Retail Center Replaces Ruckus with Aruba to Enable Pervasive Indoor and Outdoor 802.11ac Wi-Fi for Shoppers and Retailers
Aruba Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARUN) today announced that Nebraska
Crossing Outlets (NEX) in Gretna, Nebraska, has replaced its Ruckus
wireless network with Aruba Networks’ 802.11ac solution to provide the
industry’s fastest Wi-Fi to 80 retailers and the four million people the
center serves in its 200 mile trade area. The new network which covers
350,000 square feet and 40 acres of indoor and outdoor outlet shopping,
is driving new revenue opportunities for the center’s retailers and
providing a rich mobile experience for shoppers.
Since its opening one year ago, more than four million shoppers have
visited the premier outlet center located just outside Omaha and Lincoln
– Nebraska’s two largest cities. From inception, the outlet’s developer,
OTB Destination, knew the wireless network was critical to the success
of the center, with retailers relying on the network for essential
business transactions and mobile Point of Sale (PoS), and shoppers using
the complimentary Wi-Fi to stay connected, research products and access
sales promotions and information from NEX retailers. In addition, NEX
wanted to use their wireless network for physical security purposes,
specifically, to monitor property areas, parking lots and outlet
corridors.
With a unique design that incorporates glass and metal building
materials, and outdoor areas that are frequently exposed to inclement
weather conditions, NEX needed a wireless infrastructure that could
overcome the resulting RF interference and climate-based challenges.
“As part of our mobile-first platform, we initially deployed a Ruckus
Wireless network for the outlet center, but quickly discovered that it
lacked the performance and reliability we needed in both our indoor and
outdoor areas – particularly as the number of devices on the network
increased,” said Rod Yates, principal for OTB Destination, LLC,
developer and owner of NEX. “With both tenants and customers relying on
the network for connectivity and access to business-critical
applications, we knew we needed a solution that could withstand the
heavy demands we were placing on the network.”
Working with partners DataVizion of Lincoln, Nebraska, and Century Link
Nebraska, NEX determined that Aruba Networks offered the best solution
for all of the outlet center’s needs. The new Aruba network includes
802.11ac indoor and outdoor access
points, the 7200
Series Mobility Controllers and Mobility
Access Switches to provide enterprise-class, Gigabit Wi-Fi access
across the entire NEX outlet center.
“Aruba had the broadest portfolio of 802.11ac solutions – both indoor
and outdoor – and we knew from previous deployments that it was secure,
resilient and had the performance to handle the device density of
highly-populated retail centers like NEX,” said Nick Patrick, account
manager for DataVizion.
Having a reliable, high-speed 802.11ac network finally in place has
enabled NEX to go beyond basic connectivity to truly improve the retail
experience for both its stores and their customers. With the Aruba
wireless infrastructure, NEX has been able to provide additional
shopping and onsite information directly to shoppers’ smartphones using
its NEX Outlets App which provides special promotions and sends
personalized communications to participating customers.
“Our ability to better engage with our customers via mobility could not
have been successful without a robust, reliable network infrastructure,”
said Yates. “Aruba’s 802.11ac network is the crucial foundation we
needed to enable these technologies and it has directly resulted in
improved retailer and consumer satisfaction and, subsequently, increased
revenues.”
“Retailers are recognizing the benefits of delivering better mobile
experiences to their customers and the best way to do this is to start
with a solid network foundation,” said John Jankowski, area vice
president, Aruba Networks. “NEX has demonstrated how vital choosing the
right infrastructure can be to the bottom line of any organization.”
Looking ahead, OTB Destination also plans to deploy Aruba’s Gigabit
Wi-Fi infrastructure at its newest project, Crossroads Village, which is
a mixed-use development in midtown Omaha, Nebraska scheduled to open in
October 2016.
About OTB Destination, LLC
OTB Destination, LLC is a real estate advisory and development company
that defines itself by its ability to identify potential and realize
value in areas that are “outside the box” of the real estate industry.
Our approach is community-minded and destination-oriented. We are
committed to producing an outstanding customer shopping experience by
combining the power of mobile technology with destination retail
attractions, non-retail components, entertainment districts and high-end
value retail all in one master-planned development.
The pillars of the OTB Mobile-Social-Physical strategy – a unique
combination of mobile technology, a social media-based platform and the
physical development – provide the shopping experience customers now
expect but rarely encounter. All three will differentiate OTB projects.
The enhanced technology platform will facilitate omnichannel shopping,
make marketing more effective, and shopping more convenient, all of
which will humanize the shopping experience and drive increased retail
sales as compared to traditional shopping centers.
About Aruba Networks, Inc.
Aruba Networks is a leading provider of next-generation network access
solutions for the mobile enterprise. The company designs and delivers
Mobility-Defined Networks that empower IT departments and #GenMobile, a
new generation of tech-savvy users who rely on their mobile devices for
every aspect of work and personal communication. To create a mobility
experience that #GenMobile and IT can rely upon, Aruba Mobility-Defined
Networks™ automate infrastructure-wide performance optimization and
trigger security actions that used to require manual IT intervention.
The results are dramatically improved productivity and lower operational
costs.
Listed on the NASDAQ and Russell 2000® Index, Aruba is based in
Sunnyvale, California, and has operations throughout the Americas,
Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific regions. To learn more,
visit Aruba at http://www.arubanetworks.com.
For real-time news updates follow Aruba on Twitter
and Facebook,
and for the latest technical discussions on mobility and Aruba products
visit Airheads Social at http://community.arubanetworks.com.
© 2014 Aruba Networks, Inc. Aruba Networks’ trademarks include Aruba
Networks®, Aruba The Mobile Edge Company® (stylized), Aruba
Mobility-Defined Networks™, Aruba Mobility Management System®, People
Move Networks Must Follow®, Mobile Edge Architecture®, RFProtect®, Green
Island®, ETips®, ClientMatchTM, Virtual
Intranet AccessTM, ClearPass Access Management
SystemsTM, Aruba InstantTM,
ArubaOSTM, xSecTM,
ServiceEdgeTM, Aruba ClearPass Access
Management SystemTM, AirmeshTM,
AirWaveTM, Aruba CentralTM,
and ARUBA@WORKTM. All rights reserved. All
other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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Aruba Networks, Inc.
Pavel Radda, +1-408-419-0294
Director of Corporate Communications
pradda@arubanetworks.com
or
LSH Communications for Aruba Networks
Lori Hultin, +1-818-879-4651
Principal
lhultin@arubanetworks.com