards.

During the network upgrade, Chesapeake audited the router configurations for efficiency and standardization and conducted extensive troubleshooting efforts to quickly isolate and resolve migration related problems. Chesapeake also provided training to the manufacturer's staff on the new technologies being employed in the upgraded network.

Benefits:
The network rollout project is being completed on time and within budget and the manufacturer will enjoy increased performance and reliability with their new WAN. Chesapeake's ability to integrate productively and efficiently with the manufacturer's project team minimized start-up time for the project and maximized a thorough knowledge transfer from consultant to customer. In addition, Chesapeake's troubleshooting expertise led to a more efficient overall migration process.