Johannesburg, 25 Aug 2014
UC-Wireless, a Johannesburg based company specialising in anything wireless, is creating a following among educational institutions when it comes to WiFi and e-learning. The company has identified the demand for expert WiFi and e-learning solutions, not only in South Africa but in Africa too and already has an impeccable track record due to the various schools that it has successfully implemented solutions at.
Michael Berger, Sales & Marketing Head of the Education/e-Learning Division at UC-Wireless, talks about the importance of dependable WiFi solutions in order to maximise the reliability of e-learning in schools today. This single father's passion for education is evident as he boasts numerous Chairman and Trustee positions such as being the current Chairman of his son's school governing body, the Vice Chairman of his daughter's school governing body as well as being elected to the Gauteng Provincial Board of Trustees for the Governing Body Foundation.
Berger often does talks at schools with the goal of helping parents, educators and learners alike understand the significance of reliable WiFi and e-learning solutions for all education institutions.
UC Wireless stresses the importance of expert WiFi solutions, Why is this so important when it comes to e-learning?
An enterprise WiFi solution is the foundation of any e-learning solution, without the correct WiFi and expertise around it an educational institution is at a severe disadvantage from the get go! Schools budgets get exhausted on mediocre solutions due to "cutting costs". This, in the long run, may cost schools even more as they often result in on going problematic WiFi connectivity and therefore interrupted e-learning as has been witnessed first-hand at many schools already!
UC-Wireless boasts an impressive track record with regards to how many schools its WiFi solutions and services have transformed, Sunward Park High being one of them and being named the first school to pioneer a 100% digital or e-learning solution.
"Yes," says Berger, "we are very proud to have been the only company to be able to come in and sort out their countless challenges around their WiFi infrastructure and they are not the only ones!" Other schools that we have provided solutions for, ranging from 500 to 1 800 concurrent learners, including:
* Brackenhurst Primary
* Springs Boys
* Prestige College
* Falcon.
* Roshnee Islamic School (2013's best performing school in Sedibeng East for Grade 12)
* Boksburg High School
* Hoerskool Eldoraigne
So what does UC Wireless offer that is different?
UC-Wireless has the best possible WiFi product partner in Ruckus Wireless, coupled with one of the best-skilled radio frequency engineers in this country, that being Quentin Daffarn, the MD of UC-Wireless. This enables us to provide effective, efficient holistic solutions that deliver the necessary foundations on which to enhance and improve e-learning and therefore education in specific.
What is the market demand and need?
The education market in South Africa is massive and forever evolving, comprising of ordinary schools, rural schools, the so called former Model C and suburban schools, semi-private schools, colleges, private schools, boarding schools, special needs education centres, FET colleges, training centres and universities.
There is a growing demand and need to implement e-learning and WiFi deployments into all of these various channels based on their specific infra-structure, resource, strategies and adherence to governance and management.
Why should education facilities use UC-Wireless?
Berger says UC-Wireless has done extensive research in this field and we therefore not only have a passion for education but we have the in depth knowledge, skill and expertise as well as leading industry partners at hand. "Our goal is to leave a school or educational facility with an expert viable solution coupled with our underwritten guarantee that whatever we do deploy, will work for the number of high density concurrent users with a minimum guaranteed upload and throughput speeds and coverage. An added value is that anything that we do or offer for the South African market is applicable to Africa as well."
How is it better than other products?
Technically speaking our solution has the following:
* Beamflex and now Beamflex Plus, patented by Ruckus Wireless, ensures:
* Automatic interference mitigation with a better throughput.
* Each tabled or device benefits from two to four times more gain, which results in optimal speed and better performance at range that other solutions.
* Band steering and airtime fairness: i.e. each user gets exactly the same amount of airtime and this means fast WiFi.
* Future proof Dual band AP's 2.4GHz & 5GH to accommodate the future growth of tier 1 tablets that will soon evolve to there being many more that are 5GHz-enabled.
* Fewer APs, since Ruckus uses up to 70% of the number required by other solutions, and this further improves performance.
What are the advantages of using UC-Wireless solutions?
Advanced per user security and separate learner and educator policy enforcements as well as reliable and predictable connectivity.
The result is a self-provisioning and self-optimising high speed wireless back bone. "Our service includes simple deployment, administration and simplified device registration," explains Berger.
"We also offer complete remote or off-site control management of all AP's and controllers. Simply put we have thought of everything!"
What is the affordability and durability like?
UC-Wireless deploys its Ruckus WiFi solutions with the fully backed Ruckus Wireless software and hardware support and lifetime warranties. Further, as a result all software and firmware is continually upgraded and a monthly remote management and monitoring service ensures that the solution is maintained and managed on and ongoing basis.
Why is this great news for the South African and African market?
UC Wireless is able to pass on the substantial education discounts it receives from Ruckus, no other company we know out there can give the written guarantees for design performance and capacity based on the extensive proved track record by UC-Wireless themselves and Internationally with Ruckus Wireless.
What is your view on the current and future status of education in South Africa?
There has been much debate between private and public schools educational standards in recent years. Each presents their own unique value, challenges, statistics and outcomes that are sometimes difficult to compare against each other although both remain exciting and dynamic. A child's education is a tri-partied relationship between the parent, learner and the educator. On a school management level a cohesive and collaborative working relationship needs to exist between all the various stakeholders and organisations that must ultimately realise the best interest of the learners above other. I firmly believe that more emphasis needs to be placed on making teaching a "profession of calling and duty" as opposed to just another job that pays the bills. There is a serious need to focus on the pedagogy and up skilling of teachers as well as the up skilling of school management teams and leaders, from the ground up.
2014 is a watershed year where the exploratory period of a "wait and see approach" is culminating and schools are now seriously beginning to embrace the digital divide and beginning to implement e-learning. However an apprehension still exists predominately around educators themselves. There needs to be a drive on e-teaching in order to transform the educator's mindset in seeing the value of e-learning by well-informing them on how to use e-learning effectively and to understand that technology is there to assist them in enhancing the learning experience and not take it over or control it.
UC-Wireless offers a selection of tools and solutions for anything wireless in an array of industry segments and not only in the education sector. Other vertical markets include healthcare, retail, warehousing, hospitality, mining, casino/gaming, production/ industrial and enterprise.
For more information go to www.uc-wireless.com
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