Prestigious Hotel Selects Aruba Networks' 802.11ac Solution
to Boost Performance 24X
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates –3nd March, 2014 – Aruba Networks,
Inc. (NASDAQ: ARUN), a leading provider of next-generation network access
solutions for the mobile enterprise, today announced that Emirates Palace in
Abu Dhabi, one of the world’s most prestigious hotels, is the first hotel in
the Middle East to deploy a 802.11ac wireless network allowing guests to use gigabit
wireless across the sprawling property. The landmark implementation, by MDS
UAE, a leading IT service Company in UAE, leverages Aruba Networks’ 802.11ac
solution and advanced wireless security.
Commenting on his organization's
decision to adopt the latest in wireless networking technologies, Mehmet
Akdeniz, Director of IT and AV at Emirates Palace said, “We remain deeply
committed to offering our guests a truly remarkable experience. When we noticed
that guest usage of bandwidth-hungry
mobile applications was becoming a norm, we committed to deploying a solution
that would meet their high expectations for the next four to five years. This
is why we opted for Aruba’s gigabit Wi-Fi solution.”
Guided by MDS UAE
through a six-month selection period, Akdeniz and his team evaluated solutions
from Aruba Networks along with other wireless networking vendors.
Aruba stood out as offering the most suitable 802.11ac technology for Emirates
Palace. The Aruba 802.11ac solution, which includes the Aruba
220 Series Access Points, Aruba Mobility Controllers and the company’s
patented ClientMatch™
technology, delivered the capabilities, functionality, high degree of security
and effortless integration with the hotel’s newly deployed wired infrastructure
that Akdeniz and his team required.
Emirates Palace deployed an Aruba 7220
series Mobility Controller and over 1000 Aruba AP-225 wireless access points
across the expansive property about two months period to avoid inconvenience to
guests. The hotel also implemented Aruba's AirWave Network
Management platform, which delivers visibility into all devices and
connections on the wireless network thus allowing administrators to proactively
plan for capacity, visualize client performance and troubleshoot application issues.
Akdeniz said,
“Having a highly regarded Aruba Platinum Partner carry out the implementation
was a huge benefit to us. Even industry-leading technology is only as good as
its implementation and MDS UAE ensured that the entire system was configured
for optimal performance.”
While the most noticeable benefit of
the new system was the increase in capacity from 54Mbps to 1.3Gbps, the
centralized nature of the solution proved to be an appealing feature for the IT
team. The Aruba 7220 series Mobility Controller has completely eliminated
manual configuration of individual access points and has even automated
software updates of all the Aruba 225 APs. Furthermore, with solution features
such as white list co-ordination, valid AP lists, control plane security
(CPsec) certificates and wireless intrusion detection and coordination,
Emirates Palace has now achieved the highest level of security for its wireless
network.
Through the controller's intuitive
Graphical User Interface (GUI), administrators can make rapid changes to the network
and its security settings. This has enabled a high degree of customization of
the network which is required to meet the specific needs of each high-profile
meeting and conference that the prestigious venue hosts. Akdeniz elaborated,
“We no longer waste precious manpower tending to labor intensive processes.
Everything is easily managed from one location and our newfound visibility into
every element of the network has enabled proactive troubleshooting and thus,
drastically improved our reaction time. Complaints about poor network
performance have virtually disappeared and our business customers are often
amazed to find how quickly we can accommodate their connectivity requirements.”
Akdeniz believes that the Aruba
solution will now allow the hotel to deliver new features and capabilities to
its guests. While the wireless infrastructure is currently used to support Internet
services, point of sales and digital signage, the new network can allow a
complete range of cutting-edge guest services. Emirates Palace already has
plans under way to offer IPTV, online gaming for children, Internet music
streaming and smart device-controlled operation of in-room entertainment. All
of these services will rely heavily on the abundant availability of bandwidth -
something that the Aruba Networks 802.11ac solution will provide for the
foreseeable future.
“In the hospitality sector today, simply
providing wireless is practically a given. But not all wireless is equal and
this is something that our guests will be able to recognize instantly. We now
have a solution that enables us to improve their experience in ways that they
have not even considered as of yet. This is the kind of service excellence that
Emirates Palace is synonymous with and we are happy to say that Aruba has been
an enabler of our success,” concluded Akdeniz.
