Wyre
Wyre: Building Flanders’ digital future with Snowflake and Nordend
In the streets of Flanders, the physical signs of a massive transition are everywhere: the rollout of fiber optics. Behind these excavations, however, lies a digital operation that is every bit as complex. Wyre, the joint venture between Telenet and Fluvius, is tasked with managing and modernizing the largest network in Flanders. To achieve this ambition, Wyre had to build its own independent data ecosystem. With Snowflake at its heart and Nordend as a strategic partner, Wyre is laying the foundations for a data-driven future.
Wyre is a unique player in the Belgian telecoms landscape. As an infrastructure company, it manages both the existing hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC) network and the brand-new fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) rollout. The challenge is twofold: guaranteeing the quality and performance of the current network for millions of customers while simultaneously installing a completely new fiber infrastructure at record speed. For an organization managing both responsibilities, success depends heavily on accurate, readily available data.
“Nordend’s expertise has been crucial to the growth of our internal data capabilities and our ability to take ownership of our data.”
Snowflake as an independent engine
Until recently, this data was not easily accessible. Wyre finds itself in a unique and sometimes paradoxical position. Due to strict ‘level playing field’ legislation and internal security guidelines, the Wyre team does not have direct access to source data held in the systems of its parent company, Telenet. Crucial information on the network, customer locations and technical assets is stored in heavily secured Oracle databases.
Bregt Cabus, Team leader Data at Wyre, explains why a dedicated platform was necessary: ‘At Wyre, we manage the largest network in Flanders. That brings enormous operational challenges. We must not only keep the HFC network up and running and monitor customer experience, but also coordinate the massive fiber rollout. To do that efficiently, we had to find a way to analyse and manage our data independently, separate from the divided IT landscapes of our parent companies.’
The choice of Snowflake was strategic. Wyre needed a clean slate: a scalable, cloud-native platform capable of consolidating massive volumes of technical and commercial data. This led to the vision of a central Snowflake environment, consisting of 12 databases, serving as the single source of truth for the entire organization.
Bridging the gap with FME
Simply filling a data warehouse is one thing, but ensuring a continuous, reliable data stream is another. This is where Nordend’s expertise and the power of FME became crucial. Because direct database connections were often impossible due to strict security barriers, a smart, automated bridge had to be built.
Nordend was tasked with orchestrating the data flows between various sources and Snowflake. This required taking a huge variety of data sources into account – not just tabular data, but also geographical data and external information brought in via APIs. The raw data first lands in a landing area in Snowflake, where it is validated and prepared for business analysts. Erroneous data at source is detected immediately before it can pollute reports.
Marnick Clé, FME expert at Nordend and an integral part of the Wyre team, describes the complexity: ‘We work in an environment where you don’t just plug in a cable. We have to retrieve data from Oracle schemas, process geographical shapefiles and unlock external data via APIs. All that information lands in a “landing zone” in Snowflake, after which we transform it into usable insights.’
The use of FME Flow ensures that these processes no longer need to be performed manually. Where exports and CSV files were previously sent around – with all the risks of errors and outdated information – there are now robust, automated pipelines.
“In a way, Nordend was the starting signal for enormous growth within our data organization. They truly helped facilitate our internal growth by contributing at an architectural level.”
Strategic partnership for growth
Nordend stands out because its people do more than simply carry out instructions. In Wyre’s dynamic environment, they take on the role of process architects. Marnick Clé and his colleagues sit at the table – both physically and digitally – with Wyre’s data engineers. They understand not only the data in Snowflake but also the physical reality of a fiber connection in an apartment building. During a period when Wyre was still forming its own data team, Nordend provided the necessary stability and experience.
Bregt Cabus sees Nordend as the engine behind his department’s growth: ‘I think, in a way, Nordend was the starting signal for enormous growth within our data organization. Marnick was one of the first on board within the new data team. Nordend’s expertise has been crucial to the growth of our internal data capabilities and our ability to take ownership of our data.’
The digital blueprint for fiber
The stakes of the Snowflake project are high. In the telecoms world, accurate data is synonymous with operational success. A concrete example is the Connectable Premises report. This report tells Wyre exactly which homes in Flanders can be connected to the fiber network at any given time.
This is not a simple list, but a complex combination of network capacity, commercial surveys and contractor schedules. Marnick Clé explains: ‘We transformed this process into a “first-time right” operation. The data is consolidated in Snowflake, validated and prepared for the business. This not only saves an enormous amount of time but also avoids discussions about the accuracy of the figures.’
A data-driven market leader
The journey with Nordend is far from over. As the fiber rollout in Flanders accelerates, the need for more real-time insights and advanced analytics in Snowflake is growing. Wyre has since evolved from a newly formed joint venture into a fully-fledged, data-driven organization.
Bregt Cabus concludes: ‘If you look at the recent period, “growth” is the keyword. Nordend’s expertise has truly helped facilitate our internal growth. We now have the tools and knowledge in-house to tackle the enormous data challenges of the fiber rollout.’
Challenges
- Legacy barriers: Crucial source information was locked in parent companies’ systems behind robust security barriers and strict ‘level playing field’ rules.
- Independence: Wyre had to build its own data landscape to take full ownership of its data analysis and reporting.
- Data variety: Combining technical network data from the HFC and fiber networks, geographical data (GIS) and commercial information (surveys and billing).
- Scalability: Building a system capable of keeping pace with the rapid rollout of fiber across Flanders.
Results
- Single source of truth: Implementation of a central cloud environment in Snowflake consisting of 12 databases.
- Automated sync: Reliable, daily synchronization of data from Oracle, APIs and shapefiles to Snowflake via FME.
- Operational efficiency: Automation of complex processes such as the Connectable Premises report, which forms the basis for planning and invoicing.
- Data maturity: Wyre has evolved from a dependent position to an organization that manages and expands its own data capabilities.
Solutions & technologies
- Snowflake
- FME Form and FME Flow
- Oracle and GIS integration