5 Key Phases & Challenges in IT Project Management

ITPM Challenges cover photo

As Project Managers, we would know that a Project would have a specific beginning and end date typically performed to produce a business or meet a business objective and produce a unique product or services with deliverables being generated as well as project management deliverables.

IT Project Management covers many different areas depending upon the types of IT Project being managed. The IT Project Manager may be responsible for one, more or all the components or deliverables of the areas. Some common examples would include:

  • Infrastructure
  • Network
  • Security
  • Storage
  • Firmware
  • Hardware
  • Web
  • Content
  • Database
  • Disaster Recovery
  • etc.

Where according to the 5 Phases of Project Life Cycle with reference to the PMBOK® Guide which most project managers are familiar with, there are also potentially 5 Key Challenges that they may face when running an IT project:

5 Phases of Project Life Cycle:

  • Conception & Initiation
  • Definition & Planning
  • Execution
  • Performance & Control
  • Project Close

ITPM 5 Key Potential Challenges:

  • Multiple Vendors/ Suppliers/ Partners
  • Change to the Version and Releases
  • Complex Dependencies
  • Integrated Testing
  • Operation, Maintenance & Support

Methodology for IT Project Management:

Though there are certain characteristics that make IT projects different to other types of projects, many methodology and techniques of project management are still applicable for IT project management as they all share the same constraints of Scope, Time and Budget. Some of the more popular methods in no particular order that are being practice would include:

  • Scrum
  • Agile
  • Waterfall
  • PMBOK
  • PRINCE2
  • Critical Path Method
  • Lean & Six Sigma

RED Approach to ITPM

In this fast pace world of project management, RED combines the traditional PMBOK plan-based model with the new generation of Agile project management frameworks to manage our projects through providing clear sets of instructions and yet using flexible processes to deliver projects from start to finish.

Our ITPM team covers countries across the Asia Pacific. Let us show you how we can assist you with your projects while you focus on your core business. To contact us click here.

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Terminologies used in Data Center

cover image for Terminologies used in data center

Excuse me, can you speak English?

He will be escorting you to your cage….

What is the SOP?

PUE of 1.4.

Check out the server on RU30 for Rack 3.14.

Energize the PDU.

Where is Colo?

Is that a Cat 6 or Cat 6A?

If you work in a data center then some of the terms above will be familiar to you. However, as new graduate engineers get their first working opportunity in a Data Center environment, they can be overwhelmed by the number of industry terms and abbreviations being used on them in daily communications. They will surely pick up the terms over time. However, understanding what some of it means is important as it can be detrimental especially for carrying out Remote Hands or other facilities works in a Data Center. A very good simple piece of advice that I have received during my engineering days and I still use it today is, “Never assume and always ask until it’s clear for you.”

In part 5 of the Everything about Remote Hands series, we will share and clarify some of the more common terminologies you should know if you plan to work in a Data Center.

There are numerous terminologies used in the data centers and since our main focus in this series is on Remote Hands, we shall discuss the common terminologies that every Remote Hands Engineer should know. Hope this helps.

TERMINOLOGIES USED IN THE DATA CENTER

SOP – Standard Operating Procedure:

This is one of the most important documents you will need to read and know them by hard for any operational staff working in a Data Center. It’s a document that will need to be reviewed and referred to when in doubt. A Standard Operating Procedure is a step-by-step instruction created by the organization to help the Remote Hands team and staff to carry out routines and regular tasks. SOPs target to achieve efficiency, quality delivery, and uniformity of performance, prevents miscommunication and any possible failure to comply with the industry standards. Without these set guidelines, each person may perform and complete the task in his or her own way. It will also help to complete tasks fast and safest possible way.

SLA – Service Level Agreement:

Service-Level Agreement (SLA) is a commitment between the service provider and the client defining the level of service expectations by a client from the service provider, laying out the metrics by which that service is measured, and the remedies or penalties, if any, should the agreed-on service levels are not being achieved.

RU or U – Rack Unit:

Rack Units (RU) were created by the Electronic Industries Alliance (“EIA”) to help standardize equipment used by telecommunications carriers. RU is a unit of measurement used to describe the dimensions of equipment that have to be placed inside the data center rack. Servers and related components that are to be mounted on the racks are specified in multiple RU like 1U, 2U, 4U, etc. 1RU is equal to 1.75 inches or 44.45mm. The Remote Hands team will use them to identify the actual location of where the equipment should be mounted within the specific rack.

