Cascade Die Casting Group Caches in by Switching to Network Engines NS6300 Security Appliance
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Tuesday February 8, 8:30 am ET
Microsoft ISA 2004-Powered Appliance Provides Critical Caching Capabilities, Lower Total Cost Of Ownership, Better Overall Security and Performance
CANTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 8, 2005-- Network Engines, Inc., a leading provider of Microsoft best practice security appliances, announced today that Cascade Die Casting Group, Inc. (Cascade), a leader in the aluminum and zinc die casting marketplace, has selected the Network Engines NS6300 Security Appliance, powered by Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration Server 2004, to overhaul its existing firewall configuration in order to achieve greater levels of performance and security, while lowering overall total cost of ownership.
Cascade, based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, provides aluminum and zinc die casting products to the industrial, automotive and electrical industries. With over 400 employees throughout the United States, Cascade's IT department consists of just two full-time employees, thus resulting in the need for extremely efficient and dependable systems that require minimal administrative resources.
"Our existing firewall was putting too much of a strain on the department's resources in that it was far too cumbersome to manage and lacking in core functionality required for our environment," said Shawn Partridge, director of information services, Cascade Die Casting Group, Inc. "The Network Engines NS6300 Security Appliance is the only solution we have found that provided all of the pieces of the puzzle, and does so in a very cost-effective manner that made it a no-brainer to deploy."
Cascade's previous network set-up included two firewalls. On the perimeter, the company used a firewall appliance that was proved difficult to manage and did not provide reliable VPN access or caching capability. For its internal firewall, however, Cascade depended on Microsoft ISA Server 2000, with which they were very satisfied. Seeking to decrease the number of hours spent on firewall maintenance and administration and to deliver the necessary VPN and caching capabilities, the team found the NS6300 security appliance mapped precisely to their requirements.
Based on a hardened implementation of ISA 2004, the NS6300's application-layer firewall and VPN features enabled Cascade to optimize their security posture. Ease of administration was a significant benefit; but the ability to utilize the NS6300's integrated cache engine empowered Cascade to dramatically improve network performance - resulting in the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO) available for their needs.
"The vast majority of our Web site traffic is from repeat visitors, so caching results in a dramatically increased speed," said Partridge. "Of all the firewall options that we considered, only the NS6300 solution provided this critical component."
The NS6300 provided Cascade with easy set-up and automatic update management, which has resulted in significant savings. Utilizing Network Engines proprietary NEWS (Network Engines Web Services) technology, set-up wizards guide administrators through the set-up process as well as future update procedures for all software on the appliance. With these features, Cascade was able to install the appliance in less than thirty minutes. Because of the NS6300's ease of use, Cascade is seeing a savings of over five man-hours per week, a significant metric for a two-person IT department.
"This was the fastest I've ever set up a firewall solution," said Patridge. "The ease of use and maintenance has proved to be a tremendous differentiator when compared to our previous firewall solution. We have hardly touched the NS6300 since its installation and it continues to provide optimal performance without issue, allowing us to focus our time on more mission-critical areas."
"The competitive advantage that Network Engines brings to companies like Cascade, whose IT resources are limited, is by providing them the essential balance between cost effectiveness, return on investment and exceptional performance," said Bryan Bain, senior director of security marketing, Network Engines. "The NS6300 appliance streamlines operations and bolsters system performance while maximizing the complete security posture." |
