Case Study: ELLWOOD achieves a resilient, secure network with Windstream Enterprise's Secure Flex Premium

Metal manufacturer implements Secure Flex Premium to boost resiliency and strengthen network security

ELLWOOD, a metal manufacturer with 25+ North American locations and 2,000+ employees, was running on point‑to‑point links and a legacy MPLS service that lacked resiliency, modern cybersecurity and co‑management control, leaving a small IT team overburdened and unable to meet DoD security expectations. Windstream Enterprise was engaged to provide a dedicated, rapidly deployable single‑tenant solution — Secure Flex Premium plus IT Managed Services — to address resiliency, security and operational control.

Windstream Enterprise deployed Secure Flex Premium (powered by Fortinet) with high‑availability SD‑WAN, firewalls, cloud‑managed switches and dual Ethernet circuits (one from Windstream Enterprise and one from an alternate provider) in an active/active configuration. The deployment delivered automated failover and resilient connectivity across ELLWOOD’s sites, increased usable bandwidth and application performance, single‑pane visibility and co‑management, CMMC/FIPS‑aligned security readiness, and reduced the operational burden on ELLWOOD’s IT team.

ELLWOOD

Rich Owrey

VP of IT