Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 42 | Page 56

CASE STUDY The customer THE CUSTOMER From its home in Dubai, flydubai has created a network of more than 90 destinations. Over the next decade, the airline will see its fleet grow by up to 237 aircraft. Since commencing operations in June 2009, flydubai has been committed to removing barriers to travel, creating free flows of trade and tourism and enhancing connectivity between different cultures across its ever- expanding network. The flydubai fleet serves customers across Africa, Central Asia, the Caucasus, Central were not served by a UAE national carrier from Dubai • An efficient single fleet-type: Operates a single fleet-type of 59 Boeing 737 aircraft • Record-breaking orders: Placed the largest single-aisle aircraft orders in the region at the 2013 and 2017 editions of the Dubai Airshow • Enhancing connectivity: Carried more than 70 million passengers since it began operations in 2009 As a result of this growth, flydubai needed to upgrade its IT infrastructure to create a Digital Transformation capable of driving the distribution of services and controls closer to its customers, employees and partners. IT PROVIDES US WITH CONNECTIONS TO CLOUD SERVICE PROVIDERS, ALONG WITH ONSHORE CONNECTIONS WITHIN THE UAE. and South-East Europe, the GCC and the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent. The company wanted to upgrade its IT infrastructure to create one that was global, agile and flexible, capable of connecting to other carriers and providers of cloud services. It looked to Equinix, a global company which connects the world’s leading businesses to their customers, employees and partners inside the most-interconnected data centres, for a solution. Business challenge CHALLENGE BUSINESS Since commencing operations in 2009, the airline has shown no sign of slowing down. flydubai has marked its journey with a number of milestones that represent the scale of the ambition planned for the airline. These have included: • An expanding network: Created a network of more than 90 destinations in 47 countries • Serving under-served markets: Opened up more than 71 new routes that did not previously have direct air links to Dubai or 56 INTELLIGENTCIO A more responsive infrastructure would allow the business to deliver more digital services to its customers. It would also provide a more efficient use of IT resources, and as a result, the business would be better able to scale as required. Solution THE SOLUTION To solve the challenges, Equinix helped flydubai deploy a high-performance, resilient infrastructure within the Equinix Dubai (DX1) International Business Exchange (IBX) data centre. By building a digital edge alongside the largest industry ecosystems on Platform Equinix, flydubai placed strategic control points next to its customers, clouds and networks to reach everywhere, interconnect everyone and integrate everything. Ramesh Venkat, Chief Information Officer, flydubai, said: “In aviation terms, over the last 20 years, Dubai has proved to be a global gateway. “Equinix DX1 promises the same in terms of digital connections. It provides us with OUR DUBAI DATA CENTRE ACTS AS A REGIONAL HUB, INTERCONNECTING A CRITICAL MASS OF INDUSTRY PARTICIPANTS IN ONE PLACE. connections to cloud service providers, along with onshore connections within the UAE.” Business BUSINESS results RESULTS The Equinix solution provides flydubai with a range of efficient technology services with a redundant multilocation model. Being hosted in DX1 enables the airline to develop and deliver a range of best-of- breed digital services. www.intelligentcio.com