Network Refresh - The SD WAN Option

The Software Defined WAN Market size is estimated to grow from ￡1bn in 2017 to USD ￡7bn by 2021, at an estimated Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 65.11%. Whilst most organisations know they should be addressing SD WAN it poses many scenarios including adopting an “over the top” or “in the network” model, replacing or capping their MPLS, factoring in Business/Commodity Internet, LTE, replacement of their hardware, etc.

Organisations looking to do a network refresh in the next 18 months need to consider SD WAN as an alternative or complimentary service to traditional WAN technologies. It can be the case that SD WAN is assessed largely on cost savings but after that the value proposition isn’t well understood. What about modelling the reduction in trouble tickets and improved problem resolution in terms of improving business uptime. The layer of intelligence between the users and the physical links can certainly bring a change of attitudes in a positive way, gone are the days of traditional WAN-as-a-bottleneck mentality.

The key drivers behind the shift to SD WAN are that  enterprise customers are demanding more flexible, open, and cloud-based WAN technologies, rather than installing proprietary or specialised WAN technology that often involve expensive fixed circuits. SD WAN also has the advantage of removing potentially expensive routing hardware by provisioning connectivity and services via the cloud. Emerging SD WAN technology can also be more flexible, for example, because SD WAN connectivity can be controlled through cloud software, a customer might be able to scale up or “burst” connectivity during times of peak demand.

Why Exponential-e

Exponential-e invested in SD WAN technology two years ago and we are now ahead of many of our competitors. Our self-service platform connects enterprises to business applications from wherever they are enabling organisations to utilise SD WAN to separate the data and control layer into two parts. This allows businesses to centrally assign and manage application-aware policies across sites to secure and control all network traffic. Organisations will also be able to turn bandwidth up – and down – in real time with no time delays. Connectivity into the Cloud public and private offers our customers flexibility and security.

Organisations are looking at Exponential-e to provide the expertise to help them in their appraisal of their network and  can advise on the cost, reliability and security of any potential SD WAN.  As the 4th largest carrier network in the UK and 2nd largest in London running our own core VPLS network and Cloud services  we are in strong position to deliver an end to end SD WAN whilst augmenting your existing network.  Exponential-e’s pedigree is demonstrable through its 3000 customers, 96% reference ability and NPS of 40.