Swiss Paraplegic Center Doubles Size and Enhances Services with
Same IT Staff Using a Cisco Intelligent Segmented Network
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
The Swiss Paraplegic Center in Nottwil is the largest specialized clinic of its kind in Europe. The Center is dedicated to improving the quality of life for people suffering from spinal cord injuries, combining ground-breaking clinical research with hands-on holistic rehabilitation. The 5-1/2 acre (22,000 square meter) campus includes a hospital, outpatient clinic, research building, conference center, and hotel for conference guests, patients and families.The campus network supports services such as electronic medical records essential to the work of the center.
According to Markus Blum, Network Engineer at the Swiss Paraplegic Center, two years ago the institution was constructing a research building that doubled the size of the network. At the same time, older network components were approaching the end of their useful life. The IT staff needed a reliable infrastructure that would serve the expanding needs of the Center.
Higher bandwidth and availability were not the only requirements. The IT staff needed a way to easily deploy and manage IT services. The staff had been separating services and user groups on their flat, Layer 2 switched network using virtual LANs (VLANs). However, with the Layer 2 network, problems with Alcatel switch stacks would bring down the entire network for short periods on a monthly basis. Blum explains, "We wanted an easier way to manage our larger network because we didn't want to increase our IT staff. We also wanted a more reliable network that would support multimedia services such as digital voice and video over IP (VoIP)."
Doubling the network size required implementing a multilayer, routed and switched environment for better control and management. The challenge was figuring out how to deliver differentiated switching services at the network edge while allowing other routed services such as building automation and security to span the entire campus.
NETWORK SOLUTION
Mathias Nyffenegger, IT Engineer at the Swiss Paraplegic Center, explains that their IT group first considered using a mix of providers for the access, distribution, core, and edge layers. However, to simplify network implementation and reduce ongoing support, they realized that they needed a single-vendor solution. Blum and Nyffenegger consulted with their network service partner NextiraOne, who recommended a solution from Cisco Systems®.
Although they continued to look at other vendors such as Nortel, ultimately Cisco's reputation in the industry, reinforced by the center's own favorable experiences with Cisco products, sealed the decision. Cisco's ability to deliver competitive pricing and good products at
all of the layers were also key decision factors.
To preserve the user group segmentation in the new mixed Layer 2-3 environment, the center implemented the Cisco Virtual Route Forwarding-lite (VRF-lite) network virtualization solution. Redundant, high-performance multilayer Cisco Catalyst® 6506 switches
at the network core and Cisco Catalyst 4506 switches at the distribution layer support multiple virtual routers, forming logically separated networks that share cabling and network infrastructure. Cisco Catalyst 3750 switches at the access layer manage the servers stacks and deploy virtual LAN (VLAN) segmentation. VLAN segments at the network edge are matched one-to-one with their respective VRF segments at the core and distribution layers.
Redundant 10 Gigabit Ethernet links between the core and distribution layers provide the performance needed to support bandwidth-intensive applications across the backbone and to deliver gigabit bandwidth down to user laptops and desktops. "We now have plenty
of bandwidth to support planned VoIP and streaming video services in the future," says Nyffenegger.
Says Blum, "With the Layer 3 network and VRF-lite, we can make full use of the redundancy of network components and routing paths, and still retain the structured segmentation we need." Network component failures have been drastically reduced, and a problem in one section of the network no longer brings the entire Center to a halt. He adds that overall performance is better because equipment is better utilized, while traffic shaping and quality of service (QoS) features allow IT to apply bandwidth intelligently throughout the network.
With the virtually segmented network, Nyffenegger and Blum have created closed network groups for data communication, for guest-access services, education and research, clinics and hospital services, and for their online building-automation application that controls the center's heating and air conditioning systems for the entire campus. The groups operate independently, with customized routing domains and addressing schemes. Network and resource access, bandwidth, QoS, and security services are implemented through centralized management policies from the CiscoWorks management platform.
The segmented solution is deployed across the wired and wireless infrastructure, centrally controlled, managed, and secured by redundant Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series Wireless LAN Services Modules (WLSMs) and Access Control Server (ACS). Clinicians can move from room to room with their laptops and seamlessly access patient information from the Center's central electronic records database. Clinicians and researchers can also securely share up-the-minute information during collaborative clinical trials.
"We now have a solid, high-performance infrastructure that will support the needs of our center for years to come."
- Markus Blum, Network Engineer, Swiss Paraplegic Center
BUSINESS RESULTS
The Swiss Paraplegic Center's high-speed, highly available Cisco architecture provides the foundation on which to build a reliable, scalable services-oriented network. The VRF-lite solution retains all the benefits of resiliency and centralized security and services of a hierarchical multilayer campus network with the addition of end-to-end, scalable segmentation.
• Simplified network management-The virtualized network enables the Center's IT staff to enforce consistent security policies across the campus network. They can also monitor and troubleshoot the entire enterprise network from anywhere, including from home. Despite the doubling in size and the addition of campus-wide wireless service, the IT staffing has remained the same, a potential savings of one to two network engineers.
• Significantly improved scalability-The center's hierarchical network makes it easy to extend the wired and wireless network. Nyffenegger says, "Adding a new access switch becomes a matter of connecting it to a distribution switch in one of the two buildings. To expand our wireless coverage, we just add access points, reconfigure the central WLSM IP address and we're back online again." The same approach works on an even larger scale; expanding the campus now involves merely adding new building blocks to the network core.
• Significantly higher availability-The fully redundant network design coupled with better failure detection capabilities and shorter reaction times has eliminated the incidence of unplanned network outages. "When a component does fail, the network routes around the failure, and we can pinpoint the problem and return to full speed in very short time," says Nyffenegger. He estimates that they have reduced troubleshooting time by eighty percent.
• Improved user convenience and capability-With the network's integrated wired and wireless security features and remote access capabilities, researchers and clinical staff can rely on a consistent level of resources and services as they move from wired
to wireless areas within buildings and campus grounds. Visitors can conveniently log in and access the Internet and basic resources without compromising the integrity of the Center's operations.
• Lower total cost of ownership-The ability to segment the network while sharing network infrastructure saves significantly on operation costs. Better uptime, centralized management, and faster maintenance eliminate the need for additional IT resources.
The scalable network architecture removes the need for costly upgrades to accommodate change or growth. "We now have a solid, high-performance infrastructure that will support the needs of our Center for years to come," says Blum.
NEXT STEPS
After a year in operation with no unexpected failures, Blum and Nyffenegger are confident in the network's ability to reliably support upcoming VoIP and streaming audio and video applications that will significantly cut operation expenses by eliminating the need to maintain separate networks for voice and data. "Adding the media services can all be done with the same campus infrastructure we have built here," says Blum.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
To find out more about Cisco Solutions and Services, visit: http://www.cisco.com
This customer story is based on information provided by the Swiss Paraplegic Center and describes how the institution benefits from the deployment of Cisco products.
Many factors may have contributed to the results and benefits described. Cisco does
not guarantee comparable results elsewhere.
CISCO PROVIDES THIS PUBLICATION AS IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Some jurisdictions do not allow disclaimer or implied warranties, therefore this disclaimer
may not apply to you.
