NETGEAR’s technology dramatically boosts the club’s wireless connectivity levels
Background
Northampton Saints is a professional English
rugby union club in Northampton, England.
One of the oldest and most recognised rugby
clubs in the world, the team has played
at Franklin’s Gardens for over 125 years.
Northampton Saints were European champions
in 2000 and are currently in the Guinness
Premiership, the premier league in England.
Problem/Objective
To maintain its pre-eminent position and meet the needs of all its stakeholders, Northampton Saints needed to implement an effective wireless and switch infrastructure to transform its grounds into a ‘wireless stadium’.
Conferencing plays a large part in the business behind a rugby club as renowned as Northampton Saints. With players and colleagues based across the globe, a reliable wireless environment was required to provide the necessary capabilities to develop this imperative element of the business.
The solution needed a high level of security as guests, visitors, players and employees were regularly logging onto the Northampton Saints’ network. It was critical that viruses and malware were prevented from entering the network, while users were blocked from accessing unsuitable content.
A further requirement of any professional sports club facility is the ability to store and easily access match footage for immediate video analysis by the team’s coaches during a game. Text and imagery is essential for the creation of signage, collateral and printed materials for club promotion and events. It was crucial that Northampton Saints had a system that was easily accessible by players and staff members alike, with a storage capacity that would be inexhaustible by the club’s files and data.
Solution
When it came to implementing a technological solution, Northampton Saints specifically wanted a company that could also function as an elite partner and sponsor. It was important that the partner was as highly regarded as the Northampton Saints brand.
Having assessed networking equipment vendors and the various wireless infrastructure and switch solutions available, NETGEAR technology was selected on the basis of its reputation, high-performance products and value for money.
Northampton Saints installed five NETGEAR FSM7352PS ProSafe® 48 Port L3 Managed Fast Switches, plus 12 AGM713F Fibre Gigabit Modules. The NETGEAR WFS709TP ProSafe Smart Wireless Controller was also implemented to manage the switch system and 16 WGL102 ProSafe Light Wireless Access Points, which were deployed across the Tetley’s Stand. This key stand functions as the stadium’s primary conferencing venue, with rooms of varying size. The NETGEAR ReadyNAS® NV+ and a rack-mounted ReadyNAS 1100 unit complemented the wireless infrastructure.
Result
Following the implementation of NETGEAR technology, the wireless infrastructure continues to function seamlessly across over half of Franklin’s Gardens, enhancing the overall experience for its users. As a direct result, Northampton Saints has been able to develop its conferencing system - a key facet of the club’s business - to maintain connections with members of the league, as well as enable international players to remain in touch with family and friends in their home countries.
Visitors’ wireless networking experience was further improved following the implementation of the NETGEAR STM150 ProSecure™ Web and Email Threat Management Appliance. Whereas guests and players previously had access to all online content, making them vulnerable to viruses and malware, they were now protected. Additionally, users were prevented from visiting websites that could be damaging to the Northampton Saints brand.
By utilising the NETGEAR ReadyNAS storage solutions, the Saint’s coaching staff is provided with quick access to all types of video files, which enables timely analysis of match footage for strategic advantage in future games.
The entire Northampton Saints organisation noticed an undeniable improvement following the implementation of the NETGEAR system. Employees and players are now able to work without disruption from lack of wireless connectivity or storage crashing, with the infrastructure seamlessly continuing to function in the background.
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