Prior to the opening of the Commonwealth Games, Glasgow 2014’s Chief Operating Officer Ralph Ord predicted a successful sporting event:

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games will see over 6,500 athletes and officials come to Glasgow for 11 days of fantastic competition that will put Glasgow and Scotland on the world stage.

The city will be bustling with activity and Glasgow 2014 will need to implement temporary changes to deliver an outstanding event that everyone can enjoy. This includes examining how the city normally operates and what needs to be put in place around venues to make the Games a success.”

I think we can safely say that the Games have been and will continue to be a resounding success.

Another huge contributor to Glasgow’s success has been the Games official network infrastructure sponsor, Cisco. A longterm valued supplier partner of Comms Express, Cisco have enabled the Games to be the most connected ever. From the high-speed transmission of mission-critical data to the digital platforms that share the Commonwealth Games with the world, Cisco has put in place a technology foundation that will ensure Glasgow 2014 is a connected and inclusive event.

With 1,400 employees; 15,000 volunteers; 6,500 athletes and officials; as well as the attending press, emergency services and those simply enjoying the Games, Cisco is providing a highly secure and robust network infrastructure enabling the connection of devices, data, voice and video services across all 13 venues. It has revealed that 240km of fibre has been installed across the games’ site – the equivalent length of 600 Hampden Park running tracks.

The network infrastructure provided by Cisco to power the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games includes:

  • Cisco ISE (Identity Services Engine)
  • Cisco Prime Infrastructure management platform with Cisco Mobility Services Engine
  • 441 switches
  • 8 firewalls
  • 6 intrusion prevention systems
  • 378 wireless access points
  • 40 routers
  • 2300 IP phones

Phil Smith, CEO Cisco UK and Ireland, said: “Were incredibly proud to play our part in this world-class sporting event. Amazing things happen when you connect the unconnected, and the Commonwealth Games is the perfect platform to display the transformative power of technology and its ability to change the way we live, work and play.

Glasgow 2014 Chief Executive David Grevemberg commented: We are delighted to welcome Cisco into the Glasgow 2014 sponsor family.

We are delighted to have a company of Ciscos calibre on board to keep Glasgow 2014 networked and connected as we focus on the delivery of the largest multi-sport Games Scotland has ever seen.

Cisco operates throughout the UK and across the globe, and employs around 150 people in Scotland. As part of the deal, Cisco will also sponsor Team England, Team Northern Ireland, Team Scotland and Team Wales.

It’s certainly great to see a great innovative company such as Cisco combine their talents with world-class athletes to produce a genuinely great Commonwealth Games.

Until next time…