Success Story

Mandalay Resort Group and Nortel Networks score big in Las Vegas The new 1.5-million-square-foot Convention Center deploys Nortel Networks Shasta Broadband Service Node to deliver bandwidth on demand, where and when it’s needed.

Customer: Mandalay Resort Group Challenge: To provide, at a reasonable cost, the amount of bandwidth needed, wherever needed, throughout a new 1.5-million-square-foot convention center. Solution: A Nortel Networks solution featuring the Shasta 5000 Broadband Service Node, Passport 8600 Routing Switch, and BayStack Business Policy Switch. Benefits: Mandalay Bay Convention Center is now able to provision and manage precisely the bandwidth needed in any particular area of its multi-functional convention center without deploying a network of T1 lines. Convention clients contract for the Internet access and data services they require. Mandalay Bay saves on provisioning costs, and the network and its profits are all their own. Most everything in Las Vegas is Keeping in touch “I began speaking with the General Manager about providing these services larger-than-life, and when it The playground-for-adults image of Las ourselves,” says Terry, “suggesting that we Vegas is evolving. More than 35 million comes to convention space, put up the capital and keep 100 percent guests come to Las Vegas each year, and a size certainly matters. When of the revenue. At that same time it was growing number are arriving to do busi- announced that we were going to open a Mandalay Bay opened its brand- ness. Conventioneers are gathering in new, much larger convention center. So, new 1.5-million-square-foot Las Vegas in assemblies that number in it was decided that we’d provide the data the tens, even hundreds of thousands— convention center in January, services in the new facility. And we wanted and they have their technology needs. 2003, it soon found itself booking to be the most high-tech convention to capacity. Here now was one of “Most of our visitors these days,” says center in Las Vegas.” Mark Turek, Senior Network Engineer for the five largest convention facili- That’s when and why Terry turned to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Nortel Networks. ties in the country, the largest on “generally can’t afford to be out of touch the vaunted Las Vegas Strip— with the office when they come to Las supply rising to demand. Vegas; they can’t be without data services. The right stuff At the Mandalay Bay Convention Center Let’s reconsider for a moment those But size alone isn’t sufficient, we can provide them with the mobility to 1.5 million square feet. Consider that make their lives seamless while they’re 1.5 million square feet of convention space and although accommodation in away.” is equal to about 38 football fields or, if Vegas is crucial—the word on the you’re the average American, is 996 times Strip was that the new Mandalay Major player bigger than your home. Now consider wiring that space for multiple and myriad Bay Convention Center was not Mandalay Bay Resort & , luxuri- high-bandwidth services. just large, but surpassed the antly nestled between Las Vegas and Frank Sinatra Blvds., hosts championship prize ‘norm’ in terms of high-tech “We wanted to offer our convention fights, A-list entertainers—and now is one clients anything they needed as far as operations. of the leading convention, events, and Internet and data were concerned,” says trade show venues in Las Vegas. Mandalay Terry. “We wanted the ability to go in and Bay has four levels of multipurpose space, To meet the evolving needs of its impres- drop the amount of bandwidth needed, breakout rooms to simultaneously accom- sive and ever-growing register of conven- wherever needed, but we didn’t want to modate 75 gatherings, nearly one million- tion clients, Mandalay Resort Group has have to bring a T1 to every booth. square feet of exhibit space, and a 100,000- turned to Nortel Networks for a data square-foot mega-ballroom—the largest “I needed a network that would mesh with network that not only meets the Internet pillarless ballroom in North America. the existing skill set of our staff and with access and data provisioning demands of our existing network. I was familiar with its clients, but precisely meets those When opened in March 1999, Mandalay Nortel Networks products because we had demands. Bay had a considerably smaller convention used Nortel for other projects—we’re basi- center than it does today. Management How so? Mandalay Bay’s state-of-the-art cally a Nortel shop for our switches.” had an arrangement with a local Internet network features Nortel Networks Shasta* service provider to bring a couple of T1 Mandalay Bay Resort Group deployed 5000 Broadband Service Node (BSN), lines on the floor. Mandalay Bay was an Optical Ethernet solution, a highly a platform that delivers customized IP provided the hardware and bandwidth, resilient and simplified Ethernet-based services to tens of thousands of active and the ISP took a large percentage of network infrastructure over which all users at any given moment. each dollar generated. convention and resort traffic would flow. Moreover, Mandalay Bay now owns its Mandalay Resort Group had a corporate A couple of years ago, management was network: No longer are they sharing the MAN (Ethernet over Fiber network) noticing that convention clients’ total revenue with a local Internet service between its five Strip properties that spending for access and services was provider. had been upgraded to Nortel Networks “a very significant number,” according to Passport* 8600s. The Passport 8600 has Mandalay Bay’s Director of Information established itself as an industry-leading Technology, Alex Terry. routing switch for enterprise networks, delivering Gigabit performance and the quality of service required for business-

“Nortel Networks is on the leading edge of all these changes in the industry.” —Mark Turek, Mandalay Bay Convention Center