32 U & 33 U Rack Unit shown in a server rack.

RU33 & RU 32 on a 19″ Server Rack

PDU – Power Distribution Unit:

There are various types of power distribution units (PDU). It can be a cabinet, rack-mounted strips, and even mobile portable ones. PUDs are fitted with multiple outputs designed to distribute electric power, especially to racks for IT components, servers, and networking equipment located within a data center. Racks in data centers are typically provided with dual PDUs connected to 2 separate power sources. The Remote Hands team always ensures that the equipment power sources will never be connected to the same or single PDU.

PDU with cables

Rack Mounted PDUs

UPS- Uninterruptible Power Supply / Systems / Source:

UPS is electrical equipment that is part of the critical data center component that cleans incoming “dirty” power from the commercial utility power and provides emergency and backup power to equipment when the main power source fails. These back units are provided to avoid any downtime due to power failure and interruptions.

UPS mounted on server rack in data center

Rack Mount UPS

Cable Baskets or Wire mesh Cable Tray:

Cable Baskets are also sometimes called wire mesh cable trays because of how they are constructed out of wire mesh material and support the data cables going from one point in the data center to another. For example, data cables going from MMR to COLO can be designed with cable baskets.

The Remote Hands team can easily assess the fill rate and space availability due to the open wire mesh structure, which helps to plan the route for new cable installations.

Fiber Cable running over cable basket in data center

Cable Basket above the open racks

Fiber Runners:

A fiber runner is a pathway/channel designed to carry fibers connecting from one place to another mainly between racks. Fiber runners are used to carrying fiber which is delicate and is used to carry fiber locally. They are very easy to install and the Remote Hands team can lay the fiber cables into the fiber runners in a breeze.

yellow fiber runner cable basket running over racks in data center

Yellow Fiber Runner installed above racks.

CAT X

CAT is the abbreviation for Category. The X here refers to the different number or standard for a copper structured cable. In data centers, we prefer to use at least a CAT 6A twisted pairs copper cable or above standards are used for the interconnectivity of the systems such as servers and network equipment.

CAT 6A cable patched to server

CAT 6A Patching

Cross-Connect:

One of the most common tasks carried out by the Remote Hands team is the cross-connect provisions in the data center. Cross-Connect is the physical cable that provides a direct connection between two different locations within a data center. Cross-connect allows colocation clients to establish dedicated high-performance connections within the data center. This provides greater reliability and lower latency on network connections that are used by default outside of a data center.

fiber cross connects

Fiber cross-connects are the veins of a data center.

MMR- Meet-Me Room:

MMR is an important physical area within the data center where Internet service providers, telecommunication carriers, cable companies converge together in a secure room to interconnect and cross-connect with each other and the distribution of services to other areas in the data center. This is also where the Remote Hands team spends quite a fair bit of time working in.

Meet me Room with multiple carriers in server farm

MMR housing multiple carriers and cross-connection service.

MDF Room – Main Distribution Frame Room:

MDF Room is a demarcation point in the data center serving as the main termination point for telecommunication providers and carriers, similar to a local telephone and internet exchange. The MDF that is housed in this room is used to interconnect and manage telecommunications cables between themselves and many other intermediate distribution frames throughout the data center.

COLO- Colocation:

Colocation in a data center is referred to as space where bandwidth, space, and equipment are available for rent to retail customers. The Remote Hands team’s most frequent area works in, where rack and stacks, testing, and installation activities are being carried out.

Server Racks in colo

Typical Colocation space in the data center

Cage

A cage is an enclosure built to subdivide a secure space into colocation areas within the data center using mesh walls, sliding doors, security panels, cameras, etc. Similar to the zoo, yes a zoo. Data Center cages provide a secure separation from unauthorized access and some cages have full visibility into what’s inside but from a safe distance.

cage in colo inside data center

Typical secure cage colocation

Rack & Stack:

Rack & Stack as the term implies commonly used by the data center Remote Hands team to mount (racking) and install (stacking) the servers and any IT equipment typically through the service request portals by the data center operators.

