Location
Located in London, England

Needs
Expand learning environments, and expedite research and training

Applications
Library databases, internet access, and statistical analyses

Key 3Com Products
3Com AirConnect 11 Mbps Wireless LAN Access Points, and AirConnect 11 Mbps Wireless LAN PC Cards

Overview

For those who spend their days working in square office blocks on soulless business parks, away from the bustle of city life, the chance to work in a period property in the heart of one of London's most exclusive areas may seem very attractive. Magnificent entrance halls with stuccoed ceilings and oak panelling are wonderful to look at. However, the constraints they impose on today's computer-based work environment are massive. Parts of the building may be virtually unusable, traditional cabling techniques can be expensive and troublesome to install and the option of additional space is expensive and, in some cases, simply impossible. For those occupying listed and short-lease buildings, the problems are exacerbated. And these problems are likely to grow significantly as every aspect of work and learning becomes more and more dependent not only on the PC but on access to information housed on an organisation's own network, various external systems and, of course, the Internet.

Wireless LAN technology, as an alternative or an addition to cabling, has been in existence for five years or more, and has often been promulgated as a solution to these types of problems.

"With the AirConnect product, 3Com have come up with a price break which means that it is finally sensible to deploy wireless. Everyone can afford it."

Andy Boyle of 3Com reseller Synstar Networking Lancare

Network access at The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

The prestigious London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is based in five buildings, some of which are listed, in London's Bloomsbury area. The School, which has just celebrated its centenary, is a world famous centre of excellence for research and teaching aimed at improving health worldwide. Work on malaria is of particular significance and this has just been given further impetus by the award of a grant of $40 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Over five hundred MSc students attend the School each year, together with more than two hundred research degree students. Since the School's foundation, it has trained almost 50,000 postgraduate doctors, public health workers and scientists from virtually every country in the world. And it was here in the 1950s that the link between smoking and lung cancer was first established.

Sheena Wakefield is Network Support Manager at the School, where the Network Support Team is responsible for design and implementation of the network infrastructure and provision of all core network services, including external access.

"I think that most network managers would agree that the most challenging part of the job nowadays is the need to deliver a totally reliable service every hour of the day and every day of the year. So much of the teaching and learning environment, as well as that of research, is now computer based, that staff and students need to be able to rely completely on the availability of the network."

She continued: "We share a common experience with other city-based academic institutions: the cost of additional space is very high, the School is located in a number of different buildings and several of these are listed. We currently provide what I believe is a good ratio of PCs to students, in that there are less than four students for each machine. The School has now reached maximum capacity. There is simply no more space to add to this number."

The Wireless Option

The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine had looked at wireless LAN technology over several years as a means of delivering easier network access to its students. However, it was the ratification of the international IEEE802.111b standard, which defines the technology, combined with the launch of 3Com'sAirConnect 11 Mbps Wireless LAN product which finally made this a viable solution.

The School had worked with 3Com since 1993, when the company was responsible for installing a completely new network infrastructure based on twisted pair cabling. Sheena Wakefield recalls that the system had been extremely reliable. It had only really begun to show its age last year, and had since been replaced by a gigabit ethernet infrastructure.

With the decision to implement a pilot wireless solution, the Network Support Team turned to 3Com to discuss how they could work together on this new system. A small pilot study, involving some twenty students, was designed and launched in May 2000 based on the AirConnect product. Three access points were installed in the School's Library and two classrooms.

The 3Com AirConnect solution comprises wireless access points and notebook PC cards. Access points, which can be fixed to a ceiling or wall, act as a bridge between the wired network and up to sixty-three simultaneous wireless PCs. Based on the IEEE 802.11b standard, AirConnect offers speeds over five times faster than the original 802.11 standard.

"The Library was an ideal location for one of the access points. It is open from 8.30 am to 11 pm and at weekends during term time, and students were already using their laptops in there. Those students taking part in the study were given appointments to meet with members of the Network Support team, who installed the cards, drivers and relevant software which would enable them to access our Windows Terminal Server service. We showed them how to use the system, how to log in, and how they could access the various services, including standard Microsoft applications, email and the Internet and the more specialised library databases.

"Although the number involved in the pilot study was small, support has not been a problem at all. The equipment has been extremely reliable. I have been particularly impressed by the range of access, which is better than I had envisaged. Reaction from the students has been that the system has been easy to use and that they have not encountered significant problems."

A second pilot is now being planned to run throughout the autumn term.

"Although reaction to the first trial was good, we want to involve more students and I think that the autumn term will provide a better test-bed. We have increased the number of access points by putting an additional one in the Library and one in the refectory area in our building in Bedford Square. A statistical analysis application will also be available to students for the first time using wireless access."

Looking ahead

In addition to providing a service for students, the School could also use wireless for staff, many of whom have laptops. Sheena Wakefield frequently uses her laptop in 'wireless' mode for network demonstrations and note taking in meetings without having to go to the trouble of finding a network point and connecting up the PC.

The School is also moving into another building on a short lease period and is considering using wireless in this location as a cost effective and fast alternative to traditional cabling.

"I am a fan of wireless technology and think that it has tremendous potential. It will be interesting to assess the feedback we get from the students in the second pilot study and then consider how any rollout would be implemented.

The 3Com equipment has worked very well. I have not had to make a single call to the technical support centre, which is excellent. AirConnect is clearly the sort of technology we wanted."