Shelfield Academy Selects Extricom for Long-Term WLAN Strategy

Oct. 5, 2009 - PRLog -- London, UK – Shelfield Community Academy, a 1400-student Community Academy in Walsall, West Midlands, England, has completed the deployment of an Extricom Wireless LAN (WLAN) designed to deliver multimedia services across campus. Implemented by systems integrator, G4 Networks, the WLAN is a key part of the Academy’s ‘technology for learning’ strategy. It will become the primary e-learning platform for staff and students, and support operational services such as IPTV.

The Extricom WLAN is currently supporting administrative applications in the classroom and a campus-wide voice over WLAN (VoWLAN) system, and is a major part of a £ multi-million upgrade project at the Academy. Long-term system flexibility and network resilience were critical factors in the tender process, and for ensuring a return-on-investment for the Academy’s sponsors. Russ Nicholson, Assistant Principal at Shelfield Community Academy, explains:

“Migrating to a wireless network is a significant investment for the Academy. Over the next few years, it will support the majority of operational and learning applications. So the WLAN we deployed had to demonstrate performance and high capacity such that the user experience matched that of a wired network.

“What’s more, the evolution of educational technology is accelerating rapidly. Today, students are using mobile devices for their day-to-day learning. Next year, we might be required to support some device whose network connectivity requirements we can’t even foresee. Our WLAN needed to be flexible and forward-looking enough to meet any eventuality.”

Following a competitive tender process, which included live demonstrations from multiple wireless vendors, Nicholson opted for Extricom:

“Extricom’s technology proved the most compelling, offering both stability during periods of extremely high demand and seamless mobility irrespective of location or application. The unique Channel Blanket architecture allows us to separate different user profiles onto dedicated channels, ensuring that staff applications, for example, are kept secure from students.”

Dave Allen, director of G4 Networks, sees Extricom technology as ideally suited to challenging, high-demand educational environments:

“Other leading vendors tout their performance in a pure data environment. Where Extricom shines, however, is when the network has to support the long-term migration onto the WLAN of multiple applications with widely varying connectivity requirements, especially multi-media.

“Shelfield, for example, wanted to implement VoWLAN, so this became a key benchmark to test the performance capabilities of each WLAN solution. With no handover issues or call degradation, it was immediately apparent that Extricom’s architecture would deliver the required user experience, and enable teachers and students to leverage video, audio and other real-time applications throughout the Academy without the fear of losing connection.”


About G4 Networks
With a proven track record of working closely with its clients, G4 Networks provides a solution based service with value for money and efficient implementation as its core. Specialising in wireless networks, as well as laser/radio building links, G4 Networks has built its reputation on understanding its clients’ needs then designing, installing and maintaining a solution that exceeds their expectations while coming in under budget. G4 Networks’ client base includes a number of public sector bodies as well as many well-known private sector organisations such as Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons and ESRI (UK). Please visit www.g4.co.uk

EMEA media and analyst enquiries:
Carina Parmar/Charlotte Sandy
Cohesive Communications
T: +44 (0) 1291 626200
E: extricom@cohesive.uk.com

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About Extricom
Extricom means enterprise wireless infrastructure that works. Extricom’s award-winning Channel Blanket Architecture delivers better RF coverage across the board while minimizing networking and wireless complexity. Voice, data and video applications are supported by a robust Wireless LAN infrastructure that ensures predictable service and seamless mobility in any environment. Contact us at info@extricom.com or visit www.extricom.com.