Have you ever wondered how a leading, remote food processing facility tackles obstacles to internet connectivity? As the manager of Technology Infrastructure, Security, and IT Operations at Dole Philippines Inc., I want to share our remarkable journey in overcoming internet connectivity challenges at our remote food processing facility. Our main pineapple plantation is located at the remote base of Mt. Matutum in Polomolok, South Cotabato, and spans a vast area. Far from highly populated cities, there is little terrestrial infrastructure to support traditional internet or mobile connectivity and local telecom providers were unable to offer suitable connectivity solutions for our business. Unreliable internet connectivity greatly affected our mission to deliver top-quality fruit products to global markets. We started looking for an efficient and reliable internet service to address our connectivity gap, and effectively support our growing operations.
In January 2022, our General Manager introduced me to LTSI, an internet provider offering high-speed internet through satellites for remote areas. Intrigued by their offering, I reached out and discovered their SATNET service, powered by Kacific’s broadband satellite internet technology. Recognizing its potential, I requested a demo to conduct a trial of service, which quickly proved the technology to be an effective solution for our connectivity needs, providing fast and reliable internet across the site and offices.
Empowered by satellite internet, Dole’s employees thrive with seamless business operations.
Local Kacific Distributor (KAD) swiftly deployed, installed, and activated an industrial-grade 1.2m terminal onsite, using the Newtec app to ensure optimal placement for unobstructed satellite connectivity across the whole site. We conducted speed tests that revealed download speeds of 54.93Mbps and upload speeds of 16.71 Mbps, surpassing the promise of 50Mbps and 10Mbps respectively, and exceeding our expectations.
Speed is vital to ensure we can deliver data in real-time to expedite decision-making and keep track of warehouse inventory. It also makes it possible for our team members to perform daily encoding of transactions, read and send emails and participate in online meetings and video calls. While our tests also revealed latency of up to 558 milliseconds, this does not affect our day-to-day activities. Satnet has a useful feature called static IP. It provides secure and reliable Virtual Private Network (VPN) connections, which protect privacy and data. It also helps locate devices accurately and deliver data efficiently using geolocation services. With static IP, enterprises don’t need to worry about requesting IP address renewals as their devices stay connected without interruptions. Moreover, file servers experience fast file transfers, boosting productivity.
SATNET’s impressive upload and download speeds transform Dole’s day-to-day operations.
Prior to the implementation of SATNET and Kacific-powered internet, our offices remained offline. Due to the lack of reliable connectivity, our employees had to travel all the way to our Polomolok cannery office to do essential day-to-day tasks like data uploading and encoding. Now, with the ability to directly enter data into SAP from the plantation, the process of information transfer is significantly enhanced, leading to streamlined operations and the elimination of travel time and costs.
SATNET, powered by Kacific, has proven to be an invaluable partner in our company’s digitalization journey. Their unwavering commitment to providing friendly and responsive local support has made a significant impact on our operations. Thanks to their assistance, we have been able to embark on projects and initiatives that were previously hindered by connectivity limitations. As a result, our communication, data capture, and analysis capabilities have experienced remarkable improvements. We also appreciate the prompt local support provided by dedicated and professional local distributors. Given our utmost satisfaction with SATNET’s solutions and the positive impact on our business operations, we are now considering expanding this exceptional setup to our other remote sites and look forward to leveraging SATNET’s expertise to further enhance our productivity across multiple locations. — Eugene Alfante
For fast, affordable satellite internet services for your farm, reach out to Limitless-Tech Solutions, Inc. – Email satnet@ltsi.ph. For more information on Kacific’s satellite technology, visit www.kacific.com.
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