Before you begin this assignment, be sure you:

  • Have completed all previously assigned readings.
  • Read the “3D Printing Case Study.”
  • Reviewed the feedback on your 3D Printing Stage 1 and Stage 2 Assignments.

It is several months later and Mark has implemented your recommendations for his IT infrastructure.  Business is booming!  Mark’s father has seen what a great success Mark’s 3D printing business is, and he wants to provide the capital to open two more facilities near Veterans Administration Hospitals in Memphis, Tennessee and Phoenix, Arizona.  Mark is very excited about expanding his business and being located near service men and women who will benefit from his 3D printed accessibility and assistive devices.  Since he has already purchased several server and storage devices to hold his designs and business information, he would like to retain that investment.  One thing he has learned is that, with very high speed internet connections, the 3D design files can be downloaded in just a few seconds, so they would not have to be stored at each of his new locations.  Mark’s plan is to create two new facilities, each with the same number of 3D printers and staff as he has at his current location.  The employees at the new locations will also need access to the ERP system to report their time and order supplies, etc.

Mark has asked you to explain how his IT infrastructure should be changed to accommodate these two new facilities and allow him to manage the overall enterprise as one business.  Use the following outline for your paper:

  1. List the components. In part 1 of your Stage 2 assignment, you listed the computer system, information system, and network components needed at Mark’s facility.  Here you will list which of those components (hardware, software, security devices, communication network and its devices, wired/wireless devices, internet, and data and information, as appropriate) will be located at each of the two new (remote) locations. (Create one list; it will be the same for both.)  Some components may not be needed at the new locations; you should not list those.  The new locations may require some components not in use at the original site; these should be included in the list.
  2. Explain the changes that will be needed in Mark’s current (existing) IT infrastructure to incorporate the two new locations, and handle the increase in the number of designs and orders and the additional employees.
  3. Explain what is different in the IT infrastructure at the two new locations versus the IT infrastructure now in place at Mark’s current facility, and explain why the differences exist.
  4. Create an original graphical representation of the three facilities and show the devices that would be located at each location. Show how the locations would be connected and the devices required.

Formatting:    

  • Parts 1, 2, and 3 should be about 2 single spaced pages in length, and be in Microsoft Word format, or a format that can be read in Word.
  • Part 4 is an original graphic diagram(s) that should be included in the same document. If you have too much difficulty inserting the diagram, you may provide it as a separate file that can be read by Word, Excel or PowerPoint.
  • Compare your work to the Grading Rubric below to be sure you have met content and quality criteria.
  • Your submission should include your last name first in the filename:     Lastname_firstname_Stage_3

GRADING RUBRIC:

The “right” and “wrong” answers have to do with whether or not you correctly incorporated the course vocabulary and concepts from the textbook to support your choices and have addressed all parts of the assignment.