Hutchinson Deploys WAN Link

Hutchinson Credit Union in Kansas is strengthening its online infrastructure with a piece of high-tech gear from a Minnesota firm. The $141 million credit union has selected Ecessa’s PowerLink WAN (wide access network) link controller to provide automated load balancing and failover for its multiple ISPs and network circuits. The new solution allows the credit union to add or remove connections from its network of three Internet connections- two DSL and one cable-without affecting members’ use of online banking and other services and staffers who depend on the links for Web-based appraisals, mortgage servicing and loan applications. “PowerLink has enabled us to have quite a bit of redundancy on many fronts,” said Zack Clobes, IT manager for 15,000-member Hutchinson CU (www.hcu.coop). “We have three different ISPs, each coming in from different locations, and two different technologies so that we are not solely dependent upon the telephone company. In the future we may consider adding a wireless link to diversify even further,” Clobes said. He said the credit union also is now able to maximize all three network circuits for both inbound and outbound traffic and can also control its own DNS rather than having it hosted by the service provider. Ecessa is based in Plymouth, Minn., and said it now provides WAN and ISP link aggregation, load balancing and network failover and security controllers to more than 6,000 companies.