Kolok improves efficiencies with Citrix
Kolok, a division of the Bidvest Group and one of South Africa’s largest IT distributors, has deployed Citrix NetScaler SD-WAN to improve its customer service, speed of response and business efficiencies.
With an operation as complex as Kolok’s, a reliable and secure network is paramount to keep the business running smoothly. The company fulfils thousands of individual deliveries of IT products every day from its Johannesburg headquarters.
To stay ahead of the competition, Kolok and 380 employees are heavily reliant on secure, consistent connectivity and reliable 24/7 access to network infrastructure, data and applications.
Kolok works closely with technology solutions compancy, Troye, to constantly assess how new innovations in technology can improve productivity, drive business efficiencies, cut costs, and minimise the risks of damaging downtime.
“Working with Troye, we selected NetScaler SD-WAN from Citrix to help us to deliver a secure, consistent user experience throughout our branch network and, at the same time, provide the flexibility and control we need to manage our operation efficiently, now and in the future,” says Kolok IT Manager Richard Vivian.
Vivian points to traditional Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks that can be unreliable. "Even with expensive MPLS networks, we have experienced downtime when a primary line has failed and backups have not been enabled. In a worst-case scenario, the backup line was cancelled and there was no communication to us, and we could not see that there was no backup until the lines had failed."
Troye managing director Helen Kruger says NetScaler SD-WAN has transformed Kolok’s ability to track the status and performance of its IT assets minute-by-minute, enabling potential problems to be efficiently and cost-effectively overcome before they escalate.
“Along with improved productivity and secure, always-on communications, the investment in NetScaler SD-WAN is part of a business transformation that is providing Kolok with an agile, scalable, cloud-based IT platform to maintain its market leadership position in South Africa,” says Kruger.
Return on investment will be achieved in just three years, purely through saving online costs. The results of improved business efficiency, performance, and Kolok’s enhanced reputation for excellence, that Citrix technology will help deliver, will be substantial.
The Troye and Citrix teams came together to devise a bespoke design and installation of the NetScaler SD-WAN solution, forging strong relationships with their Kolok colleagues in the process.
The SD WAN solution is part of the larger Citrix offering. It gives Kolok control of its internal network. The company is currently also implementing Citrix NetScaler that will give it protection and control from its internal network to public networks.
“Citrix is enabling our people across South Africa to focus on providing great service to customers, while managers have visibility and control of a smart solution that is easy to use and highly cost-effective," Vivian concludes.
Edited by Daniëlle Kruger
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