ARUBA NETWORKS DELIVERS FLEXIBLE LEARNING POSSIBILITIES FOR PUPILS AT LEADING UK INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Aruba Networks, the Mobile Edge Company, today announced that Bradfield College, one of the country's leading independent schools, has implemented Aruba's wireless LAN (WLAN) technology into the school's classrooms and boarding houses. The introduction of Aruba technology provides up to 650 pupils with wireless network access, no longer limiting when and where learning can take place. Many pupils can now enjoy the flexibility of wirelessly accessing the Internet from both classrooms and the comfort of their own private study bedrooms, supporting their daily research and study requirements.

In conjunction with its reseller, Online Network Solutions, Aruba worked with Bradfield College on an initial six-month installation trial, where the College carefully evaluated Aruba's technology as well as offerings from other WLAN vendors. After the trial, Bradfield considered Aruba the only suitable option, chiefly because of its robust security and centralised management system.

"Aruba was the clear choice for us in that it offered the secure and user-friendly centralised mobility network that we needed," said James Nalty, director of ICT at Bradfield College. "As some access points are located up to 20 minutes away from the ICT network data centre, individual management of each AP would be severely time consuming. Thankfully, Aruba's solution is completely centralised and the access points do not require individual management - thus saving us considerable time and
effort."

Aruba's mobility system gives pupils secure access to all networked educational material. "The increased efficiency for pupils has been very well received, and for those pupils with full access, they are extremely happy and excited to now have the ability to study in their own private rooms," Nalty continued.

The College has deployed an Aruba 6000 mobility controller together with 50 Aruba controlled access points (APs) to create its secure WLAN. With impending plans to expand the network by increasing the number of APs, the College hopes to provide many more pupils with bedroom Internet access. "We hope to complete our expansion in the next 12 months, increasing the number of access points to 128," Nalty concluded. "That way, many more pupils can get online in many more places and enjoy the benefits of a completely wireless environment."

"We are very pleased to design and integrate the campus-wide wireless network for Bradfield College," said Andrew Deas, managing director of Online Network Solutions. "Our technical team worked closely with ICT staff at Bradfield College to ensure the network provided the required coverage and capacity, as well as the highest security attainable by using a combination of 802.1x and RADIUS authentication to migrate existing students and staff to laptop PCs and PDAs.