2 critical applications. Scalable to 256 Gbps, More than 60 Nortel Networks BayStack* Now we have a larger business center, and the Passport 8600s were the workhorses of Business Policy Switches (BPS) help maxi- soon, our guests will also have self-service the Mandalay network. mize the output and dependability of the Internet access. They can sit in some public Mandalay network. The BPS is a 24-port ‘hotspots’ and tie back to the Shasta. Our Says Turek: “I knew the Passport 8600s high-density, stackable 10/100 Mbps guests will be able to enter their credit card were solid, well engineered, and that for switch with robust Quality of Service number, open a port into our wireless the price you couldn’t beat them.” (QoS) features. It prioritizes network traffic network, and select 30 minutes or an hour flow and increases network reliability and of Internet access.” This wireless service is The same proved true of the Shasta 5000 availability. currently being deployed. BSN. Having shopped around, Terry found “there were a lot of entry-level solutions. “We have all the bandwidth and all the But I haven’t seen anything like what functions of T1 service without having to A correlative concept Shasta could do.” expand T1 lines,” Turek adds. “We have The underlying foundation of this firewall and routing capabilities, scala- successful deployment is the strategic The Shasta 5000 BSN supports 32,000 bility, and versatility. This network will perspective shared by the Mandalay Resort active subscribers with a full range of IP basically do anything we tell it to. It’s Group and Nortel Networks, one that services. It combines both network trans- carrier-grade, rock solid.” recognizes that the “one-size-fits-all” port and IP services in a single platform approach to communications no longer with a set of built-in IP-service processing Ultimately, the peace of mind of Nortel cuts it. tools. These services are provisioned from Networks 99.999 percent reliability won within the network—meaning the Mandalay Bay over. If New York is the city “If a customer wants 10 MB of bandwidth Mandalay IT team can respond to a steady that never sleeps, Las Vegas is the city that in their booth,” says Alex Terry, in summa- turnover of client needs quickly and cost- never even pauses for a breather. The right tion, “we can do that. The customer efficiently. The Mandalay Bay Convention time for downtime is never. doesn’t need to buy six T1 lines to achieve Center hosts multiple events simultane- that. In fact, we can provide the 10 MB of ously, each with a unique set of service bandwidth for less than it would cost to requirements. The ability to customize The wireless connection secure six T1s—it requires less hardware, services is of the essence to its success. It should be noted that the benefits of less configuration time, and it takes less Mandalay Bay’s new network extend staff for us to manage it.” “With Shasta,” says Terry, “we can basically beyond the convention center. configure any amount of bandwidth we “Nortel Networks is on the leading edge want to any port.” And do it ourselves. “Our old business center provided of all these changes in the industry,” says Says Terry: “That’s big.” Internet access through the local ISP,” says Turek. “They’ve put billions of dollars into Terry. “There were only a few PCs avail- R&D in the last few years. They’re recog- able for rent, and they were always in use. nizing what it takes to stay ahead. ”

Mandalay Bay Convention Center Network Passport 8600 Routing Switch

BayStack Business GigE 802.1Q Shasta 5000 BSN Policy Switch

GigE 802.1Q GigE SX FastE Internet 802.1Q

GigE 802.1Q

GigE 802.1Q 802.11 802.11 access access point point

802.11 access point

Portal SCS server DHCP

Convention Convention center users center users

Wireless hotspots 3 Terry and Turek said they are quite pleased with the complementary role Nortel Networks has played throughout the planning and deployment stages, and with their ongoing support.

“Nortel Networks has always been there for me,” Terry says. “I don’t know what else to say.”

“The integrity in the way they do business was important to us,” says Turek.

money. The way things were done in the Big time. past, we wouldn’t have had to put that Mark Turek is confident of the future of capital out for the network but we’d be his network: “We’ll have our entire infra- missing out on a significant amount of structure paid for in six to eight months. revenue.” Everything.” The bottom line is: “Our IT department “Only recently, I think the casino is the exclusive provider of Internet and industry has realized the value and poten- data services for our convention center, tial of information technology,” says and we keep 100 percent of the revenue.” Terry. “In bringing in the Shasta, we’ve shown that an IT department can make That is Vegas big.

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In Europe: Nortel Networks www.nortelnetworks.com Maidenhead Office Park Westacott Way For more information, contact your Nortel Networks representative, or Maidenhead Berkshire SL6 3QH UK call 1-800-4 NORTEL or 1-800-466-7835 from anywhere in North America. *Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks logo, the globemark design, Passport, and Shasta are trademarks of In Asia: Nortel Networks. All other trademarks are the property of their owners. Nortel Networks Asia 6/F Cityplaza 4, Copyright © 2003 Nortel Networks. All rights reserved. Information in this document is subject Taikooshing, to change without notice. Nortel Networks assumes no responsibility for any errors that may appear in this document. 12 Taikoo Wan Road, Hong Kong NN103741-041403