AT&T Snags WAN Contract With Dutch Industrial Giant

Dutch industrial services provider ERIKS announced a sweeping contract with AT&T this week to modernize and consolidate its WAN infrastructure under a single service provider.

Founded in 1940, ERIKS specializes in engineering and enhancement of technical or custom products for use in industrial environments, with the aim of reducing costs and improving safety and sustainability. Products range from polymers, gaskets, and valves to hydraulics, power transmission, and safety equipment.

The company has more than 350 locations spread across Europe, North America, and the Asia Pacific markets. Under the deal, ERIKS’ will migrate its entire U.S. transport network as well as more than 250 sites in Europe and the Asia Pacific to AT&T’s fully-managed network and service offerings.

“We chose AT&T for our network because of their credentials and track record working with businesses which have a global footprint,” ERIKS CFO Annemieke den Otter said in a statement.

ERIKS has not disclosed how much it will pay for the modernization effort, and AT&T declined to comment on the contract win.

AT&T Tops Managed SD-WAN Leaderboard

AT&T is among the largest proprietors of managed SD-WAN services globally. The carrier led the pack in Vertical System Group’s 2020 carrier ranking, followed by Hughes and Verizon for the third year in a row.

VSG also noted that AT&T was one of just four SD-WAN providers on the leaderboard which had received the MEF 3.0 SD-WAN Service Certification. Verizon, Comcast, and Windstream have also received the MEF 3.0 certification.

According to MEF, the certification seeks to make vendors and service provider’s SD-WAN offerings more comparable, eliminate confusion, and accelerate adoption.