Rack and Stack performed by Remote Hands team

Rack and Stack performed by Remote Hands team

Escort:

As the data center has a strong access policy and any personnel not part of a pre-authorized access list will require an escort into designated areas in the data center by the Remote Hands team or site security officers. The escort is to ensure personnel do not loiter and move to non-permitted areas for security reasons. If you want to feel like a VIP, being escorted inside the data center will be a good experience.

PTW- Permit to Work:

Permit to Work is a formal written approval statement that is necessary for the Remote Hands team or vendors to have, before starting work within the facilities. This PTW provides a record and understanding by the data center operators on why and what kind of works are planned to be carried out in the data center. Without the necessary approved PTW, no personnel will be allowed to work.

MOS- Method Of Statement:

MOS is a detailed statement and procedure of the works that need to be carried out for successful completion of work therefore no surprises will be expected. The MOS list out how the works will be carried out in detail and providing the full explanation and method in which the works will be performed by the vendors or Remote Hands team.

Risk Assessment:

Risk assessment is a safety process of identifying hazards and risks associated with carrying out the work in the data center. This is a preventive measure to avoid any potential accidents.

Induction:

Before working in the data center, Remote hands technicians, and vendors will be inducted with training or certification conducted by the data center operator, which is typically a prerequisite if you wish to work in the data center. The induction process allows the person to understand the rules, environment conditions, security, and safety protocols before working in the facilities.

PUE:

PUE is power usage effectiveness. It’s an industry standard (ISO/IEC 30134-2:2016) that measures the ratio of energy used to the energy available. A perfect PUE would be 1. Most modern data centers have a PUE of about 1.2-1.4. Anything above 1.5 means you should be looking for energy improvements.

Raise Floor:

Raise floor is an elevated structural floor system above a concrete slab that is used to create a hidden void for the passage of services such as telecom, electrical & mechanical services but most importantly allows the cool airflow to cool down the racks.

The list can be a very long one but these are the most common terms among the Remote Hand’s engineer.

That marks an end to Part 5 of the Remote Hands Series. Stay tuned for Part 6 of the series. Remember to Follow us on social media.

If you are looking for what is Remote Hands and how it can benefit your organization, you can click to read Part 1 of the Remote Hand Series. Even better click here and we will connect with you and solve all your queries regarding Remote Hands personally.

Till then, Stay Safe.

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Roles In Data Centers

Data Center Racks with Roles in Data Center embeded on it.

The exponential growth of internet usage and cloud computing has driven the demand for data centers and it has been accelerated by the pandemic.

With the increasingly digitized economy, there is a parallel increase in talent demand to fulfill the needs in the sector, which in turn leads to challenges in shortages of certified skill sets.

Despite the challenges, the data center industry offers relevant certification programs, highly competitive salaries, high job satisfaction, and access to the latest technology and equipment which can allow for a rewarding career.

In this part of our Remote Hands Series, we will touch on some of the roles that the industry offers and will focus on areas closer to the network domain. We will share some pointers required to be a good Remote Hands Engineer, potential career opportunities, and various roles associated with remote hands service in the data center industry.

Part 4: Opportunities working in a data center.

Though data centers may house major technology, the roles within them may require skills beyond technology. The roles and responsibilities of a data center infrastructure staff can be quite broad ranging from design and construction to equipment installation, the operation, and maintenance of it, network & systems configuration and testing, mechanical and electrical equipment, etc. In order to meet this demand, we have taken a different approach to help widen the pool of talents by tapping from other industries and providing the training and skills transfer. So what are some of the roles and areas in the data center?

  1. IT & Telecommunication management
  2. Project management
  3. Network Engineering
  4. Application Management
  5. Security
  6. Cloud Computing
  7. Facilities management
  8. Real Estate management
  9. Customer Experience
  10. Sales and Marketing

Skills needed to be a good Remote Hands Engineer:

Since this series focuses on Remote Hands, we will do a deeper dive into it and talk about the prerequisites and its career paths in the network and operational domain. The data centers, being a critical environment, requires a person who has a high level of professionalism, is passionate about technology, carries a strong analytical skill with attention to detail, and the technical competence in their domain. It may include the following skills:

  1. IT Management – Have an understanding of the IT and Technology processes, operations and resources matters.
  2. Project Management – Have an understanding of the project management cycle, using established procedures, PM principles, and processes to delivering the project from design to completion.
  3. Network Management – Ability to understand networking and connectivity concepts and have a high level of design, configuration, troubleshooting expertise for the deployment of network systems.
  4. Technical Skillsets – You can’t worry about getting your hands dirty, with the basic knowledge of networks there are many physical elements in the roles to install, deploy, and test the physical equipment and cabling connectivity.

