February News Release for 2010

Ministry of National Defense, Republic of Korea to gain information advantage through network-centric operations
Datacraft commissioned for network upgrade

Singapore, 24 Feb 2010 - Datacraft has been commissioned to increase the network capacity through a broadband convergence network (BcN) by way of a Build-Transfer-Lease (BTL) scheme for the Ministry of National Defense (MND), Republic of Korea. The improved network will enhance availability and performance, boosting the ministry's information advantage in the new era of network-centric military operations.

Information now plays an ever more critical role in every country's defense apparatus. Critical intelligence exchanged and shared over robust, high security networks will ensure that government and military officials receive information instantly. Real-time collaboration is also critical as crucial military decisions can be accelerated through enhanced information and situational awareness, which can greatly contribute to the effectiveness of a mission. The Korean MND wanted to ensure its network had the scalability to cope with even larger volumes of secure multimedia transfer in the future.

We had to augment our network to cope with the exponential increases in data transfer, said a spokesperson for MND. As a military organisation, it was absolutely vital that we did not suffer information bottlenecks and scale up our system immediately to cope with this increase in volume and support high quality multimedia services.

The ministry selected Datacraft to consult on the best solution to optimise the network capacity. Datacraft recommended a broadband convergence network that comprised one core router, a Cisco Carrier Routing System (CRS), in a top layer that provided connectivity to additional routers. This is the core equipment for the backbone network to process high-speed, secured data transfers and multimedia services such as high quality audio, video and telephony.

As part of the initial design, Datacraft designed a hierarchical structure consisting three layers - core, distribution and access - so that the IP network could be easily extended into existing network in the future.

Upon project completion due in July 2010, the expanded network will be covered by Datacraft's Uptime maintenance contract for a period of three years, with the opportunity to be renewed for the following seven years. Uptime is designed to deliver optimal network performance, offering support, troubleshooting and resolution services for mission-critical IT systems 24 x 7 x 365.

We were responsible for every aspect of the project from consulting and design to implementation and maintenance, said Eric Choi, General Manager for Datacraft Korea. We built a solution that leveraged the existing investments with additional technology to offer increased network capacity in a stable and reliable environment. The ministry knew it could rely on our expertise and in-depth local knowledge to deliver the project thanks to our successful relationship with leading Korean service provider, SK broadband.

Under the BTL scheme, ownership of the infrastructure facility will be transferred to MND upon completion of construction, and Datacraft granted the right to operate the facility while receiving government payments based on its operational performance for 10 years. This arrangement is expected to bring about additional business opportunity with MND in the coming years. Such scheme is also commonly practiced in Korea.

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About Datacraft
Datacraft is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dimension Data plc (LSE:DDT), a US$4 billion leading global IT solutions and services provider. Datacraft operates in over 50 offices across 13 Asia Pacific countries. We help clients plan, build, support, manage, improve and innovate their IT infrastructures. Datacraft combines an expertise in networking, security, data centre, storage, Microsoft solutions and converged communications & contact centre technologies, with advanced skills in consulting, integration, training and managed services to craft IT solutions for businesses. For more information, please visit www.datacraft-asia.com.