AUTOMOTIVE

"Leveraging Foundry's expertise for our network infrastructure upgrade will provide AAMU with a best-of-breed network service that will move the University into a new era of secure high-speed voice, video, and data convergence," said Dr. Chris O. Odionu, chief information officer for Alabama A&M University. "This is the most advanced University network in Alabama, providing students and faculty with 100 megabit and Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) connections, as well as a mix of GbE and 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) uplinks to the core. Foundry Networks has a strong reputation as an industry leader in high performance networking gear and was the clear choice for this upgrade following a thorough and competitive selection process that included all major network vendors in the United States." The core network infrastructure and the building-to-building high-speed connectivity upgrade are the key components in supporting the strategic goals and objectives of the AAMU. The University is in an enrollment growth mode and the decision to select Foundry Networks ensures that this next generation network is future-proofed while also providing value and a competitive edge for students and faculty going forward. The network will be centrally managed by the Information Technology Services Department (ITS), utilizing Foundry Networks comprehensive management tool -- the IronView Network Management software. This tool enables ITS to effectively troubleshoot and maintain the campus wide network for both wired and wireless deployments. Odionu added, "This network upgrade is one of the most important administrative and organizational endeavors undertaken by Alabama A&M University in recent years. Its success will help the University create a virtual campus that offers a greater variety of programs and services to its constituents through the new technologies and services available with higher bandwidth, more reliable equipment, ubiquitous access to all University resources, and greater access to the Internet." AAMU's network design consists of the Foundry's award winning BigIron RX-8 in a dual-core infrastructure, providing highly available and secure network services to the entire campus. Each BigIron RX-8 has a forwarding capacity of over half a billion packets per second. Redundant hardware and dual 10-GbE and 1-GE connectivity between campus buildings delivers a high-availability solution to ensure continuous service for approximately 4,000 simultaneous connections within the new campus network. Foundry's FastIron SuperX and FastIron Edge switches with Power over Ethernet (PoE) and 10GbE capabilities will be leveraged at the network edge to enable next generation Voice over IP (VoIP) services and bandwidth intensive and delay-sensitive applications such as streaming video. The campus-wide IronPoint wireless LAN infrastructure installed throughout every building on campus will provide students and faculty 24/7 access to network resources from anywhere on campus. Foundry's wireless products incorporate the highest standards in wireless security, providing secure access only to authenticated users. Once validated, the user will be granted appropriate access to the network and campus resources. "We are delighted Alabama A&M University selected Foundry's network solutions for their complete network upgrade," said Bob Schiff, vice president and general manager for Foundry Networks enterprise business unit. "The University benefits from their new best-of-breed infrastructure that allows them to expand and enhance their network performance experience for both students and faculty. Alabama A&M University is clearly a forward looking educational institution that is deploying Foundry's scaleable, highly available, and future-proofed solutions to achieve their strategic networking goals."