Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine · Healthcare
Seven sites, one network: rebuilding ACRRM’s IT foundation
ACRRM needed to take back control of its infrastructure from a vendor that held the keys. We rebuilt the network, moved them to Azure, and grew the rollout from four sites to seven without moving the deadline.
- Industry
- Healthcare
About the client
The Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine trains and supports doctors practising outside metropolitan centres. Its people are dispersed by design, across sites and time zones, which makes reliable connectivity a clinical concern rather than an IT preference.
The challenge
Vendor control. The previous partner operated with a high degree of autonomy over ACRRM’s infrastructure, including the ability to manage service availability independently. Engagements tended to be commercially driven, which left the College with limited leverage over its own systems.
Scope that moved. The tender was scoped for four sites. By deployment it was seven, and interim arrangements were needed to hold things together while the rollout caught up.
The project
The project formally began in February 2025 and ran for four months, though we had been providing interim support since June 2024 to maintain continuity.
We started with the data network, then introduced Microsoft Teams cloud calling, migrated to Azure, deployed SD-WAN across sites, and took over managed services. Sequencing mattered more than speed: each step had to leave the College working before the next one started.
“Our internal team can concentrate on high-impact projects rather than day-to-day helpdesk operations.”
Results
- 7 sites Connected with SD-WAN, up from the four originally scoped, with no change to the deadline
- 4 months From project start to completion, after nine months of interim support
- Teams Cloud calling replacing legacy telephony, with a dashboard for managing dispersed teams
- E8 Now planning the transition to Essential Eight together
Facing something similar?
Tell us what you are trying to fix and we will tell you whether we can help.
Start a conversation