Supermarket giant Asda moved one step closer to its goal of replacing Sainsbury’s as the second-largest grocer in Britain when it purchased 350 petrol forecourts and 1,000 restaurants in the UK and Ireland from its sister company, EG Group
Overview
The fuel forecourt sector is a highly competitive one, and ever-evolving technology is helping businesses secure the edge, with big brands beginning to recognise the power behind digital transformation and its positive impacts in meeting the demands of customers.
One of the most critical aspects of technology for fuel forecourts is connectivity. With nearly two decades of extensive experience and expertise in the forecourt sector, the Evolve team was chosen by Asda to provide network solutions for its newly acquired assets.
The Problem
In October 2022, Leeds-based supermarket giant Asda completed a £600 million deal to buy 116 sites from Manchester-headquartered Co-op’s petrol forecourt business. However, the ability to deliver a seamless, efficient, and convenient user experience, where consumers can access a broader range of products and services, relies on having the right technology with the right managed connectivity services.
Fully managed network solutions, including SD-WAN, connectivity, and guest Wi-Fi, are essential for businesses in the forecourt sector to operate efficiently, avoid costly downtime, and deliver a seamless customer experience. This is where Evolve was able to help.
The Solution
Before starting implementation of the project, Evolve worked closely with Asda for around six months to conduct thorough health checks to optimise configuration and piece together a comprehensive design plan, ensuring that even the smallest detail was accounted for. During this time, Evolve was able to establish a strong working relationship with Asda, and demonstrating its efficiency and reliability.
A key challenge facing the team was that each of the new sites requiring connectivity faced time constraints, meaning it was imperative for Evolve’s in-house engineering and development teams to tailor the connectivity solution to fit the deadline. Evolve understands the dynamic nature of the market and the importance of keeping pace with its customers, so always works to deliver solutions ahead of deadlines.
Working at speed, the Evolve team supplied a secure network that supports fuel and store sales, third-party services and provides guest Wi-Fi. The new tech stack was specifically designed with point-of-sale, and all other connectivity-dependent elements in mind. The resulting connectivity package was branded ‘Asda Express’.
The early stages of the deployment involved rolling out the security gateway device, powered by Mako Networks, ensuring each of the sites remained secure and PCI DSS Level 1 compliant at all times. Evolve’s security gateway devices utilise SD-WAN technology, providing Asda with maximised uptime through 4G/5G failover.
Due to the transition of communications and circuits being connected, the sites were set up to run on 4G/5G to ensure they remained operational, avoiding costly downtime. Temporary communications for installations were also used at the beginning of the project, and overnight installations were carried out to minimise disruption to operations. This was only possible thanks to Evolve’s 24x7x365 Network Operations Centre (NOC), which is fully manned at all times.
Evolve was able to give time back to Asda and allow the retailer to focus on what it does best by managing the entire project from start to finish.
The Benefits
Fully managed network solutions provide reliable and fast connectivity to customers, allowing them to stay connected and engaged while spending time at the forecourt.
Evolve’s solution will enable Asda to operate more efficiently while streamlining operations and reducing downtime. By investing in fully managed network solutions, Asda forecourts can now also collect valuable data and analytics, allowing them to make more informed decisions and tailor their offerings to meet customer expectations.
Being able to install the solution remotely and during the night means the business incurred minimal downtime, while our highly proactive around-the-clock customer support ensured any problems were detected and resolved quickly.
Evolve combines best-in-class security and compliance offerings with in-house developed solutions that make technology work for your business and has a dedicated team ready to detect and solve any issues before they become a problem.
We specialise in network solutions for forecourts, including fuel stations and convenience stores. Our managed network services help our customers optimise their supply chain management, logistics, and store operations, leading to improved profitability and customer satisfaction.
Contact Evolve for more information at info@evolvebg.co.uk
