The challenge was to tackle ergonomics, inefficiency and university budgets – Sheffield Hallam’s answer was to employ the use of virtual hosting in order to deliver an IT infrastructure for staff and students
With more than 28,000 students, a staff body of over 3,000 people, and a very ambitious vision for the future, Sheffield Hallam needed to find a way to handle their rapidly growing environment. Over the next decade, the university intends to invest around £140 million into the institute, pushing forward with innovation and state-of-the-art technology. The first step? To ensure a resilient IT infrastructure with virtual hosting…
Before Virtual Hosting: The Challenges They Faced
The university’s IT user community is over 31,000 people. And just like any other organisation or educational body, Hallam faced the everyday issues that cropped up with modern technology. Delivery an infrastructure through in-house servers was not only expensive, but it posed the following problems:
- Powering and maintaining in-house servers.
- Physical space in server rooms and resources needed to cool them.
- Underutilisation with servers and efficiency in hardware.
- Environmental issues with expansion as the university and its community grew.
- The increasing need to deliver more services without increasing budget.
It was clear that in order to tackle these problems head on, virtual hosting was the answer. Not only will cloud computing solve the ongoing IT matters, but it also gives Sheffield’s most innovative university the freedom to progress into the future with state-of-the-art facilities.
Moving Up and Forward with Virtual Hosting
The university’s organisers pride themselves making a difference for students, staff, businesses, Sheffield residents and anyone they work in partnership with. Virtual hosting software has given one of the most forward-thinking educational bodies in the UK a future-proof infrastructure. Resilient. Scalable. Sustainable.
By investing in virtual hosting, Sheffield Hallam has shaped a new way for students to do their work, communicate, conduct research, surf the web, get up-to-date information about their coursework, and socialise with others. With improved server utilisation, the university’s been able to benefit from reduced outgoings while contributing to the environment. Their dedication to teaching is second to none, and with money saved in one area, they are able to commit funds elsewhere to further improve education. They are currently recognised as a ‘Centre of Excellence for Teaching and Learning’.
Follow Hallam’s Footsteps: Get Virtual Hosting with SwitchLink
For more information about virtual hosting packages that are economically priced, visit the SwitchLink website today.
