BGL Group Uses SolarWinds to Build a Better Network.

Leading UK Insurance Broker Selects SolarWinds to Help its Network Meet the Demands of Massive Growth, Mission-Critical Troubleshooting and Proactive Capacity Planning 

AUSTIN, Texas -- SolarWinds, a leading provider of downloadable, enterprise-class network management software, announced today that BGL Group is using Orion to help it reorganize and streamline its network operations and to help improve its troubleshooting procedures following the rapid expansion of its business. The solution has been successfully delivered and supported by Prosperon Networks, a leading SolarWinds partner.

With ten separate brands working within six business divisions, BGL uses a large team of 200 developers to create new software applications and to tailor existing systems for new business processes and online services. With the business on track to grow as much as 50 percent by 2009, BGL was starting to have serious concerns regarding the stability of its network and its ability to adequately manage infrastructure serving its four sites in the United Kingdom and its network-connected operations in South Africa.

"As the business has grown, we have tended to just throw more capacity at the network without really looking at the underlying problems," commented Stewart Barrett, senior network analyst for BGL Group. "The network has become increasingly congested with more VoIP and Internet application traffic, and small problems can quickly escalate to cause an issue with major impact on the business."

"In the early days, we used WhatsUp Gold and CiscoWorks for simple network monitoring, but the network had grown beyond the capabilities of both products and we needed to find a better tool to help with the network reorganization project, monitoring, troubleshooting and capacity planning," continued Barrett.

Following evaluation of products from Tivoli, BMC and Ipswitch, BGL selected SolarWinds Orion based on its ease of use and flexibility. BGL approached Prosperon Networks, a SolarWinds partner, at the beginning of the selection process. Prosperon Networks organized site visits, webinars and extensive configuration assistance to support BGL during the evaluation and pre-sale process, and provided post-sales assistance. Barrett added, "Implementation was smooth and Prosperon also delivered an excellent training day, which allowed us to get up to speed very quickly."

For BGL, the benefits were immediate, "The software was very easy to use and for the first time we had complete visibility of our network infrastructure," Barrett commented. "We are now able to inspect traffic on our network as well as on each side of our carrier-supplied MPLS network and our data links to our South African operation."

Using Orion, the network team has begun the process of reorganizing its 1,200 network elements across its primary and disaster recovery sites. "The main project is progressing well using the discovery and mapping tools within Orion, but it is also helping us improve our monitoring and troubleshooting activities," explained Barrett. "Before, a minor issue could quickly escalate into a business-critical service outage, but we are now able to quickly pinpoint issues and stop things from spiraling out of control."

BGL is also using Orion to help with capacity planning. "We tend to get a substantial rise in Internet traffic corresponding to running TV and radio advertising campaigns," explained Barrett. "But we are now better able to provision services for our Internet and call center departments. And the historical data we collect from these peaks allows us to plan for the future."

With BGL on target for another year of record growth, the network team is currently halfway through its reorganization project and is now planning to roll out special network views using Orion to additional departments, including its AS400 system developers, server teams, helpdesk and Internet developers. "The deployment of Orion has been a resounding success and it is helping us to meet both our operational needs and our long-term strategic goals, even as the business keeps growing," Barrett concluded.

About SolarWinds

SolarWinds provides downloadable, enterprise-class network management software that is affordable, easy to use, and guided by a large and growing user community. Focused on the real-world needs of network professionals, SolarWinds products are simple to try, simple to use, and simple to maintain, while providing the power, scale, and flexibility needed by companies of all sizes. More than 50,000 customers from small businesses to the largest enterprises rely on SolarWinds products to take the complexity out of managing their networks. Learn more today on our website.

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