Our Timeline | Evolving Networks

Over 16 years ago, Evolving Networks started when two like-minded individuals; Nick Johnson and Nic Elliott met for a pizza.

Nick Johnson was a Sales Manager at Siemens Communications and Nic Elliott was an IT Manager at a large housing association at the time. As supplier and customer, they had been rolling out load balanced xDSL across a corporate WAN.

They were both convinced that the application of software to connectivity could transform the business connectivity market, but also that big tech weren’t the people to do it. It’s this same philosophy that remains at the heart of everything Evolving Networks do.

Resilient, multi-link internet connectivity.

2008

Evolving Networks was born

With a track record of running large corporate networks and selling solutions to people running large corporate networks respectively, Nic Elliott and Nick Johnson met over a pizza and decided that in the absence of anyone seizing the opportunity to marry software to connectivity they would do it themselves.

Asset House

Having embraced work from anywhere in the early days it was time for an office, and to start recruiting. It was small but it was home, and the first generation of Evolvians (most of which are still with the business now) joined the ranks.

2009

2013

Datum House

Growing numbers of both customers and employees meant we quickly expanded out of the Asset House office and soon needed to move into bigger digs. Datum House gave us the room to grow the team, and build our first Development Lab. This is where the magic is created!

Diverse DC and multi-carrier network launched

The launch of true resilience, ending the previous reliance on one ISP. In 2014 Evolving Networks were first to market with a resilient multi-carrier network, each customer connection resilient across at least two diverse ISP partners and routed through at least two DCs.

2014

2015

Nexus Software launched

The Development Lab magic happened, and our very own network virtualisation software stack made its debut in 2015. Designed, engineered and built entirely by Evolving Networks, the result of years of experience and pent up expertise, the Intelligent Network Fabric rolled out of the Dev Lab and into customer networks across the UK.

First Layer 2 SD-WAN Deployed

Already a customer enjoying resilient, multi-carrier connectivity to deliver high bandwidth internet capacity to a rural location, it was in 2017 that we augmented Bleach of Lavant’s head office connection by solving a long standing business problem. Ripping out a problematic third party VPN and replacing it with the world’s first layer 2 SD-WAN link.

2017

2018

Nexus House

Ten years old and ready for a bigger office again! Nexus House gives us more space, more desks, more meeting rooms and a bigger Dev Lab!

Trans-European SD-WAN Delivered

Linking a London marketing office with logistics hub in Essex and a new manufacturing & distribution plant in Poland, our software facilities the moving of large video files, general corporate WAN traffic and time & latency sensitive real time packaging data across a European wide WAN for a £100m B2C customer.

First multi Gbps carrier diverse connection

Taking our key messages of resilience, intelligence, and diversity we delivered the UKs first aggregated multi-gbps internet connection to Luton Airport. Massive throughput, true resilience (even routing via cable runs to different buildings) and the benefits of intelligent connectivity.

2019

2020

First Dedicated Cloud Interconnects

Still pushing things forward after 12 years, our Ultimate Internet connections now have the ability to deliver prioritised access to all major cloud hyperscalers. Integrating cloud access with already native bi-directional QoS eliminates the need for ExpressRoute or other expensive access technologies and means cloud access can be intelligently managed as part of either a single internet connection or fully managed WAN.

Global SD-WAN

Bringing together aggregation, multi-carrier access technologies and a fully bespoke backbone, we delivered our first global SD-WAN supporting a “Defence in Depth” security posture that leverages a holistic mix of colo security, onsite firewalling and ZTN.

2021

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