Buena Vista University builds "tomorrow's" campus communications network on a "yesterday" budget.

Avaya Helps Cut Costs

Buena Vista University (BVU) provides its students and faculty with a high-technology learning environment that most schools only dream of and at a cost a CFO dreams of. When it needed to reduce costs, enhance productivity and expand to IP Telephony, BVU turned to Avaya.

Embracing the Future without Replacing the Past

BVU was already well equipped with an Avaya wireless data network and data infrastructure, but the school's Fujitsu F9600 PBX was not keeping pace. In fact, it was rapidly falling into obsolescence because of Fujitsu's withdrawal from the U.S. PBX market.

Fortunately, the prognosis was not terminal. Turning to Avaya and Altura Communication Solutions, an Avaya BusinessPartner, BVU discovered a critical partnership that could still support the Fujitsu switches and even integrate the Fujitsu equipment with IP servers from Avaya.

For Ken Clipperton, managing director of university information services, the potential for savings was clear: BVU could step into the efficient world of IP communication without losing the value remaining in the school's Fujitsu switch. Construction of BVU's new $26 million science center provided the trigger.

"With the science center being a showcase," says Clipperton, "what would that mean on the telephony side? We didn't think that meant extending our existing Fujitsu PBX, but looking at voice over IP (Telephony) capability." With Avaya and Altura already working together on system integration, the answer was simple.

"We had an option that would let us extend and enhance to embrace the future, without having to replace the past," Clipperton says. BVU could follow its own path at the pace it preferred.

Installation of the Avaya IP Telephony solution--Avaya Communication Manager software running on an Avaya $8700 Media Server, with 50 Avaya 4620 and 4612 [P Telephones--was handled by Altura Communication Solutions and in Clipperton's words, was "flawless."

Old Budget, New Solution

BVU's new systems are helping the school stretch its budget dollars.

* New Systems from an Old Budget--Clipperton has been able to reinvest PBX lease dollars for the future. "Within that existing budget, we're able to purchase both the messaging platform and the IP Telephony platform, and leave dollars in that budget every year to help us migrate the offices to IP telephony," Clipperton says.

* Smooth Moves for Real Savings--Simplified system administration is also providing savings. "Our telephone engineer realized when we implemented the wireless network how quickly moves, adds and changes went away" and "that the same thing could happen on the telephony side," says Clipperton. "Our phase one plan is to roll out the Avaya IP Telephones and Softphones to all the people who eventually will live in the new science center. And frankly, when moving day comes.., they will just pick up their phone, move it, and reconnect it in their new office."

Clipperton sees the right choice of partners as the key to BVU's successful implementations. "For me, it's still the partnership that's important in technology implementations," he says. "The confidence in both Altura and Avaya was essential to us as part of saying 'Let's move ahead."

To learn more, talk to an Avaya Client Executive or Authorized Avaya BusinessPartner. Also, visit avaya.com/learnmore/ip. For more information about Avaya visit avaya.com.

"For me, it's still the partnership that's important in technology implementations. The confidence in both Altura and Avaya was essential to us as part of saying 'Let's move ahead."

Ken Clipperton--Managing director of university information services