Overview

Building relationships, identifying pain points and responding with solutions quickly have always been core to the Evolve philosophy. Integrating with third-party data centres-whether they belong to parent companies, payment processors or service providers-means supporting access to a business's most sensitive information and vital technologies.

Multi-site operators increasingly rely on third-party platforms for payment processing, fuel management, reporting systems and critical site services. Traditional network architectures route traffic through multiple hops, creating latency, security risk and troubleshooting complexity.

Evolve developed a direct integration model that extends SD-WAN connectivity into third-party data centres, creating secure "tunnels" that reduce latency, simplify routing and provide real-time visibility for proactive network management.

The Challenge

Connecting multi-site estates to third-party platforms presents several operational and technical challenges:

Complex routing and latency

Traditional approaches route site traffic through multiple network hops before reaching third-party data centres, adding latency to time-sensitive transactions like payment authorisations and fuel system communications.

Limited visibility

When issues arise between customer sites and third-party platforms, diagnosing the root cause requires coordination across multiple providers, extending mean time to resolution and impacting trading operations.

Security and compliance risk

Payment traffic traversing public internet or poorly segmented networks increases PCI DSS scope and creates audit risk. Multi-site operators need provable controls and segmentation to maintain compliance.

Inconsistent infrastructure

Different regions and markets present unique infrastructure challenges. In some cases, physical equipment installation in third-party data centres is not feasible due to cost, lead time or technical constraints.

Restricted access

Third-party data centre operators rarely allow external companies direct access to their facilities, requiring alternative technical approaches to achieve integration objectives.

The Solution

Evolve designed a direct integration model that extends Mako Networks SD-WAN into third-party data centres, creating secure, low-latency connectivity between customer sites and critical platforms.

Direct SD-WAN tunnels to third-party data centres

Evolve installs Mako Networks appliances directly within partner and third-party data centres, creating dedicated SD-WAN tunnels from customer sites. This architecture eliminates unnecessary routing hops, reduces latency and provides end-to-end visibility for proactive monitoring.

Real-time visibility and proactive diagnostics

Centralised SD-WAN management provides real-time insight into connection health, traffic patterns and performance metrics across all integrations. Evolve's 24/7/365 Network Operations Centre uses this visibility to detect and resolve issues proactively, often before customers experience impact.

PCI-certified secure connectivity

The integration model uses encrypted tunnels and network segmentation to protect payment traffic and sensitive data. Mako Networks' PCI Level 1 certification supports customer compliance requirements and provides audit-ready evidence of controls.

Virtual Mako for infrastructure-constrained regions

In regions where physical equipment installation is not feasible, Evolve developed a "virtual Mako" solution using cloud infrastructure. This innovation enabled integrations in markets like Italy where traditional approaches were blocked by infrastructure limitations or cost constraints.

Trusted partner access

While most third-party data centre operators restrict external access, Evolve has built trust relationships with more than 60 gateways, hosts and platforms, gaining direct access to deploy and manage SD-WAN infrastructure within their facilities.

Carrier relationship leverage

Evolve's established relationships with multiple carriers enable fast circuit provisioning and coordinated troubleshooting, reducing downtime and maintaining service continuity across complex multi-site deployments.

Example Integrations

TNS (Connectivity and infrastructure-as-a-service leader)

Evolve integrated directly with TNS, enabling seamless connectivity to over 250 different payment hosts across the world for multi-site retail and forecourt operators.

HTEC (Global consulting and engineering)

Extended SD-WAN into HTEC's infrastructure to route card payment traffic for fuel sites, ensuring secure, low-latency payment processing.

FIS (Worldpay)

Expanded SD-WAN directly to FIS (Worldpay) data centres, enabling secure payment processing from forecourt sites with real-time monitoring and support.

Titan Cloud Software

Deployed virtual Mako technology to interface with Titan Cloud, supporting reporting and monitoring of fuel tanks across the US without physical equipment installation.

TSG (European payment solutions)

Integrated with TSG's key European data centres, providing customers with direct, secure access to payment systems and critical site services.

The Benefits

Reduced latency for time-sensitive transactions

Direct SD-WAN tunnels eliminate unnecessary routing hops, ensuring payment authorisations, fuel system communications and back-office transactions complete quickly and reliably.

Proactive issue resolution

End-to-end network visibility enables Evolve's NOC to detect and resolve issues before they impact site operations, reducing reactive support tickets and protecting trading minutes.

Simplified troubleshooting

Centralised management and real-time diagnostics mean issues are identified and resolved quickly, without extended coordination between multiple providers.

Enhanced security and compliance

Encrypted tunnels and network segmentation reduce PCI DSS scope, protect sensitive data and provide audit-ready evidence of controls.

Seamless customer experience

Customers benefit from a one-stop-shop for secure network management, with Evolve handling third-party communications and resolving issues without requiring customer involvement.

Innovative problem-solving

Virtual Mako and cloud-based integration approaches overcome infrastructure constraints, enabling deployments in markets where traditional methods would fail or create excessive cost.

Proven trust and access

Relationships with 60+ third-party data centres demonstrate Evolve's credibility and technical capability, enabling integrations other providers cannot deliver.

About Evolve

Evolve delivers service-first managed network solutions for multi-site brands across retail, forecourts, QSR and hospitality. Our PCI Level 1-aligned SD-WAN, resilient Business Connectivity, Guest Wi-Fi and managed IT services are backed by a UK-based 24/7/365 Network Operations Centre.

We specialise in blueprint-led rollouts that protect trading minutes, reduce compliance risk and scale predictably across complex estates. Our proactive monitoring model means 86% of support interactions are outbound-we detect and resolve issues before sites feel the impact.

As Mako Networks' only Platinum Partner, we are the only network management company in the world to qualify as a PCI-certified Level 1 service provider, making us uniquely positioned to support hospitality and retail businesses requiring external PCI DSS certification.

For more information, contact us.