The automotive segment in India is one of the early adopter of IT, and companies in the fray have put in place various IT best practices that have boosted overall operational efficiencies. Take the case of the Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) group, a $4.5 bn business conglomerate which manufactures multi-utility vehicles and farm equipment with significant presence in other key sectors like infrastructure development, information technology, financial services and auto components. M&M's automotive division manufactures a wide range of vehicles including MUVs, LCVs, and three wheelers. M&M is the largest manufacturer of MUVs, offering over twenty models including new generation multi-utility vehicles such as Scorpio and Bolero. As a leading company in the automotive space, IT and networks play a mission critical role. Arvind Tawde, senior VP and CIO of the company talks to VOICE&DATA on the company's network that empowers its IT. Excerpts:
Can you talk about the significance of your network?
The network connects users at all business locations. It has become the vehicle for carrying critical business information in the form of data, voice, and video. In addition to running the base business applications mentioned above, the network platform is being used for desktop chat, video conferencing, VoIP, and video telephony. Having a flexible, adaptive, scalable, and secure network has proven to be a key facilitator in this integration process. M&M's network elements are configured to ensure high confidentiality of information, its availability, and integrity.
Can you explain your network architecture? Our network architecture has three major components-the first is MahindraNet, connecting all plants and sales offices with MPLS lines and leased circuits. It has Cisco routers of 1750 and 3600 series. Plants have three-tier LAN with backbone switches of Cisco 4000 series and distributed workgroup switches of Cisco 2900 series. Datacenter and R&D LAN are on GBIC network and other LANs are on 100 Mbps network. VLANs are created to limit broadcast if any.
All Mahindra Group companies are connected with 128 kbps or higher MPLS lines forming MahindraWorldNet. The group companies can access common portal and share IT services. This network is connected to MahindraNet through UTM device. This is the second component of M&M network architecture. We are in a process of rolling out network connecting M&M dealers. This is the third component referred to as MahindraDealerNet. Dealers access the hosted dealer management solution through the same.
Can you talk about the range of connectivity solutions at Mahindra?
In addition, we also have eight major LANs at our plants (200-1,000 PCs) and forty smaller LANs (8-15 PCs) at sales office locations across India which are operating with 100 Mbps speed. We have structured LAN cabling at all locations to ensure 100% uptime. All plants have 2/4/8 Mbps leased lines or MPLS circuit as primary with appropriate back-up ensuring 99.5% uptime. Dealer locations are being connected to the data center through secure MPLS network for accessing hosted dealer management system. Suppliers are connected to supplier portal (www.mahindrasrm.com) through broadband Internet.
What are the key networking challenges you faced, and how did you address them?
Given this, redundancy is factored into several components of the network. Redundant links are provided through VSAT, RF or ISDN dial-up connections to support the primary connectivity. To take care of last mile connectivity issues, MUX are installed at critical sites such as data center. Some issues are due to nature of the business. A major part of our customer segment is in rural India and so are the dealerships supporting these customers. Lack of connectivity options in these remote areas is a major concern. This makes it essential for us to find a right solution provider having proper reach in rural areas.
In the process of evolving a network backbone, what topped your agenda?
Can you tell us about the mission critical nature of your networks?
What are your views on SLA? Do service providers give you maximum uptime?
In the last few years, how do you characterize the overall improvement in connectivity services in India? Do service providers meet your expectations?
How do you manage network security at Mahindra, and what are the solutions deployed?
We have implemented HP Openview, Smart Manage II, and CISCOWORKS for network health monitoring, proactive, and early response. The central network-operating center is segregated and protected from unauthorized access.
Shrikanth G
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