UCC Coffee: Brews harmony among its coffee brands

UCC Coffee is one of the largest coffee providers in Australia and New Zealand, labelling themselves “creators of the first wave of espresso in New Zealand and Australia.”  

Home to household coffee names including Robert Harris, Toby’s Estate, L’affare and Mocopan, the organisation operates eight sites, including two production and distribution centres in Melbourne and Auckland.  

The plague of MPLS 

As UCC Coffee expanded its presence in Australasia, the problems plaguing its aged MPLS network only intensified. After five years of service, the network was ill-prepared to handle the surge in traffic and the demands of a modern workforce.

UCC Coffee was operating on separate networks, causing disarray and overburdening the system. On-site work became increasingly challenging, with technical issues frustrating employees and hindering their ability to get day-to-day tasks done effectively.  

This led to employees resorting to working from home, impacting UCC Coffee’s cultural fabric and identity. 

UCC’s Coffee’s IT Manager ANZ, Greg Wratt relayed “Teams calls became the bane of our people’s lives. Our staff would have to hotspot from their phones or choose to work from home just to avoid network congestion and be able to do their jobs effectively.” 

With an average of 40 people per site vying for bandwidth, UCC Coffee turned to Interactive to transform its network from MPLS to managed SD-WAN.

Managed SD-WAN 

Interactive’s engineers prioritised establishing strong relationships with UCC’s employees, enabling them to gain a deep understanding of their needs and daily operations. This invaluable insight empowered Interactive to deliver a tailor-made solution that perfectly aligned with UCC’s requirements and financial considerations, guaranteeing a seamless implementation process. 

The answer came in the form of Interactive’s Managed SD-WAN, a key component of their comprehensive Network Solutions. This cutting-edge technology granted UCC Coffee enhanced control and supervision over their networks by dynamically routing and prioritizing network traffic based on the unique demands of each application.

Cost saving 

This was invaluable to UCC Coffee as it streamlined its network in a more cost-effective manner. By transitioning to the SD-WAN network, all UCC Coffee sites were unified under a single network umbrella, resulting in improved speeds and enhanced connectivity across the company. 

“Interactive’s networks service is far superior to any provider I’ve experienced in my 25+ years in IT. It has also been considerably more cost effective for us. At one site we went from 30Mbps to 500Mps, and it costs us less,” said Greg. 

“We saved 25% off our overall network cost, which enabled us to bring two more sites under the one network. This is music to the ears of my boss and our CFO!” 

Happy people, happy business  

This network transformation provided critical support for all employees who, due to internet issues, were forced to work from home or hotspot in the office. Now, employees can carry out their work within the office without concerns of dropped calls or slow internet speeds. It has significantly improved efficiency within the office environment, bolstering productivity. 

“Our people are much happier to come into the office now that they have uninterrupted connection with each other,” said Greg. 

More opportunities 

Interactive’s services also enabled UCC Coffee to benefit from Interactive’s close relationship with nbn™ and other carriers to save on project costs.  

Critically, Interactive’s solution breaks the glass ceiling for organisations looking for more ownership over their networks by removing the shackles put on by big telcos dominating the market.
 

Hassle-free delivery 

Interactive engages selected partners in Australia and New Zealand to get the best outcome for their customers, including nbn™, Cisco, Fortinet, Vocus and Encoo Communications.  This streamlines the entire process and ensures customers get the best value and experience in the market. 

 “Interactive’s team has made this entire project a breeze. They are an incredible team of experts who know exactly what they’re doing. They’ve provided a hassle-free delivery ahead of schedule, making my life stress-free during a major transformation project,” said Greg. 

• Saved 25% on overall network cost 
• Greater continuity of business across the entire company 
• A happier, productive team  
• Faster internet speeds and greater connectivity