In addition to technical skillsets, soft skills are an important part of the Remote Hands roles and have a big impact on delivering a satisfying customer experience. Remote Hands Engineers are expected to be client-facing and interact directly with the customers as a requisite in their daily job. They must develop soft skills as part of their responsibilities:

  1. Strong interpersonal skills
  2. Patience & Attentiveness
  3. Ability to communicate clearly
  4. Good team player
  5. Emotional intelligence
  6. Ability to use positive language
  7. Tenacity
  8. Empathy
  9. Provide Customer Oriented Service
  10. Willingness to learn

Career Progression – Remote Hands in the Data Center

As you gain experience, to be able to manage and handle more complex projects and deployments promotions are a natural progression. Some may see Remote Hands as an entry-level role but it can be roughly further expanded into three tiers.

Level 1 – Providing the first tier support, usually supporting the least technical issues. Basic support and troubleshooting, visual observation, phone support, collecting customer requests, and escalation to the next level.

Level 2 – More experience and competence with racking and stacking, cabling, handles configuration, troubleshooting, OS installations, hardware installation, and replacement.

Level 3 – A subject matter expert handling difficult and advanced technical issues.

There are further levels of career progression and that depends on technical expertise and interest, but some roles are always in higher demand than others across the data center industry as listed below:

Data Center Operations Engineer:

A Data Center Operations Engineer is responsible for deploying and maintaining servers in the data center. Attention to detail and documentation skills are critical to being successful in this position.

Datacenter Network Engineer:

Data Center Network Engineer plays a diverse role in standardizing and monitoring the day-to-day operations of the Network Operations Centers (NOCs). It helps to connect physical and network-based devices to the required devices of the data center facilities. Connections between nodes in the data center infrastructure to ensure that these nodes communicate and transfer data to internal and external environments after validation.

IT Project Manager

IT project managers plan, organize, and integrate cross-functional information technology projects with considerable scope and impact. They coordinate the work of other IT professionals and administrative staff to create new systems. Project managers have ultimate responsibility for meeting the needs of the company or the client.

With the great career benefits and increasing demand for skilled professionals in the data center sector, we are hoping to see more people coming to join this growing industry.

That’s it for this article. Till then, stay safe & stay tuned for Part 5 of the series about Remote Hands.

Our Remote Hands team covers countries across the Asia Pacific and offers both Remote Hands as well as Smart Hands Services. Let us show you how we can assist you with all your remote projects and operations, while you focus on your core business. Contact us click here.

PS: If you missed our last series, Click on the link to read Part 3: The Endless List Of Do’s And Don’ts When Working In Data Centers. Or Follow us on Linkedin for more articles coming your way.

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The Endless List Of Do’s And Don’ts When Working In Data Centers

10 Do's & Don'ts in data center

Do you know when a Data Center equipment goes down, how often it is down to human error? According to an Uptime survey, it was highlighted that human error contributes up to 70% of system downtime and costly security compromises. This result is surprising because most of the equipment and infrastructure within the Data Center is build and designed with multiple layers of redundancies and diversity, however with this said, as it stands today they are still maintained and supported by human resources.

Though it can be a challenging task to eliminate human error completely, it can be significantly reduced by following best practices and processes.

In Part 3 of the series on everything about Remote Hands, we will discuss some of the Do’s & Don’ts while working in such a critical environment. The list below is not exhaustive or technical but covers the basics and forms a starting point.

Part 3: Do’s & Don’ts In A Data Center

Do’s:

Possess Valid Induction Certificates:

Most Data Center have their own Health & Safety Induction Programs which are required to be completed before working in the facility in Data Centers. Data Centre owners should make sure one is in place and anyone working in the facility has a valid Induction and certification for whatever they are working on.

Comply To Secure Access Policies:

Data Centers are highly-secured environments with strict access protocols. They should be designed so that you can only access to areas that you are authorised to.

