The majority of Standard Bank’s global voice and data traffic will be handled by Telstra’s wide area network (WAN). Telstra says this will result in greater IT security, more flexible connectivity, more systems scalability, reduced operational costs and low maintenance.
The MPLS will replace a stand alone telecom ‘point to point’ system, providing continual service availability. Telstra Europe was already providing Standard Bank with voice carrier services and was selected last year for the MPLS contract.
By converging its voice and data across a single IP-based network, Standard Bank has introduced video conferencing technology. This has improved the communication process within the organization, reduced the need for senior management to travel between office locations and reduced costs.
Standard Bank’s IT managers will also have access to Telstra’s ‘Service Tools’ online portal, which enables them to simultaneously monitor the bank’s network on a geographical basis and examine traffic in detail.