College saves on crucial cross-campus connection

A Lancashire college is benefiting from a “crucial” cross-campus connection and a 15 percent capital cost-saving after Pennine Telecom installed a new Motorola digital two-way radio system.

When Hopwood Hall College needed to upgrade its analogue radio system in order to provide seamless communications between its Rochdale and Middleton campuses, it turned to Pennine Telecom. In addition it was keen to take advantage of the increased functionality offered by Motorola’s digital TRBOnet solution which Pennine proposed.

“A link between the two campuses was crucial but the telephone interconnect we had on the old standalone analogue radio system really didn’t serve its purpose,” explains Hopwood’s Corporate Services Co-ordinator, Gareth Tuxworth. “What the new Motorola system allows us to do is to talk handset to handset using an IP link,” he says of a sophisticated system which enables users of the DP3600 digital handportable radios to connect to telephone extensions and outside lines.

He adds: “It’s also significantly increased functionality allowing us to record calls, send regular scheduled text messages and has a front end system that enables us to view all calls made.” The SMS function is proving useful, for example it’s being used to send text reminders of scheduled fire tests. “It beeps and beeps until you answer it so you can’t forget to do a fire test.”

An on-site demonstration by Pennine using a portable unit proved a powerful persuader. “The demo was really good, it swung it really because it made us realise we wanted TRBOnet. We could see functionality like call recording, remote monitoring and a lot of other things that were ideal for our purposes.” He also admits to being a long term Motorola fan. “Motorola was the ideal choice for me, based on the fact that they’re easy to use, robust and interface and integrate with any piece of kit you want, having a relay output and input that’s compatible with anything.”

The choice of Pennine of supplier came down to reputation and, naturally in these austere times, price. The company already enjoyed a good reputation within the college for which it had already installed a Motorola wireless network and a telephone system which it maintains and provides cost-saving call and line management.  “Pennine had already done quite a bit of work for us and that was why I asked them to tender,” recalls Mr. Tuxworth. “I’d already got three quotes but it turned out the lowest was over 15 percent more expensive than Pennine’s!”

So did that significant cost-saving mean that service was compromised? Not a bit of it. “The installation went very smoothly. Pennine came down and got it all up and running pretty much in a day. It all went well and their after care is very good, they’re amenable to being flexible, to work around us, and pleasing to speak to,” reports Mr. Tuxworth.