Telstra deploys Riverbed cloud network solution to Attune Hearing's 44 audiology clinics

Riverbed Technology partnered with Telstra to deploy a cloud networking solution for audiology service provider Attune Hearing’s 44 clinics across Australia.

Telstra will manage the rollout of the solution, which combines software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN) Riverbed SteelConnect with wide-area network (WAN) optimisation solution Riverbed SteelHead.

Attune Hearing offers audiological services such as diagnostic hearing tests for adults and children and hearing aid fitting and rehabilitation, operating on referrals from healthcare providers.

“We had been using SteelHead to improve the performance of apps across our network for years, and during that time our IT environment has evolved significantly as we’ve stretched to innovate and deliver richer experiences for our customers and staff,” Attune Hearing head of IT Jamie Delacey said.

“We’re adding new services, applications and locations all the time – and it was placing a strain on our existing network. We needed a new, modern approach that would help us continue to optimise the new traffic we were creating, but at the same time, give us greater control and the ability to flex and adapt our network to future needs.”

The upgrade aims to simplify networking across all branches, reduce the time it takes to spin up new apps, services and locations and accelerate new traffic crossing their hybrid environment into the cloud.

Attune’s three-person IT team manages all 44 clinics, which stretch as far north as Townsville, south of the Mornington Peninsula, west of Perth and the eastern seaboard.

The company said bringing new services, apps and sites online required a significant amount of time, travel and cost — getting a single service online could take up to four months.

“By offering new digital services to customers, we’re also replacing existing cumbersome manual processes for our staff. Not only does this boost productivity and morale, it means our customers are getting the best from our employees,” Delacey said.

“The competition is not going away anytime soon, but we’re confident that with Riverbed and Telstra, we have the right technology to deliver the agility we need to continue to lead the nation in audiology.”

He added that the company plans to move to a paperless environment over the next 18 months, where customers will have a single digital sign-on and seamless experience, whether they are connecting with Attune Hearing from in-home or in-clinic with cloud-based applications.