Perform Tasks Strictly Based On Tickets Received:

When undertaking Remote Hands work in a critical environment undertake services in line with the service request tickets. The ticket must provide all necessary information about the request. If unclear always ask and clarify before carrying out the task, this will remove any uncertainty and ambiguity. If possible do a pre-survey, this can eliminate the pressure of completing a job when everything isn’t clear or all supplies present, thus causing poor installations or mistakes.

Follow Standard Operating Procedure (SOP):

Why do you need an SOP? Remote Hands team must adhere to SOP at all times, to perform consistent quality work which can considerably reduce the chances of any human error.

Clean-Up And Ensure No Debris Is Left After Work:

3 C’s – Complete the task, Clean Up before you go, and Check that the rack is locked and nothing is left behind.

Don’ts

Do Not Touch Anything That Is Not Part Of Your Scope:

Do not touch anything which is not listed in the Remote Hands scope of work and service request ticket. Even if you notice something that is not right, do not try to fix it but report it instead and get further instructions.

Do Not Lean On The Rack

This may sound simple and obvious but may have a detrimental effect on the uptime of the systems.

The racks within the data center house all the major equipment and connectivities, some racks are more interconnected than others. Any unnecessary movement of the ‘live’ rack may cause some connections to come loose resulting in a service outage. Therefore, this should be strictly avoided since it can displace the rack from its position and can potentially cause outages.

Do Not Bring Any Food / Drinks Into The Data Hall:

Liquids pose a great risk for shorting out critical computer components. Do not bring any food/liquid items into the data hall.

Do Not Forget To Label:

Clear and accurate labeling is critical for future reference and identification of the systems especially in the event of an emergency. Labels need to be clear and obvious. Remote Hands team must take the time to agree with the customers on the labeling standards in advance.

Do Not Open Floor Tiles More Than What is Allowed in the Data Center:

If you need to carry out a task that requires you to open the raised floor tiles, where appropriate do not open more than 4 tiles at a time, always close the ones that are opened before opening any others.

In this article, we are just scraping the surface. Rules will differ from facility to facility and customer to customer. Agree them in advance and maintain an exhaustive list to train engineers.

Till then, stay safe & stay tuned for Part 4 of the series covering everything about Remote Hands.

Our Remote Hands team covers countries across the Asia Pacific and offers both Remote Hands as well as Smart Hands Services. Let us show you how we can assist you with all your remote projects and operations, while you focus on your core business. Contact us click here.

PS: If you missed our last series, Click on the link to read Part 2: How Smart is Remote Hands?

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How Smart are Remote Hands?

Two men doing remote hands service in data center

Red Remote Hands in action

The continued surge in the use of digital technologies over the last few years has resulted in an increase in the need for not only data center infrastructure but also its related services. Increasingly organizations are moving on-premise applications into the cloud and more reliable cloud computing service providers are offering turnkey services to take care of it. The pandemic, with its increased demand for online media for entertainment and working from home business use, has accelerated this adoption. People and organizations all over the world have had to adjust to new ways of work and life.

The essential businesses that support the critical infrastructure for businesses have to go on even during this challenging time. This is where Remote Hands and Smart Hands services can assist.

The term Remote Hands and Smart Hands are used loosely and interchangeably in the data center world. If you are confused about the difference between them, in this 2nd Part of our series, we clear up the confusion as to what exactly are Remote Hands and Smart Hands.

If you haven’t read Part 1, What is Remote Hands? You can find the link at the end of this article.

What is Remote Hands Services?

Remote Hands service is physical basic tasks carried out remotely without the presence of the clients. These support tasks include patching cabling, visual checking of ports, observing and reporting light status indicators on equipment, environment monitoring, and server reboots. This is known as a Level 1 service.

Remote Hands services may include tasks that are straightforward in nature such as:

  • Rebooting of servers.
  • Checking and monitoring of ports.
  • Equipment and environmental physical observation,
  • Describing and reporting on indicators or display information on equipment or consoles, etc.
  • Inventory and labeling management
  • Physical escorting of site visits
  • Backup tape management
  • Shipping and receiving of goods or deliveries

Smart Hands, on the other hand, are known as the Level 2 support services. These require IT technical knowledge in handling equipment, testing, configuration, and troubleshooting. Some of the Smart Hands tasks include:

  • Network and system OS configuring
  • Equipment testing, troubleshooting, and complex cable configurations
  • Racking and stacking
  • Moving equipment within your space and cabinets
  • X-Connects support and management
  • Server replacement
  • Optics installation and testing

Remote Hands service, being straightforward in nature, is traditionally provided by data center providers, while Smart Hands being more complex in nature are commonly provided through another party.

