Data Networking: A Competitive Edge
| Date | 01 May 1986 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb057441 |
| Pages | 13-15 |
| Published date | 01 May 1986 |
| Author | Robert Adams |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
Data
Networking:
A Competitive
Edge
by Robert Adams
Vice-President, Europe, Gandalf Digital
Communications Limited
Introduction
Running a business used to be easier, or so it must seem
to many executives bewildered by the influx of data process-
ing equipment into their offices. And now, just as they are
finally becoming accustomed to having personal computers
and terminals springing up all over the place, a new
con-
cern is beginning to make itself felt — data networking.
Data networking is the interconnection of data processing
equipment to allow communications and easier exchange
of information between data devices. Its benefits can be
considerable, but choosing the right one requires careful
planning.
The choice will affect data processing operations
for years, and an ill-suited data network can impair efficiency
and waste money. A well-chosen network, on the other
hand,
can provide a strong competitive edge.
Why a Network?
Perhaps more than anything else, the personal computer has
become a symbol of the modern automated office; certainly
nothing has had a more profound effect on data process-
ing.
The current popularity of these computers, coupled with
the availability of powerful business software, has resulted
in an explosion of independent data processing systems ap-
pearing in the various departments of many companies.
Without data networking, the computers in such distributed
systems can only function as separate entities, and data
often tends to remain in the department that generated it.
Consequently, important information may not be readily
available to other personnel who could profitably use it. The
negative impact of this on a business can be substantial.
At best, it leads to unnecessary and costly work duplica-
tion;
at worst, important work never gets finished — or even
started.
For example, data may be generated a second time
if a department is unaware of similar data elsewhere in the
company, or if it cannot access what it needs. In another
instance, a project may remain unfinished because one
department is not aware that the data essential for com-
pleting it is already available in another department.
Data networking is designed to address such problems
precisely. A data network promotes information exchange
by interconnecting distributed resources and by providing
links to centralised computers. In effect, it allows all the
separate elements in the system to function as a unit. With
networking, a company does not suffer because essential
information is "lost" or inaccessible.
Moreover, a network can provide special communications
features, such as electronic
mail,
which allows messages
to be sent and read at any time. This is particularly useful
when other means of communication are too slow or im-
practical.
A branch office in Hong Kong, for example, can
request a document via electronic mail at closing time from
an office in London that is not yet open. When the Hong
Kong office opens the next day, it can retrieve the document
from electronic mail and put it to immediate use.
Besides improving the flow of information, a network can
also reduce data processing costs by allowing under-utilised
resources to be shared. For instance, peripheral equipment
such as printers are expensive, yet they are rarely in
con-
stant use by one person or department. A network allows
them to be accessed by several departments, eliminating
unnecessary duplication. In view of the high capital cost
of equipment, resource-sharing alone may be reason
enough for a network.
No Alternative to Planning
Lower costs and improved efficiency are the benefits of data
networks, but choosing the right one for a specific data pro-
cessing system is not easy. Today, dozens of vendors offer
various models of the three basic network types capable
of handling data — Local Area Networks (LANs), combin-
ed voice/data communication systems, and data-only
systems.
This wide range of choices, combined with a poor
understanding of their own networking requirements, leads
many businesses into confusion. Many companies approach
data networking in ways that make maximum effectiveness
virtually impossible.
Business A, for example, may allow its network to evolve
at random, meeting needs when and where they arise. The
network has no coherent overall
plan,
and since it has no
preordained direction, any route available at the time
becomes acceptable. The result is typically a jumble of
IMDS • MAY/JUNE • 1986 13
To continue reading
Request your trial