iland Enhances Security, Service and Reach for its Cloud Customers with Telx

The Customer

iland is a provider of cloud computing infrastructure with high-availability datacenters specifically designed for cloud computing in Boston, Washington D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, Dallas, and London, England. iland infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) provides a flexible solution that enables customers to react quickly to changing business priorities and realize tangible business benefits, including reduced and predictable IT costs as well as streamlined and simplified infrastructure management.

The Challenge

As a cloud provider, iland is committed to giving its customers the highest level of network performance and security. The company’s strategy is to serve a growing customer base across the U.S. and extend its cloud network infrastructure to additional urban markets. However, iland had a difficult time finding a colocation services vendor that had the right high quality space in multiple cities around the country. The vendor also needed the right cost, flexibility, scalability, and security that its cloud computing customers demand.

“It was imperative that the vendor we chose had N+1 redundancy, remote hands, secure facilities, and colocation space in multiple cities,” says Brian Ussher, president of iland. “In Dallas especially, we had an extremely hard time finding a vendor with a quality facility at the price point and flexibility to scale we were looking for. We couldn’t find a vendor in Dallas with available space and the national presence we wanted, either.”

Colocation in the cloud: Operational Impact & Benefits

•  Increased level of security for cloud services
•  Ability to quickly expand cloud customer base
•  Better service performance for customer
• Better cost performance
  

The Approach

After evaluating several local vendors in Dallas, Ussher and his management team met with representatives from Telx at the company’s facility at 8435 Stemmons Freeway, Dallas. The iland team found everything it was looking for in Telx’s colocation and interconnection services – plus the ability to achieve Statement on Accounting Standards (SAS 70) compliance for IaaS services. By meeting SAS 70 Type II audit requirements, Telx saves iland considerable time and resources by eliminating the need for their own independent audits.

“Telx has a national presence and it offers the level of security and SAS 70 Type II compliance for our cloud IaaS we were looking for,” Ussher says. “No other colocation services vendor has the right space and can meet our standards like Telx. We have the utmost confidence in their service.”

Telx is the leading provider of interconnection, colocation and business exchange services in strategic, high demand North American markets.  With 15 premier facilities, Telx increases speed to market and reduces connectivity costs by providing direct connections to the industry’s highest performance networks with access to more than 750 leading telecommunications carriers, ISPs, content providers, financial services companies and enterprises.

Currently, iland has a presence in Telx colocation facilities in Atlanta and New York (60 Hudson Street). The company also offers its Hybrid Cloud out of Telx’s Dallas/Stemmons facility. Iland leverages Telx’s Global Marketplace of service providers in each location, giving it an unmatched choice in connectivity options, strengthening network resiliency and improving service availability.

“A key differentiator with Telx is their ability to bring us multiple connections with diverse providers, and that enables higher Service Level Agreements for our customers,” Ussher says. “Also, Telx has been in business for a long time, and they have the financial stability, robust processes and backing that is important to us. We consider Telx a long-term strategic partner.”

The Benefits

Just as iland provides an outsourced cloud computing infrastructure to its clients so they can focus on their core business, iland depends on Telx to provide the physical datacenters it requires with high redundancy and scalability. 

Because Telx customers can connect quickly through a direct, secure connection to a global ecosystem of providers, iland has been able to offer more options to its customers without the expense of building out its own network.

“Telx facilities are some of the most connected in the world,” Ussher says. “This reach allows our customers to tie in their existing mpls or private networks into the iland cloud.  Telx’s flexibility enables us to scale up without changing our business priorities.”

Telx has also provided iland with cost effective services and outstanding customer service – and that’s why iland has referred its own customers to Telx locations across the country.

“We are always under time constraints and need quick turn-up time,” says Kim Howard, project manager at iland.  “Telx has always been fast and flexible in helping us to meet our end user commitments.

“Every time we open up a remote hands customer support ticket, Telx responds very quickly,” Howard adds.  “When we need to ship packages, they will actually call UPS for us, schedule the pickup and put it in a secure location for us. In November 2009, we had a customer from New Zealand who had an issue, and a Telx technical rep stayed on the phone with iland for six hours to help us troubleshoot the issue.”

Both iland and its customers have benefited from the high level of security, performance and reliability of Telx’s colocation facilities and interconnection services. “iland has been able to broaden our cloud customer base because we can offer a higher level of physical security and performance thanks to Telx’s high security and reliability,” Ussher says. “Having a presence in the highly robust environment in the Telx facilities, allows iland to meet the demanding requirements of our customers.”

Operational Impact:

iland can offer its cloud computing services to customers with the highest level of security and reliability and access to hundreds of network providers – a customer requirement that could not be fulfilled without a presence in Telx’s facilities.

Solution:

iland leverages Telx’s colocation, interconnection and remote hands services at 60 Hudson Street in New York City, Atlanta, and Dallas to enhance network performance and security for its cloud computing customers.