Remote Hands and Smart Hands are exceptionally useful to an organization when it isn’t possible for their staff to access the equipment, for example, remote sites or overseas locations.

Choosing a reliable partner with the knowledge, experience, and skillsets to provide both Remote Hands and Smart Hands is crucial for the success of projects and ongoing business operations.

Regardless of the terminology used, Remote Hands or Smart Hands, we combine the two services into one, to seamlessly support all the technical needs of our clients.

This comes to the end of Part 2: Difference between Smart Hands & Remote Hands. I hope it might clear all your doubts regarding both services.

Drop your comment if I have left any questions unanswered.

Till then, stay safe & stay tuned for Part 3 of the series where I will be covering everything about Remote Hands.

PS: Our Remote Hands team covers countries across the Asia Pacific and offers both Remote Hands as well as Smart Hands Services. Let us show you how we can assist you with all your remote projects and operations, while you focus on your core business. To contact us click here.

PS: Click on the link to read Part 1: How Remote Hands can help you during pandemic time.

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APAC Insider Singapore Business Awards 2021

Article on APAC Singapore Business Award 2021

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How Remote Hands Can Help You During Pandemic Time?

This is the first part of a series that we will be sharing on LinkedIn about Remote Hands and everything about it.

On 14th December 2020, something unusual happened online that may have affected almost everyone in one way or another.

One of the largest services providers suffered a global outage for about an hour with the majority of their services. Social media was flooded with news of them being down. According to estimates by Semrush a 1-hour outage would have cost $1.7 million in losses.

Imagine that your business website and online services went down – every minute will cause a loss of revenue. It takes a lot of time to deploy your IT professionals to the data center to reach and fix the issue and further costs to have a multi-skilled team on standby when nothing is required.

What could be the other option to help you save time and restore the services in the shortest possible time?

Remote Hands services assist and provide the support you need for any break-fix requirements and restores the service faster on demand.

Part 1: What is Remote Hands?

Remote Hands is a 24×7 technical support service provided to clients who have equipment and infrastructure co-located in data centers and in remote locations where they do not have any technical personnel presence. Clients may activate the Remote Hands service to perform any onsite works which removes the need for deploying their own resources to complete IT management & maintenance tasks and in addition lowers cost due to not having resources when services aren’t required.

Remote Hands are skilled resources that enable you to manage your Remote IT & Telecom infrastructure even when you are not there.

Consider Remote Hands as your virtual hands, legs & eyes which is there for you to perform the following tasks:

– Assisting for troubleshooting (OS, Network, Database)
– Management and upgrading of equipment components (i.e. processors, cards, drives, memory)
– Equipment installations and configurations
– Ladder racking, pre-wiring of patch panels and equipment
– Site survey and inspection
– Tape Change
– Procurement of spare and IT components etc.

How Remote Hands work?

Remote Hands service can be a pay-as-you-go, which means a client gets charged only when they use the service.

Clients request Remote Hands services by raising tickets through the portal, mails, and over the phone, with portal tickets being preferred. Once a ticket is received, it gets acknowledged by our NOC and the requirements confirmed before assigning it to our Remote Hands team. The Remote Hands engineer completes the task, the ticket is closed and the client is billed for the time it took.

Conclusion

Remote Hands services provide companies with a specialist engineering team in different geographical locations that enables agility and cost savings. This has been a proven successful strategy, and has many advantages, especially during Covid19, where tight quarantine protocols restricted international movement.

This comes to the end of Part 1: What is Remote Hands Stay tuned for Part 2 of the series next week.

Till then, stay safe.

PS: Our Remote Hands team covers countries across the Asia Pacific. Let us show you how we can assist you with all your remote projects while you focus on your core business. To contact us click here

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A huge thank you and a Happy New Year!

