Brocade, Cisco, Dell EMC, HDS, HPE, Juniper, NetApp, SAP, SUSE and T-Systems have all joined together to develop the Zero Outage Industry Standard Association.
The aim of the Association is to to start an industry-wide discussion on how to promote quality of networks and improve customer satisfaction by defining industry best practice based on a Zero Outage framework.
It said it intends to specify consistent error response times, employee qualification levels and set security and platform requirements to reduce outages and increase availability. It will also help companies minimise errors and ensure security and cost-effective operations.
Reinhard Clemens, CEO T-Systems International said: "Zero Outage started as a quality program at T-Systems and has now grown into an industry standard. Together with our partners, we provide top quality and increase customer satisfaction. The focus on Zero Outage is indispensable for our interconnected world and a mandatory thing for digitization."
It comes after a number of major outages across networks globally, including a recent DDoS attack on Dyn, causing major loss of services in the US East Coast.
Cedrik Neike, SVP, APJ & EMEAR, Cisco added: "The aim of the Zero Outage Association addresses a critical challenge for our customers as they digitise their businesses. Cisco understands the interdependence of technology, processes, skilled workforces and partnerships towards achieving zero downtime.
“As a founding member, we can share our expertise to help this initiative achieve its goals for the greater benefit of our customers."
