CDW-G Voice and Data Solution Provides Cost Savings and New Communication Options to Voorhees College
Telecommunication Solution Improves Instructional Offerings and Safety in Rural South Carolina
VERNON HILLS, Ill. - October 24, 2007 - CDW Government, Inc. (CDW-G), a wholly owned subsidiary of CDW Corporation and leading source of Information Technology (IT) solutions to governments and educators, today announced that it designed and implemented a comprehensive voice and data solution for Voorhees College. Deployed in three phases, the solution enabled the school to increase bandwidth, implement distance learning programs and to bring 9-1-1 services to the campus - all while saving money that can be reinvested in Voorhees' instructional programs.
"Rural areas often lack competitive options. We were challenged to find cost-effective and reliable telecommunications service and support," said Timothy Kentopp, chief technology officer at Voorhees College. Based in rural Denmark, S.C., Voorhees College is a private, historically black, liberal arts school with approximately 600 students. The school's remote location limited its ability to take advantage of newer technologies that could improve its voice and data infrastructure and enable the school to grow its enrollment and academic programs. "Our relationship with CDW-G has been a win-win strategic partnership. CDW-G's solution enabled us to realize a considerable reduction in our monthly operating expenses, while allowing us to step into the 21st century with new systems that extend instructional programs to each of our four campuses."
Voorhees leveraged CDW-G's voice and data technical specialists to execute a comprehensive analysis of voice and data carrier options and benefits, as well as to map out a solution to fit the needs of the growing institution. The first phase of the project quadrupled campus bandwidth and added redundancy with a data solution provided by Verizon. "Outages are a thing of the past. When CDW-G calls a service provider on your behalf, things get done," noted Kentopp.
Voorhees College and CDW-G then focused on a solution to support distance learning and video conferencing on the main campus as well as at three satellite campuses in Augusta, Ga., and Columbia and Charleston, S.C. Sprint supplied a fault-tolerant, Multi Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) IP data network using Class of Service methods to insure quality for video and VoIP applications. Kentopp explains, "It's a way to blend less expensive, high-speed Internet service with the performance of a LAN connection - an ideal choice for our needs." VoIP allows the campus to eliminate local long distance between sites and for calls to each of the metro areas. The live, online video learning community enables the college to schedule best professors for each course, regardless of where students or instructors are located. Voorhees has eliminated travel expenses and the cost of multiple instructors, allowing the college more resources to recruit better talent. Voorhees anticipates the improvement in instructional quality will also attract new students to the college.
The final stage of the project focused on providing critical voice services, such as 9-1-1 emergency call support and digital business grade primary rate interface (PRI). In 2002, the surrounding county adopted its first 9-1-1 system, however the aging campus phone system did not allow for integration, leaving the campus population at a disadvantage. To implement emergency calling, Voorhees needed a new PBX phone system as well as PRI service that was only available in the next county over, thirty miles away. CDW-G leveraged its relationship with BellSouth and PAETEC Communications to upgrade telecommunication facilities in the area.
"Eliminating an older T1 line and costly Centrex (ESSX) service in favor of digital PRI was the most crucial step to securing reliable service at a reasonable cost," noted Kentopp. "By consolidating services with CDW-G, we've reduced monthly expenses by half. It is an awesome cost savings when you take into account that our new monthly bill includes the cost of a new PBX and IP phones."
"CDW-G designed a best-in-class, integrated voice and data solution - bringing together the most appropriate carriers to help Voorhees meet its IT, financial and academic goals," said Julie Smith, director, higher education, CDW-G. "As a small college in a rural area, Voorhees could not always garner the attention and support that it needed. We used CDW-G's resources and economies of scale to deliver a complete and seamless telecommunications package which ensures that Voorhees students and the community can take advantage of today's technology advancements."
About CDW-G
A wholly owned subsidiary of CDW Corporation, a FORTUNE 500 company, CDW Government (CDW-G) is a trusted technology advisor to federal, state and local government agencies, as well as to educational institutions at all levels. CDW-G offers best-in-class technology products and services from top-name brands such as APC, Acer, Adobe, Cisco, EMC, Fujitsu, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Microsoft, Panasonic, Quantum, Samsung, Sony, Symantec, ViewSonic and Xerox.
For more information about CDW-G product offerings, procurement options, service and solutions, call 1.800.863.4239, or visit the CDW-G Web site at CDWG.com.
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