Background
Germany's Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte - BfArM) is an independent agency under the Federal Ministry of Health. BfArM is responsible for the licensing, review and authorization of finished medicinal products to ensure they conform to proof of efficacy, safety and pharmaceutical quality standards set by German Drug Laws (Arzneimittelgesetz - AMG).
Like many large enterprises, government agencies around the world are deploying network applications and services that require greater bandwidth over higher speed connections. To meet these demands, BfArM realized its Fast Ethernet-based network infrastructure with a single link between core and aggregation could not provide the reliability, advanced QoS features, and VoIP and other converged data communications services.
To upgrade and replace its old network, BfArM issued a public tender for bids. When evaluating vendors, BfArM looked for high value, low-cost solutions and selected Huawei-3Com (H3C) over a field of major network providers.
Technology Solution
H3C designed and installed a 10GE network infrastructure for BfArM based on its S8500 and S5600 series switches. H3C placed two S8512 10G core multi-service routing switches in the core due to their high reliability and performance capabilities. Dual 10GE connections run between each S8512 unit for greater reliability, while H3C's network management system offers enhanced traffic management. The S8500 series switch is a high-capacity, high-density, modular switch with wire-speed forwarding performance.
To provide Gigabit Ethernet access to the desktop across BfArM's network, H3C used eight S5624F intelligent switches to offer scalable, 10G performance with a 10GE connection to each S8512 core switch for truly redundant and highly available operation. H3C's proprietary IRF (Intelligent Resilient Framework) stacking technology provides a path for future expansion without service interruptions. In total, 50 S5624F switches were used for end-user access connections.
To provide strong informational security for BfArM's sensitive data, H3C deployed its Secpath100V products as the network's security gateway providing non-blocking forwarding capabilities and secure VPN interlinks between its headquarters and branch facilities.
Why H3C?
H3C's wide portfolio of data communications products along with its global reputation for delivering carrier-class solutions and high quality service support before and after the sale impacted on BfArM's decision to select the company to upgrade its network architecture. As one of the few vendors to fully support 10GE environments, H3C was able to give BfArM a secure, scalable network with high bandwidth and reliability to support the deployment of multiple applications and services.
Benefits
H3C's network design provides BfArM with a 10GE network solution for improved performance, bandwidth and scalability. The new network features abundant service functions, a powerful QoS guarantee, comprehensive security management mechanisms, and carrier-class reliability to enable the deployment of VoIP and other converged network services. BfArM's requirements for cost-effective scalability to meet future demand were satisfied by H3C's IRF stacking technology and its dual homing design eliminates downtime with greater reliability and redundancy.
