Howard Community College deploys passive optical LAN from Motorola

Motorola Mobility says that Howard Community College has used Motorola’s passive optical LAN (POL) technology as the basis of an all-fiber IP network within the college’s new Health Sciences building. The fiber-optic network, which will serve more than 1500 Ethernet ports, was designed and deployed by Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC).

A passive optical LAN uses the same architecture – in the case of Motorola’s approach, GPON – as a fiber to the home (FTTH) network. Computers and other network elements may be connected directly to the network or to a fiber-enabled node. Motorola asserts that use of passive optical LAN technology can save up to a 55% in capital and up to 75% in operational costs versus a traditional copper-based approach.

“As we plan for aggressive growth over the next decade, we need technology that will easily scale to accommodate future expansion, while also saving the college time and money today. For us, that solution is Motorola’s POL,” said Tom Glaser, vice president of IT at Howard Community College, which is located in Columbia, MD. “We were impressed by the solution’s significant cost savings and operational benefits, as well as the hassle-free maintenance. We expect Motorola’s POL to keep Howard Community College on the cutting edge for years to come as our students continue to require better and more widespread network access.”

“With today’s announcement, Motorola reinforces our commitment to bringing best-in-class enterprise network solutions to higher education institutions, like Howard Community College,” said Joe Cozzolino, senior vice president and general manager of network and infrastructure solutions at Motorola Mobility. “Educational institutions must continue to invest in new programs, technologies and services to attract top-caliber students, and deploying Motorola’s economically disruptive POL solution empowers them to meet this important objective. We look forward to supporting this market with cost-efficient, easy-to-use solutions now and into the future.”

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