The contract also includes a partnership agreement that will see ntl and the university develop new systems, technologies and projects – some of which are already underway – for the university and the wider community. As part of the same contract, ntl is responsible for the university’s entire inbound and outbound voice services on ntl’s National Telecommunications Group (NTG) educational tariff.
Utilising an existing local area network (LAN), the IP telephony solution will provide secure and reliable networks that will help the university reduce costs through voice and data convergence, and free calls within the network.
Students, staff and lecturers across the University campus will benefit from a range of multi-media applications, such as collaboration and conferencing, to support richer and more efficient learning environments. A converged solution will also enable contact centre working for student and public information services, and, ultimately, provide distance learning capabilities via remote working.
Tony Lewis, Director of Information Services said "In today's education sector, providing the best possible opportunities to students, staff and the local community depends on our ability to provide excellent teaching and access to resources. This requires a robust technical infrastructure and sophisticated communication technologies. An ambitious migration project is underway that will utilise dark-fibre cable and will provide VoIP telephony to the desktop of around 3,000 staff. ntl’s expertise in the education sector, and its reputation for cost-effective communication solutions and flexibility for growth were just part of the justification for an unprecedented twenty-year contract deal.”
Tony Harris, Managing Director, ntl Business, said: “The University of Salford is demonstrating real drive and commitment in using technology to help it remain at the forefront of academic learning and research. This twenty-year contract, which is unheard of in today’s climate, shows we have the expertise and innovation to stay competitive and meet the institutions evolving communication needs. ntl’s network will provide a solid foundation for future technology advances and wide scope for ambitious projects.”
ntl will provision over 3,000 IP telephony ports and the solution will be fully scaleable, enabling the addition of further ports as the University’s requirements evolve.
ntl already supports high-speed data communications for the University through the delivery of a high-bandwidth network infrastructure. ntl is partnering with the University to implement a Cisco AVVID IPT infrastructure, designed to carry IP telephony services between campus sites and University departments.