30 January 2014

Multi-institutional collaboration on research projects is becoming increasingly central to Lancaster University.

Lancaster University’s previous telephony infrastructure consisted of three separate systems but had become increasingly difficult for IT to manage, and the aging hardware wasn’t providing the ‘always-on’ communication it needed to operate as a world-class institution.

Multi-institutional collaboration on research projects is becoming increasingly central to the university. This, coupled with its large base of students now working overseas, meant it needed an infrastructure that would enable users to communicate and share information more efficiently regardless of location or time zone. Another requirment was to offer more flexible working and collaboration for staff and students in the UK in order to enhance the day-to-day study environment.

Working with Cisco and Logicalis, the university has now deployed a new communications infrastructure and collaboration suite. The solution includes a core telephony system as well as a Cisco Unified Communications platform consisting of voicemail and unified messaging on desk and mobile phones, as well as web-based video conferencing.

Ian Anderson, the university’s networking group leader who led the project, says: “The Cisco Jabber application will be available to all staff and postgraduate students as a soft client on smart devices, to enable round the clock instant messaging and presence as well as voice and video telephony from anywhere, on any device. Getting this in place will be particularly key for postgraduates who often require a lot of mentorship from staff members, at all hours of the day. This will enable them to collaborate more effectively.”

Moving forward, Anderson says that IM will replace email to become the norm for quick questions, thus reducing inbox overload. He adds that video and desktop sharing will also reduce the need for travel, both for UK staff who want quick meetings, as well as for global academics and researchers collaborating on papers. “We’re fairly early on the road to UC nirvana at Lancaster, but believe that by taking the time to get the building blocks right, the benefits will follow smoothly,” he says.

With the voice and unified messaging elements already in place, the university is now in the process of phasing-in the solution for its 16,000 students and 2,500 staff in more than 120 countries worldwide. “We’re looking to encourage usage amongst research groups in the first instance, with others following close behind once all solutions are fully installed next year,” Andersen concludes.