Few IT people face connectivity challenges like James Ross of De Beers. He has to connect mines in northern Canada so remote that satellite or microwave is the only way to communicate. Working across 28 locations worldwide – many equally-isolated – most service providers couldn’t even begin to get close.

Added to that the network must be fast and robust enough to shift the vast amounts of data needed to digitize operations while protecting people and plant. The security of intellectual property is another major concern. All those reasons and more underline why James sees BT and Cisco as critical partners.

Digital solutions from BT and Cisco set global standards for De Beers.

Case study - De Beers.

BT has been a longstanding partner of De Beers. It’s one of the only global vendors with the reach to support the business in the many regions in which we operate.

James Ross, Head of Information Management, Canada and the United States, De Beers Group

Optimized global network assures miners’ safety and sparkling performance for world’s largest diamond producer.

Case Study - De Beers.

Making mining safer takes top technology.Diamonds have a timeless allure, yet the industry producing them moves forward apace. De Beers, delivering over a third of the world’s output, leads the quest to help make gemstone mining safer and less costly through digitization. Technology’s at the heart of its plans.

Tom Ormsby, Head of Corporate Affairs in Canada, says: “We already mine in the Arctic, under the ocean, and on land. As existing resources dwindle, we’ll explore ever more remote territories.” But such extreme conditions present major obstacles.

Employees in the company’s northern Canada mines work fortnightly shifts on and off in a sub-Arctic wilderness. They fly in and fly out, while heavy equipment and stores travel on ice roads for the few weeks of the year that’s possible.

“Hundreds of kilometers from regular comms infrastructures, they need ways to contact family and access corporate systems,” says James Ross, Head of Information Management for Canada and the United States.

With more than 20,000 employees in 28 locations around the world, many like those in Canada, the entire business relies on sharing information and delay-free decision-making.

Remote collaboration raises productivity.When acquired by Anglo American, De Beers transitioned to a shared BT IP Connect Global managed network. This connects all twenty-eight De Beers locations. Employees at Canada’s remotest mines can talk to their families on FaceTime or Skype. Satellite or microwave links provide access to the backbone for the short hop to BT Internet Connect Global.

That speedy and resilient wide area network (WAN) is also a perfect platform for long-distance collaboration.

Today, everyone in the company uses BT MeetMe and Cisco WebEx for regular and ad hoc audio and web conferences. With video cameras in place, it’s possible to remotely advise mine workers on, say, how to repair faulty equipment. HR people in Canada have started using WebEx to remotely pre-screen job candidates before inviting them to attend interviews.

Executives can meet as if face-to-face without travelling, using Cisco TelePresence immersive video conferencing suites at five operational hubs in Africa, Canada, and the U.K. Tom recalls: “It takes the better part of two calendar days to travel from North America to southern Africa by plane, and often one can’t afford to give up that time.”

Everyone, from accounts to exploration teams, is more productive. It’s common for people to attend two or three conferences a day. “TelePresence sharpens decision-making by giving executives a sustainable alternative to time-consuming long-distance travel,” adds Tom.

Making the most of precious bandwidth.Soon BT will start to integrate the De Beers and Anglo American voice platforms, which both run on Cisco technology. Then, all voice traffic will move to the global WAN, not only eliminating the cost of international calls but also further harmonizing the businesses.

“The whole company will have a single dial plan so we can make voice or video calls desk-to-desk anywhere in the world,” says James. “Instead of sending emails, that will help create a common culture.” Cisco Unified Communications Manager servers in the BT cloud will also enable unified communications features like presence and instant messaging.

As well as voice and video traffic, the global WAN carries huge volumes of financial, environmental, and geospatial information from business applications, CCTV systems, and radar data collection points.

TelePresence sharpens decision-making by giving executives a sustainable alternative to time-consuming long-distance travel.

Tom OrmsbyHead of Corporate Affairs, CanadaDe Beers Group

What we envision in our partnership with BT is to enable the mines to operate more effectively, with lower costs, and without having to put human lives at risk.

James RossHead of Information Management, Canada and the United StatesDe Beers Group

Case Study - De Beers.

Across the global WAN, BT Connect Intelligence makes sure bandwidth use is optimized so that, for instance, repetitive transmission of large email attachments is avoided. Meanwhile, class of service functionality in the BT IP Connect Global network prioritizes time sensitive traffic like voice, video and critical application data.

Building networks with an eye to possible threats.The diamond trade has long been a target for fraudsters, and never more so than today. With cyber-attacks on the increase, De Beers closely guards commercial and personal

information and its intellectual property. “BT and Cisco play a major role in our cyber-security in the sense that they’ve helped us build our networks with an eye to possible threats,” says James.

The story doesn’t end there. As De Beers pushes the automation boundaries, it will need technology to evolve at the same relentless pace. James concludes: “What we envision in our partnership with BT is to enable the mines to operate more effectively, with lower costs, and without having to put human lives at risk.”

Core services.• BT IP Connect Global

• BT Connect Intelligence

• BT Internet Connect Global

• BT One Collaborate MeetMe and WebEx

• BT One Collaborate Cisco TelePresence

• BT One Cisco Unified Communications Manager

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July 2017

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