Multinational Food Company Saves $1.2 Mn Using PoLRE® Switches To Support IP Phone Deployment

One of the world’s largest food companies was relying on an analog communication system that could no longer keep up with the company’s needs.

The organization wanted to modernize to IP. However, the company needed to overcome critical network readiness challenges to support a new IP voice solution.

Changing the traditional LAN design 

A CAT3 network infrastructure supported the existing analog phone system. Based on traditional LAN design thinking, the food company believed it needed to rip-and-replace the network infrastructure and install new Ethernet to support IP.

The network requirements appeared to be too costly, complicated, and disruptive to the business Additionally, the organization was uncertain how to support the IP phones in all areas of the manufacturing facilities, given the 328ft (100m) reach limitation of standard Ethernet switches. The customer was not interested in the IDF closets required to extend connectivity to all areas of the buildings.

The project was critical for business growth – but the network requirements appeared to be too costly, complicated, and disruptive to the business. The customer needed a modern solution to overcome its challenges.

NVT Phybridge PoLRE® switch

Given the customer’s digital transformation challenges, JT Global Enterprise, the reseller partner, introduced the food company to the NVT Phybridge PoLRE® switch.

The PoLRE switch delivers Power over Ethernet over any new or existing single-pair UTP (CAT3) infrastructure with up to 1,200ft (365m) reach. That’s four times farther than a standard PoE switch. The customer was satisfied, as the innovation would eliminate rip-and-replace requirements and allow for a smoother modernization experience.

In just a few simple setup steps, the PoLRE switch transformed the customer’s existing CAT3 infrastructure into a robust IP/PoE backbone with more than enough reach to support the new IP phones exactly where the customer needed them.

IP voice solution

The food company leveraged the NVT Phybridge PoLRE switch to deploy over 4,000 IP phones across 47 locations. JT Global Enterprise was able to leverage the existing and proven voice infrastructure to maintain a physically separate network for the new IP voice solution.

Its simplicity, stability, and ease of deployment quickly provided the IP and PoE needed to support the new system The customer was also pleased with the simplicity of the solution. “Achieving IP connectivity first to support our new solution was where we exhausted most of our planning time. When we learned about the NVT Phybridge PoLRE product, we were able to move straight into implementation,” said the Sr. Telecommunications Manager for the food company.

“The PoLRE switch solved every concern we had, especially around costs and complexity. Its simplicity, stability, and ease of deployment quickly provided the IP and PoE we needed to support our new system and features for all of our users.”

Modernization objectives

The food company took a pro-active approach to find new and better ways to support its IP modernization objectives in a financially and socially responsible manner. The customer leveraged Modern LAN design and NVT Phybridge PoE innovations to:

• Create a secure and robust point-to-point network topology for the new IP phones to improve application performance and quality of service
• Reduce infrastructure costs by more than $1.2 million
• Deploy the PoLRE solution in just four months; compared the original 18-month forecast
• Avoid rip-and-replace requirements to eliminate any potential business disruption
• Leverage the existing infrastructure to prevent over 12 tons of e-waste