F10 - Case Study

Introduction

F10 Studios, an award-winning architectural visualisation studio based in Brighton, specialises in bringing architectural designs to life. With a team of five artists and administrators, F10 prides itself on delivering exceptional work using cutting-edge 3D design technology. Having partnered with F10 for years, we understood their unique set-up and requirements. When they faced significant inefficiencies with file sharing and network performance, they turned to us for a solution.

Customer Challenge

F10 Studios was losing valuable production time due to delays in accessing large 3ds Max and Photoshop files stored on their network. During peak activity, network bottlenecks became a major issue, particularly with multiple users simultaneously accessing large files while rendering was ongoing. This resulted in an estimated half-day of lost productivity every day, severely impacting their workflow and deadlines.

The existing network infrastructure was outdated. The 1GbE connections couldn’t handle the data demands, storage capacity was inadequate, and the switch configuration caused further slowdowns. A more robust, scalable solution was urgently needed.

The Solution

After visiting F10’s Brighton studio, we designed a customised storage and networking solution tailored to their specific needs. The tiered storage system included:

First Tier: A QNAP NAS box with 4 x 1TB SSDs for active project files, providing rapid access and reducing delays.
Second Tier: 4 x 6TB RAID 6 disks (10.6TB of visible storage) for archived projects and less frequent data, ensuring reliability and minimal risk of data loss.
Upgraded Networking: Installed two Netgear switches, one entirely with 10GbE connections, to maximise data transfer speeds.
Provided 10GbE NIC cards for workstations and an APC unit to minimise power surge risks.
Enhanced Rendering: Installed a micro-modular data centre from Iceotope, featuring fanless liquid cooling technology, which doubled render capacity while reducing floor space.

Results

F10 Studios now enjoys significantly improved network performance: 

Transfer speeds range from 400 to 700 Gb/s, even during heavy network usage. Large file operations, like opening and saving, are much faster.
Network bottlenecks have been almost completely eliminated. Render capacity has doubled, with reduced power consumption and minimal noise.

Benefits

With an optimised setup, F10 Studios has reclaimed valuable time previously lost to inefficiencies. Their new network and storage infrastructure not only supports their current workload but also provides scalability for future growth. Enhanced rendering capabilities mean projects are completed faster, allowing the team to focus on delivering exceptional visualisation work without disruptions.

"We are really pleased with the results. With NTI’s assistance, we thoroughly analysed our setup and workflows to find the issues, and from that, spec’d a great-performing, solid network and storage solution that the team now enjoys pushing to the 10GbE limits."
— Nick Homer, Managing Director