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American Systems' Cloud-Based Emergency Notification System: A Case Study
Technology Category
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Databases
Applicable Industries
- Cities & Municipalities
- National Security & Defense
Applicable Functions
- Maintenance
- Quality Assurance
Use Cases
- Leasing Finance Automation
- Search & Rescue
Services
- Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
- System Integration
The Challenge
American Systems, a government services contractor, was tasked with developing and deploying a cloud-based version of its emergency notification system for the United States Air Force (USAF). The legacy Emergency Mass Notification System (EMNS) was reliable and secure, but required hardware installations at individual major commands and military bases, supporting approximately 700,000 users. The USAF realized that migrating the EMNS solution to the cloud could significantly reduce licensing, hardware, and maintenance costs, and make the system easier to scale and manage. However, the new cloud-based solution had to meet the stringent requirements of the Defense Information Systems Agency’s Secure Cloud Computing Architecture (SCCA). American Systems lacked the internal expertise to meet these requirements and needed a partner to help them tackle the SCCA requirements.
About The Customer
American Systems is a government services contractor that has been delivering IT and engineering solutions to the United States Armed Forces and other national priority programs since 1975. Based in Chantilly, Virginia, the company has won the Government Contractor of the Year award twice from the Greater Washington Government Contractor Awards. It has also been named a Top 50 Government Technology Contractor by the Washington Business Journal and listed as a 'Best of the Best' veteran-friendly company by U.S. Veterans Magazine. The company was tasked with developing and deploying a cloud-based version of its emergency notification system for the United States Air Force.
The Solution
American Systems chose Microsoft Azure as its cloud service provider and was referred to F5, a long-time Azure partner specializing in SCCA. F5 had previously developed a solution with Microsoft that runs on Azure and meets the SCCA requirements, called Secure Azure Computing Architecture (SACA). American Systems used F5 BIG-IP Virtual Edition as its application delivery and security services platform for the cloud-based EMNS solution. The solution has two availability zones—one primary and one backup—with an internal and external BIG-IP VE instance. It also maintains a standby in a different geographic region within Azure, and identical architecture across the regions. Within a year, the cloud-based EMNS was successfully deployed at all major commands and 176 USAF bases around the world.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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