About Lancashire Teaching Hospitals
Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (LTHTR) is a large acute trust in the north west of England, employing more than 8,000 staff and serving a local population of around 400,000 people across Preston and Chorley, alongside offering regional specialised services to an estimated 1.8 million people. The trust manages more than 900 beds across three major sites – Royal Preston Hospital, Chorley and South Ribble Hospital, and the Specialist Mobility and Rehabilitation Centre.
With a complex, business-critical network supporting clinical systems, wifi-enabled devices, and computers on wheels (COWs), LTHTR needed a partner capable of untangling instability and laying the foundations for long-term digital resilience. Having already collaborated with our founders before EDNX was formed, the trust was confident in the team’s meticulous attention to detail and deep-rooted expertise.
Key deliverables
● Redesigning the full network to reduce architectural complexity and eliminate non-deterministic routing
● Replacing access layer switches across multiple sites
● Improving stability and performance through core switch upgrades
● Upgrading and optimising wireless local area network (WLAN) controllers
● Improving signal strength for COWs through comprehensive wireless surveying
● Migration of perimeter security to Next Generation Firewall solutions
● Strengthening policy control through Cisco identity services engine (ISE) upgrades to strengthen policy control
● Migrating services to University of Lancashire (UCLAN) and Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council (BWD) datacentres
● Redesigning of routing across the trust’s private fibre ring
● Ongoing strategic consultancy and recurring support contract for upgrades
LTH’s challenge
When EDNX re-engaged with LTHTR in 2018, the trust was operating a large and highly complex network estate. A previous partner had designed and implemented much of the infrastructure in a way that introduced unnecessary complexity and non-deterministic behaviour, meaning that for the same input, systems could produce varying outputs. The result was frequent connectivity issues, recurring incidents, and operational instability across multi-site clinical environments.
Wireless performance presented an additional pressure point. The trust experienced a high volume of tickets relating to COWs – portable computer stations that are used in healthcare settings – with persistent wifi issues affecting frontline teams. Previous troubleshooting had failed to deliver any lasting resolution, with some incidents taking several weeks to close.
In a healthcare environment where uptime directly impacts productivity and patient care, this level of instability carried significant operational and clinical risk. The trust faced continued disruption, reduced staff efficiency, and increased exposure to infrastructure-related incidents without further intervention.
Our solution
EDNX approached the situation not as a one-off project, but as the beginning of a long-term strategic partnership, with a clear focus on simplifying the architecture, stabilising the network, and creating a foundation capable of supporting evolving clinical systems.
The first phase centred on an in-depth architectural review and redesign. EDNX systematically reduced routing complexity across the estate, reworking the architecture of the private fibre ring to eliminate non-deterministic paths and introduce a clear, logical structure. This immediately improved resilience and predictability, enabling faster failover, more reliable device connectivity, and smoother day-to-day operations for clinical systems.
From there, EDNX introduced a phased programme of infrastructure upgrades, including access layer switch replacements and core switch upgrades using Cisco platforms, strengthening performance and reliability across both hospital sites. Meanwhile, WLAN controller upgrades – alongside comprehensive wireless surveying – improved signal strength and device performance, particularly for the COWs crucial for delivering care in demanding clinical environments.
The team also delivered upgrades to Cisco ISE, including introducing stronger identity-based policy control and intelligent segmentation, reinforcing the trust’s cybersecurity position through improved access governance.
Alongside architectural improvements, services were migrated to UCLAN and BWD datacentres in a low-risk and structured manner, so that the Trust now has geographical resilience for key critical clinical systems. Each change was meticulously planned, documented, and validated.
Throughout, EDNX operated as a trusted partner and true extension of the trust’s technical team – advising on strategy, supporting major incidents, and ensuring every upgrade aligned with long-term digital ambitions rather than simply providing short-term fixes.
The result
The transformation has delivered a markedly more stable, secure, and predictable network environment across LTHTR.
Incident volumes have reduced significantly as legacy bottlenecks have been removed and routing instability has been eliminated. Wireless-related tickets, particularly those affecting COWs, have decreased substantially following controller upgrades and targeted optimisation. And, where incidents do occur, resolution times are faster, aided by improved visibility, cleaner architecture, and clearer documentation.
The trust now benefits from:
● A deterministic, simplified routing design across its private fibre ring
● Modernised access and core infrastructure with improved resilience
● Stronger identity-based policy control through Cisco ISE
● Improved wifi performance and signal strength in high-demand clinical areas
● Greater confidence in change management and rollout activity
● A well-documented, futureproofed network architecture
Most importantly, the network has shifted from a reactive firefighting approach to a proactive engine for growth. Instead of repeatedly addressing instability, the trust can now focus on innovation, service delivery, and long-term digital strategy – underpinned by infrastructure design to scale with clinical demand.
EDNX continues to support LTHTR through a recurring support contract, providing upgrades, strategic advice, and rapid response to hardware failures or configuration issues.
Wojtek Siodelski, CTO and founder of EDNX commented on the project: “LTHTR has been with us since the very beginning of EDNX, and we hugely value our long-term relationship. We know trust and continuity are essential in the NHS, which is why this long term engagement wasn’t about a quick fix, but about stepping back, understanding why issues were occurring, and systematically removing architectural complexity that had built up over time.
“Untangling non-deterministic routing in a live healthcare environment is technically challenging, particularly across a large estate supporting such an expanse of critical clinic systems – but this is where our approach stands apart. Rather than acting as a siloed supplier, we operate as an extension of the LTHTR team, challenging where needed and advising on long-term direction.”
Client testimonial
“By embedding itself within client organisations, EDNX is a valuable extension of any in-house technical department. The team doesn’t muscle in and command control of the IT environment. Instead, it guides and educates users on the best approach from an efficiency, security, and cost perspective – exactly like a true and trusted partner should.”
Saeed Umar, chief technology officer/head of IT, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
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