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> COMPLETE CONVERGED NETWORK
GIVES UK COLLEGE ADVANCED
PLATFORM FOR INNOVATION
Photograph by kind permission of Telford College
Case Study
Customer: Telford College
Telford College
Country:
United Kingdom
Industry:
Education
“We’ve taken a quantum leap
with our technology. And the
transition has been incredibly
Challenge: To create an advanced network for a new flagship building, enabling
staff and students to work more innovatively both on and off campus.
smooth. We’re still only scratching Solution:
the surface of what’s possible,
but we know Nortel can help us
use technology to transform the
way Telford College operates
into the long term.”
> Michael Turpie,
Associate Principal for
Information Services,
Telford College
Benefits:
An end-to-end converged solution based on the Nortel Ethernet
Routing Switch portfolio. The Nortel Communication Server 1000
and the Nortel IP Phones offer advanced IP telephony, with IP contact
centre functionality provided by the Nortel Contact Center. The
Nortel WLAN 2300 Series offers robust wireless connectivity, whilst
the Nortel VPN Router 2700, Nortel Threat Protection System and
Nortel Switched Firewall 6000 series offer comprehensive security.
• Optimal utilisation of space – The new College is 30% smaller
than the previous campus, thanks to wireless-enabled hot-desking
• Highly secure remote access for staff and students – Through the
flexible, integrated capabilities of the Nortel VPN solution
• A platform for greater innovation – From wireless IP voice to video
teaching, the College has great communications potential
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The scenario
Further Education (FE) in the UK is becoming an increasingly competitive field.
With college funding granted according to levels of student attendance, FE colleges
are seeking new ways to attract students in order to remain successful.
“Our priority was always
the technology. We
wanted the most
innovative, reliable and
long-term voice and data
solution available to us,
delivered by a partner
we could trust.”
> Michael Turpie,
Associate Principal for
Information Services,
Telford College
Telford College in Edinburgh, Scotland, is a college that understands perfectly well
this need to remain competitive. Established in 1968, and with some 15,000 students
on its register, it is the largest in the area with the broadest portfolio of courses. But
in spite of its prominent status, the College’s ageing buildings were letting it down:
“We operated three sites in Edinburgh city centre, which were built when the College
opened,” explains Michael Turpie, Associate Principal for Information Services. “But
they were old concrete towers, which were outdated for our needs. As technology
becomes an intrinsic part of everyday life, so our students expect to use more of it in
the classroom. But our existing network was patchy and mutated, and was struggling
to cope with the existing PC architecture.”
Luckily, Telford College was presented with a fortuitous opportunity: “Our grounds
were in the heart of Edinburgh, and the existing College sites were highly soughtafter by developers. When the opportunity came to sell them and move to the
Edinburgh Waterfront development, we grabbed the chance to create a brandnew, highly innovative building and technical infrastructure for our students.”
Armed with additional funding from the Scottish Further and Higher Education
Funding Council, Michael and his team sought a technology vendor able to deliver
a flexible, comprehensive IP voice and data solution.
Given that course trends change year-on-year, it was vital that the chosen technology
could cope with changing College requirements, opening up the possibility for
remote working and teaching. The College was also looking to be more resourceful in
its use of space, ensuring it was fully utilised and multi-functional wherever possible.
To achieve these objectives, Michael was open to suggestions: “Our priority was
always the technology. We wanted the most innovative, reliable and long-term voice
and data solution available to us, delivered by a partner we could trust.”
The solution
Following a staggering 260 bids received, Telford College chose Nortel to deliver
an all-embracing voice and data solution: “The European Journal process we used
assessed all organisations according to their professionalism, technical calibre and
quality of response. Nortel came out with the highest score across the board in both
its voice and data propositions. We were thoroughly impressed with this, and had
no doubts in making Nortel our preferred supplier.”
Nortel provided Telford College with a converged solution that included virtually
every aspect of its voice and data portfolio.
At the core of this network is a highly resilient terabit cluster based on the Nortel
Ethernet Routing Switch 8600, offering very high performance and sub-second
failover in the unlikely event of a failure. To bolster this reliability at the edge of the
network, Nortel Ethernet Routing Switch 5520 stacks offer gigabit connectivity to
the desktop whilst ensuring high availability of services on and off campus. This
architecture is controlled by the Nortel Enterprise Switch Manager, which enables
real-time switch configuration management.
2
For robust wireless connectivity around the site, the College uses Nortel WLAN
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Access Point 2330As and the Nortel WLAN Security Switch 2380. To add an extra
layer of protection when users connect over wireless LAN, the Nortel VPN Router
2700 features both IPSec and SSL encryption.
For additional security – vital in an environment in which a variety of users are
connected to the network using an array of devices – the Nortel Threat Protection
System uses intelligent threat analysis to detect, isolate and report any incidents.
Furthermore, the Nortel Switched Firewall 6000 series uses accelerated deep-packet
inspection for assured data integrity whilst retaining high availability.
For advanced IP telephony capability, Telford College invested in the Nortel
Communication Server 1000 and Nortel IP phones, delivered with comprehensive
configuration tools in the form of the Nortel Communication Server 1000 Telephony
Manager. For unified messaging services to the desktop, offering greater communications
flexibility for all staff, the College also chose the Nortel CallPilot application.
Finally, to deal with course enquiries from prospective students, the College selected
the Nortel Contact Center.
The results
Telford College now benefits from a voice and data infrastructure that is light years
ahead of any other FE institution in the region.
The College network has delivered optimal uptime. Data transfer is faster than
before. Staff are able to work from home for the first time, and students have rapid
access to the College network no matter where they log on within the building. What’s
more, the Contact Center solution also gives the College the flexibility to cope with
high volumes of calls received from prospective students asking about courses.
The Nortel solution has also transformed the way staff use office space on a daily
basis. Nortel worked closely with the College and the architect, and as a result, the
new building now covers 30% less space than the previous campus. This, Michael
believes, is almost entirely down to the wireless technology: “Initially, we regarded
wireless as a ‘nice-to-have’ piece of technology. But we soon realised it was vital.
Each member of our teaching staff used to have their own office, but most of their
working hours are spent in the classroom – meaning offices are almost always empty.
“Through hot-desking empowered by Nortel wireless technology, however, we have
designed two huge open-plan offices, with wireless access to the network from
anywhere – thereby utilising space much more effectively. Nortel CallPilot also
enables staff to pick up their voicemail via email, and we soon hope to make the
move to wireless Voice over IP with Nortel. On the whole, we have more than
achieved the level of flexibility we were seeking.”
The Nortel solution will ultimately also help everyone work more flexibly. Highly
secure remote access can enable lecturers to access administration and course databases
from home; equally, students can have access to course requirements and the library
for easier home study, and can keep up to date with activities in the Students’ Union.
The College can also be more innovative in its teaching, potentially even delivering
lectures via video.
To conclude, Michael says: “We have taken a quantum leap with our technology.
And the transition has been incredibly smooth. We’re still only scratching the surface
of what’s possible, but we know Nortel can help us use technology to transform the
way Telford College operates into the long term.”
“Through hot-desking
empowered by Nortel
wireless technology, we
have designed two huge
open-plan offices, with
wireless access to the
network from anywhere –
thereby utilising space
much more effectively.
Nortel CallPilot also
enables staff to pick up
their voicemail via email,
and we soon hope to
make the move to
wireless Voice over IP. On
the whole, we have more
than achieved the level
of flexibility we were
seeking.”
> Michael Turpie,
Associate Principal for
Information Services,
Telford College
3
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