During the Lunar New Year, it’s customary in Asia to exchange small gifts with family, friends and clients as a symbol of good luck and prosperity for the year ahead. However, this practice is becoming increasingly sensitive in the workplace, with many companies now unable to accept such gifts.

So what to do?

At RED Technologies, rather than break with tradition, we decided to make a donation to a worthy cause on behalf of all our clients. The charity that we chose is near and dear to us as it is industry related – Télécoms Sans Frontières.

Why Télécoms Sans Frontières?

Founded in 1998, Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) is the world’s first NGO focusing on emergency-response technologies. During humanitarian crises, TSF gives affected people the possibility to contact their loved ones and begin to regain control of their lives.

TSF also helps to build rapid-response communications centres for local and international responders. To date, it has responded to over 140 crises in more than 70 countries, providing communication means to over 20 million people and nearly 1,000 NGOs.

You can learn more about the great work of TSF here https://www.tsfi.org/en/home

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

To all our clients, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. And we wish everyone a healthy, prosperous year ahead.

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TOP NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE COMPANIES IN SINGAPORE

RED Technologies are proud and humbled to be awarded one of the top Outsourced Network Infrastructure Companies in Singapore.

For full article: https://mediaonemarketing.com.sg/top-network-infrastructure-companies-sg/

Below are some extracts from the article – we couldn’t have written it better ourselves:-

Today, a scalable network with built-in security is critical for any business. It’s crucial to partner with a network infrastructure provider that is serious about industry best practices, network access, and usability.

What is Network Infrastructure?

To better understand network infrastructure, it’s essential to know the primary elements. It consists of hardware, software, devices, and systems that enable communication between people, processes, services, and programs. Typically, it consists of networking hardware (switches, routers) networking software (Network operations>operating systems) and network services.

The lack of an efficient IT network infrastructure can have far-reaching implications in the future. A venture that is keen on rapid growth and development needs to have a robust infrastructure that supports business operations and processes progressively.

The Essence of Network Management Services Singapore Market

Convenient access to a business network is crucial. A business cannot afford extended network downtime given the adverse effects it leaves behind. With a network infrastructure provider in your corner, you don’t have to worry about downtimes or the availability of IT talents/staff. Here’s how your Singaporean businesses will benefit from network management services.

Access to Network Specialists

Your small startup will benefit from the input offered by network infrastructure experts. Engaging a company that provides network management services saves you the money you have to spend on in-house IT professionals. A network infrastructure firm will be committed to managing your network issues professionally.

Unmatched Expertise

IT talents that handle network infrastructure issues are in high demand. When your company decides to hire a network infrastructure provider, there is a guarantee that you’re getting top-notched experts with the best industry skills.

Benefits of Secure Network Infrastructure Services in Singapore

The modern Singaporean business emphasizes secure network infrastructure. It helps them to drive efficiency and streamline disaster recovery. Securing your business network infrastructure comes with benefits, including:

Efficiency

A safe network infrastructure reduces downtime and increases productivity. Businesses lose critical time to a myriad of IT and network problems. With a secure network infrastructure, it’s easy to keep cyberattacks at bay. Your companies will recover quickly in the event an attack occurs.

Peace of mind

Today, there are hundreds of data breaches that are occasioned by weak network infrastructure. Your business, regardless of its size, can remain safe from these malicious attacks if you consolidate the integrity of your network. A secure network infrastructure offers peace of mind even though it cannot guarantee a 100% system defense.

Risk reduction

Your business networks require a constant updating of its security. Workers are increasingly going for Bring Your Own Device-BYOD options. As such, it’s essential to invest in a secure network to reduce the threat and risk surface with such devices being connected to your system.

Long-term savings

Network security seems like a waste until disaster strikes. Though it’s an unwelcome short term expense, it helps to circumvent the runaway costs that come with a data breach or an extreme network security incident. With a secure network, your businesses stave off the possible lawsuit, and bad reputation issues brought about by network breaches.

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MEET US AT PTC 2018

 

Aloha!

SCHEDULE A MEETING WITH US

We’d love to meet you at PTC, so be sure to schedule a meeting with us at PTC2018@redtechgroup.com.
Let us share with you how we have supported our clients with their engineering demand in Asia and how we can become part of your engineering team.
We look forward to seeing you there! Mahalo!

 

 

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