Deutsche Bank, one of the world`s largest financial institutions, has launched an aggressive program to replace its existing network environment with a $50 million advanced high speed data network from 3Com Corporation, allowing the bank to enhance customer services, reduce costs, and speed the internal flow of information. Deutsche Bank now operates the largest single computer network in the world based on high performance Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology. ATM networks provide the transmission speeds and bandwidth necessary to support data-intensive applications, like document imaging and multimedia transmissions, that will help Deutsche Bank manage the 13 million transactions it processes daily from over 1,600 branch offices, 1,600 automated teller machines, and thousands of customers accessing bank services from PC`s. "At Deutsche Bank, the efficient, fast exchange of information is at the heart of our customer service," says Bernhard Czok, project director for Deutsche Bank. "Our network must enable access to central databases from any branch office at any time." Deutsche Bank`s previous network was an SNA-based star topology network, which has now been replaced by an efficient IP protocol based network, explains 3Com SA`s carrier and enterprise business unit manager, Buddie Ceronie. "In order to link the 35,000 customer service workstations and to supply the bandwidth necessary for fast transfers of large data files, Deutsche Bank initiated a $1-Billion project to update its entire IT infrastructure and install a data network from 3Com," he says. "The bank needed a network that would support legacy investments and grow with the business as new financial applications, services, customers, and employees are added." "Deutsche Bank`s visionary banking applications coupled with 3Com`s state-of-the-art systems and support will make this network the most advanced in global banking today," says Eric Benhamou, CEO of 3Com. "Our partnership with a financial institution of this stature demonstrates our commitment and ability to offer complete networking solutions to our enterprise customers." Now harnessing networking as a competitive asset, Deutsche Bank is currently linking workstations across its Frankfurt headquarters and branch offices in the new network of more than 1,400 switches. Based on 3Com`s Transcend Networking architecture, the network extends from the data center - also known as the backbone - at its Frankfurt head office to the wide area network (WAN). The backbone is based on 3Com`s CoreBuilder 7000 switches. Users across the campus-wide headquarters access the full power of the network`s high bandwidth using CoreBuilder 7200 Ethernet/ATM modules which provide fast and cost-effective Ethernet switching to servers and desktop computers. 3Com`s SuperStack II NETBuilder and NETBuilder II routers provide high-speed WAN links to branch offices. 3Com`s Ceronie says that the network supports state-of-the-art front and back office, online, and home banking financial applications which are improving bank operations and delivering superior customer service. "In the back office, the trading system "db-trader" is the most prominent expression of Deutsche Bank`s new information systems strategy," he adds. "Performing the bank`s core transaction recording, it seamlessly integrates all processing steps from order entry to bookkeeping, to settlement and management reporting. In the front office, a broad range of powerful new tools are supporting trading and sales staff, including Windows and db-office, based on Lotus Notes." The network also supports key online services which allow customers to get current share prices of selected German stocks, a listing of current currency exchange rates, and to access a database of business promotion programs sponsored by European Union countries and the EU. Through a combination of advanced hardware and TranscendWare software for policy-based adaptive networking, the 3Com network provides Deutsche Bank with virtually uninterrupted network operations. The fault-tolerance built into the CoreBuilder 7000 switch, allowing for alternate routes in the network at peak business hours, assures important internal and customer service functions are always completed. The high-performance system ensures that the financial institution will incur no single points of failure in the redundant ATM network. "The new network is playing a major role in our goal of continuous productivity and improved efficiency," says Deutsche Bank`s Czok. "3Com is helping us deliver a higher level of customer service."
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