Case Study

University of Northampton

Sector
Education
Platform
KEMP LoadMaster 3600, Microsoft Exchange

The University of Northampton is a higher education establishment situated in the heart of England and offers various subjects at undergraduate and postgraduate level. The University is globally renowned in subject specialisms such as Waste Management, Leather Technology and Fashion.

As part of the University’s new strategy, it aims to be the top university in the UK for social enterprise by 2015. Their social enterprise strategy is based on a desire to be distinctive, forward-thinking and responsible.

Challenge

The IT team at the University were looking for a load-balancing solution that was both cost-effective and would ensure uptime and high-availability for their critical IT systems. They sought the help of SysGroup to assess their needs and suggest the best options.

Solution

SysGroup has successfully:

Configured and installed KEMP LoadMaster 3600 appliances
Enabled Microsoft Exchange server load balancing for over 2,000 users

After comparing the specifications and performance of the KEMP appliances against price, the university concluded that, compared to two other well-known load balancer products, these offered the best value overall.

Testimonial
The benefits have been immediate. We previously used software load balancing solutions and found these to be limiting in terms of functionality. They also offered several reference contacts for other recent KEMP LoadMaster projects and added that extra bit of value when it came to installation with their flexible and helpful approach.
Steve Slade
Data Centre Manager, University of Northampton