A port(al) for innovation

Extreme solutions power the largest sea port in Israel

Sea ports have always been at the forefront of technological advancement. Ashdod Port, the most important port of Israel and the beating heart of the startup nation’s economy, is no different – in part thanks to the cutting-edge Extreme solutions!

Ashdod Port is the biggest sea port in Israel in terms of shipment throughput and a major entry point for merchandise and cargo to and from the country. Each year, more than 1.5 million sea containers are being handled by the port’s crew. With a strategically advantageous location, just about 40 km from Tel Aviv and close to the country’s major commercial centers and highways, Ashdod Port can easily be considered the leading economic gateway to the State of Israel.

Since the beginnings of its operation back in the sixties, Ashdod Port has always been on the lookout for innovation. It’s become even more visible with the recent growth of the market competition and the establishment of new Haifa Bayport Terminal.

To maintain its strategic position in the heart of the Middle East, the company has invested substantial amounts of money in computer infrastructure and advanced technologies over the past years. The goal? To reduce waiting times for ships, improve operational efficiency, enhance security in the era of omnipresent cyber threats, and further drive the quality of customer service.

Settling for nothing short of excellence

As part of the renewal process, Ashdod Port issued a tender for a comprehensive upgrade and rewiring of its electronic infrastructure. The project called for the implementation of new IT systems, replacement of the existing data center and construction of a modern and secure digital campus network capable of providing a response to all of the Port’s IT requirements.

Of course, when you’re a strategic sea port for a whole nation, you don’t settle for nothing short of excellence. Bezeq International, Israel’s largest communications company which specializes in end-to-end IT solutions for large organizations, eventually won the tender.

“The project required a huge amount of preparation work. With the scale of about 1,500 users, 3,000 physical access ports for operations, and the commercial activity worth of approximately one million dollars a day, the organization can be defined as a critical national facility”, says Sharon Ezra, Director of the Strategic Customers’ Presale Department at Bezeq International.

Bezeq International carried out a project that extended over some five months. The project included the implementation of a software defined networking (SDN) solution based on the Extreme Fabric Connect and an upgrade of the data security and cyber protection systems.

“That’s no campus… it’s a whole city!”

Definitely, one of the biggest challenges of the project was to accomplish all goals without disrupting the facility’s day-to-day operations. Ashdod Port is not only a huge entity, it’s also busy around the clock. Every working hour during which the Port is shut down means huge losses which could reach up to millions of dollars.

With the scale of about 1,500 users, 3,000 physical access ports for operations, and the commercial activity worth of approximately one million dollars a day, the organization can be defined as a critical national facility

Eli Kendel, Country Manager Israel & Romania at Extreme Networks, remembers saying: “That’s no campus… it’s a whole city!”.

“We established three data centers, each of which is a world in itself. We also set up 110 remote clusters for hundreds of users. It is a huge facility with some built-in, unusual complexities. Ashdod Port is based completely on computerized operations, from the CCTV cameras at the entrance gate to the giant cranes on the largest pier”, says Eli Kendel.

Extreme Fabric Connect is an ideal solution for this kind of implementation

To tackle the challenges laid out in the project, Bezeq International implemented Extreme Fabric Connect technology to establish one unified campus in which all the networks and databases are on one large cloud composed of several core switches that perform their own backup. This means that each end user, at any connection point, regardless of whether it’s via wired or a wireless connection, will have the same user experience and the same level of service.

“This network knows how to provide a super-fast response – the information flows in the cloud at a rate of milliseconds, which is vital when you have to maneuver huge ships and hoist containers that weigh dozens of tons. In such an environment, it is absolutely critical to transfer information immediately”, Sharon Ezra explains. “Extreme Fabric Connect is an ideal solution for this kind of implementation. The system is designed to provide solutions to large-scale organizations thanks to its capabilities for providing up to 16 million unicast services, which means broadcasting services to no fewer than 16 million applications, and up to another 770,000 multicast services”.

But what about managing all that?

“We supplied a work environment that simplifies network operation. We created a central command and control system (C&C) that meets all managerial and operational requirements”, says Sharon Ezra. “It is possible from one screen to influence all 150 switches in the data campus. System speeds are now 20 times faster and this will be reflected in faster execution of tasks, quicker release of trucks from the Port, and ships spending less time in port. This amounts to a cumulative saving of time for the Port”, Director of the Strategic Customers’ Presale Department at Bezeq International adds.

A lot at stake

Naturally, being a critical infrastructure at the national level, Ashdod Pot relies heavily on data security. The project required designing and building the best security system possible – one that would know how to protect the mountains of information, with a lot of them belonging to the customers from all over the world.

“We built a data security system based on network separation, using hyper segmentation so that one service on the network cannot talk to another service. This is a solution that Extreme implements in military entities, armament industries and organizations, both in Israel and around the globe”, says Eli Kendel.

“Ashdod Port’s computerization project posted a series of technological and logistical challenges that required a combination of skills, professionalism and creativity without which we could not have brought the task to the finish line. We have established an advanced IT system that puts Ashdod Port alongside leading ports across the globe”, Ron Gleb, VP of Business Solutions at Bezeq International concludes.

System speeds are now 20 times faster and this will be reflected in faster execution of tasks, quicker release of trucks from the Port, and ships spending less time in port. This amounts to a cumulative saving of time for the Port.

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About Bezeq International

Bezeq International Ltd. ("BI"), Israel's leading internet and international telecommunications services provider, was founded in 1996 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Bezeq and is part of Israel's largest and leading telecom group.

BI is the leading company in all of its main areas of activity, providing comprehensive communications solutions in Internet, Telephony (International, Domestic and Intra-Organizational), IT and Cloud Computing Services, Outsourcing, Websites and Servers Hosting and Co-Location, DR Solutions, Data Communications and cyber and information security.