How TWK Agri Powers a National Agricultural Network Across South Africa

The Challenge: Connecting a Dispersed Agricultural Powerhouse

As one of South Africa’s leading agricultural co-operatives, TWK Agri operates a sprawling network of nearly 100 sites. From remote grain silos to retail storefronts, their operations are the backbone of the agricultural supply chain. For a publicly-listed company with over 1,000 employees, network reliability isn't just an IT goal, it's a critical component of their business integrity and market performance.

The network administration team, led by Eugene van Eck and Stiaan Serfontein, faced a significant challenge:

Ensuring Uptime in Remote Locations: Many sites are located in rural areas where internet connectivity can be unpredictable. Any downtime could halt critical operations, from logistics to sales.

Managing at Scale: Manually configuring, monitoring, and troubleshooting nearly 100 individual sites was operationally complex, time-consuming, and prone to inconsistency.

Meeting Governance Standards: As a public company, TWK required a network that was not only secure and performant but also auditable, with clear reporting on uptime and service levels.

They needed a long-term, strategic partner who could provide a robust platform to centralize control and guarantee resilience.

The Solution: A Unified Platform for Performance and Visibility

For nearly four years, TWK has relied on the Altostrat platform to manage their entire operational landscape. Altostrat provided a single, intelligent fabric to connect and secure their network, directly addressing their core needs.

Centralized Multi-Site Management: The Altostrat platform gives the TWK team a single dashboard to oversee all 100 sites. This dramatically reduced operational complexity, allowing them to manage policies and troubleshoot issues efficiently without dispatching technicians.

Automated WAN Failover: To combat unreliable connectivity in remote areas, Altostrat's intelligent failover was deployed across the network. The platform automatically ensures that if a primary link fails, operations continue uninterrupted on a backup line, safeguarding business continuity.

Proactive Support and SLA Reporting: Altostrat’s platform provides detailed SLA reports, giving TWK the data needed to verify uptime and performance for governance. This is backed by what Stiaan Serfontein describes as a "proactive support team, who are always available to troubleshoot, advise, and ensure smooth deployment and maintenance.

The Results: Agility, Efficiency, and Long-Term Confidence

The partnership with Altostrat has delivered tangible, long-term benefits, solidifying TWK's network infrastructure as a strategic asset.

1. Enhanced Network Performance and Agility

With centralized control and optimized connectivity, TWK has achieved a more agile and high-performing network, capable of supporting the diverse needs of their business units across the country.

2. Significant Reduction in Operational Complexity and Cost

The ability to manage the entire network from one place has saved countless hours of administrative work. As Stiaan notes, the platform has allowed them to "optimize connectivity across multiple locations while significantly reducing operational complexity and costs."

3. A Foundation of Trust and Reliability

Over a four-year partnership, Altostrat has consistently delivered a stable and secure solution, giving TWK the confidence that their critical infrastructure is in expert hands. This long-term reliability is essential for a publicly-listed entity.

For TWK Agri, Altostrat is more than a vendor. They are a proven, strategic partner who has provided the technology and support necessary to power a national agricultural leader.