Stabilising and Modernising Critical Infrastructure for a Multi-Site Manufacturing Organisation

Azentra partnered with a mid-sized manufacturing organisation operating several production sites across the UK. Aging infrastructure, inconsistent networking, and poor system performance were impacting production efficiency, logistics operations, and overall uptime.

The organisation needed a complete infrastructure modernisation plan that would reduce downtime, stabilise operations, and create a scalable foundation for future automation initiatives.

The Challenge

The manufacturing business was being held back by several critical issues affecting production and day-to-day operations.

1. Frequent Downtime Across Production Sites

Legacy servers and outdated networking equipment caused intermittent outages impacting:

• production line management systems

• warehouse and logistics software

• time-sensitive machine interfaces

• remote site connectivity

Downtime led directly to production delays and increased operational cost.

2. Legacy Infrastructure With Limited Supportability

Many core systems were running on hardware well beyond lifespan, with:

• no redundancy

• poor failover capability

• inconsistent patching

• unsupported operating systems

This exposed the business to substantial performance and security risks.

3. Fragmented Network Architecture

Each site had been configured differently over the years, resulting in:

• performance bottlenecks

• unpredictable connectivity between locations

• lack of standardisation

• minimal visibility into traffic or issues

This made management difficult and troubleshooting slow.

4. Limited Security Controls

The organisation lacked:

• endpoint protection capable of handling a distributed environment

• secure remote access for engineering staff

• monitoring for unusual activity

• strong identity or access governance

This introduced operational and cybersecurity risk across multiple plants.

5. No Roadmap for Digital Growth

The business wanted to adopt automation, modern ERP systems, and data analytics — but the technology foundation was too unstable to support these initiatives.

The Solution

Azentra delivered a structured, multi-phase modernisation programme designed to stabilise production environments, unify network architecture, and introduce enterprise-grade security controls.

Phase 1: Infrastructure Stabilisation & Hardware Refresh

• Replaced legacy on-premise servers with a modern, redundant infrastructure stack

• Implemented hyper-converged systems for better resilience and performance

• Migrated business-critical applications to a hybrid on-prem and Azure model

• Standardised configurations across all sites

Result: Immediate reduction in failures, improved performance, and a more reliable backbone for production systems.

Phase 2: Network Modernisation Across All Sites

• Deployed new enterprise-grade switches, firewalls, and wireless infrastructure

• Implemented SD-WAN for consistent, high-performance inter-site connectivity

• Standardised VLAN structures and improved network segmentation

• Introduced centralised network monitoring and performance analytics

Result: Predictable, high-performance connectivity across all manufacturing locations.

Phase 3: Security Maturity Improvement

• Rolled out modern EDR across all devices, including shop-floor machines and industrial PCs

• Implemented MFA and identity governance using Azure AD

• Introduced secure remote access for engineering and maintenance teams

• Centralised logging and continuous security monitoring

Result: Stronger protection with full visibility across all sites and endpoints.

Phase 4: Operational Governance & Ongoing Management

• Delivered documentation aligned with ISO and operational audit requirements

• Implemented proactive monitoring for infrastructure, networks, and applications

• Provided a dedicated service management model to ensure predictable performance

• Created a strategic roadmap for ERP modernisation and automation adoption

Result: A long-term operational strategy aligned with production and business objectives.

The Outcomes

Within the first year, the organisation experienced significant improvements:

Operational Performance

• 70% reduction in unplanned downtime across production systems

• 50% improvement in application responsiveness across sites

• Consistent, reliable inter-site connectivity via SD-WAN

  
  

Production Efficiency

• Fewer stoppages caused by IT outages

• Faster recovery from issues due to unified monitoring

• Improved support for machine integration and real-time systems

  
  

Security & Stability

• Enterprise-grade security posture across all environments

• MFA enforced across the organisation

• Full visibility of endpoints, users, and network activity

  
  

Scalability & Modernisation Readiness

• Infrastructure capable of supporting new ERP deployment

• Standardised architecture enabling future automation initiatives

• Clear roadmap for ongoing digital transformation

  
  

Conclusion

Azentra helped this manufacturing organisation move from a fragmented, unreliable, and insecure technology environment to a stable, modern, and scalable foundation that supports production efficiency and digital growth.

With unified infrastructure, improved security, and consistent site-to-site connectivity, the business now has the operational reliability required to support future innovation and manufacturing excellence.

Elena Moore, Head of Growth at RetailRev