Eastern DataComm New Website Launched

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our newly designed website. Visit us at https://easterndatacomm.com/ to see the new website. After four months of work and commitment, we are delighted to reveal our new website officially on March 23, 2021. We wanted to make the new website user-friendly, easy to navigate and align with our new brand.

As an innovation leader in communication solutions, we need to make our customized solutions easy to understand, and our services are accessible for our existing and future clients. We strive to provide the most comprehensive solution on the market with our LENS (Lockdown & Emergency Notification System.

Our objective with this new website is to provide our visitors an easier way to learn about Eastern DataComm’s services and review information based on your Industry or interest.

We hope you have a great experience as you explore our new website.

The Role of Technology in K-12 School Safety

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Years ago, K-12 students had fire drills and “say no to drugs” programs. Some school districts also had students practice using emergency exits on buses. Today, there are lockdown drills to protect students against shooters and terrorists. There are extensive programs about bullying, sexual assault and weapons. Although serious violence is relatively rare, most schools are affected on some level. The wide range of threats facing K-12 schools today not only threaten the lives of students and staff, but they also affect educational performance and outcomes.

Schools are increasingly turning to technology to enhance safety and prevent, intervene with, and respond to incidents. In the report, The Role of Technology in Improving K-12 School Safety, the RAND Corporation examines the current state of school safety practices, technological solutions and challenges. School safety experts were asked about the benefits and drawbacks of the following 12 technologies:

  • Entry Control Equipment. Remotely controlled, electromagnetic door locks make it easier to control access to schools.
  • Identification Technology. ID badges, parking stickers and biometric scanners allow authorized and unauthorized personnel to be identified more accurately.
  • Video Surveillance Technology. Cameras record activity, serve as evidence and identification tools, and deter criminals who fear being monitored.
  • Communication Technology. Two-way interactive systems make it possible to alert law enforcement to incidents and suspicious activities and individuals.
  • School-Site Alarm and Protection Systems. These tools alert school officials and emergency responders and protect students and staff during a dangerous situation.
  • Emergency Alerts. Automated notifications such as emails and text messages keep people informed and prevent the spread of unsubstantiated rumors.
  • Metal Detectors and X-Ray Machines. Handheld, walk-through and x-ray equipment help security teams prevent weapons from entering schools.
  • Anonymous Tip Lines. Phone hotlines, voicemail systems and websites enable students to report incidents or suspicions without fear.
  • Tracking Systems. Mobile applications and GPS devices allow student movement to be tracked.
  • Maps of School Terrain and Bus Routes. Geographic information systems (GISs) help emergency responders plan for crisis by plotting school terrain and transit routes.
  • Violence Prediction Technology. Predictive analytics software helps to predict the location, time and perpetrators of violent behavior.
  • Social Media Monitoring. Automated content monitoring tools can identify warning signs or even capture evidence of bullying and other threats.

Despite the benefits, there are potential risks associated with adopting technology to improve safety. Student privacy could be compromised. Violence prediction tools could result in unfair treatment of certain students, and both perpetrators and victims could be falsely identified.

Technology can have a negative impact on how students view their schools, which must strike the right balance between ensuring safety and feeling like a prison. K-12 districts also struggle to find the best ways to invest in safety solutions, which can be cost-prohibitive.

Three of the top five technologies with the least concerns are communication technology, alarms and emergency alerts.

Video surveillance systems are also widely used — 60 percent of public and 40 percent of private schools reported using video surveillance cameras. Schools use video surveillance to monitor vulnerable and high-risk areas, for visual enhancement during emergency events, and also as a deterrent.

Eastern DataComm’s LENS (Lockdown and Emergency Notification System) provides reliable, immediate and automated communication in case of an emergency. One-button notification allows you to instantly and automatically alert all students and staff of an emergency or threat. LENS can be integrated with existing infrastructure and communication systems The solution can also incorporate wireless radio to activate outdoor strobe lights, speakers and sign boards across school grounds. Emergency notification software can be configured to automatically notify administrators when 911 is dialed or a lockdown or evacuation is initiated. The system can be activated through any phone using a four-digit code.

Eastern DataComm also offers industry-leading video surveillance solutions, along with the expertise to help schools take maximum advantage of them. Our specialists can also help schools use compression and data optimization techniques to reduce the storage requirements of video surveillance, as well as comprehensive network and cabling integration.

Cost-efficient solutions enhance safety, security and day-to-day communications in schools and municipalities. Contact us to schedule a consultation.

Technology Upgrades to Help Schools from “Falling Back”

school clock, paging and bell solutions

It is now the end of Daylight Savings Time and schools need to set all of their clocks to “fall back.” While most of us are trying to get accustomed to the time change, a complex routine is playing out in many schools across the country.

IT administrators must go through the painstaking task of resetting the school’s bell schedule. School districts typically have a wide range of clocks, some of which are set by opening the cabinet and entering numbers on a keypad, others which require knowledge of complex codes. Newer clocks were programmed to automatically update for daylight savings time — that is until Congress extended it in 2007.

The clocks and bell schedule isn’t the only antiquated technology schools must contend with. In many schools the paging system is at least 30 years old — sometimes even older. The “brains” of these systems is a head-end unit the size of a refrigerator that’s housed in the main office. A microphone is used to make an announcement, which is amplified by the head-end and sent out to hardwired speakers throughout the school.

These giant head-end units are a wiring nightmare and weren’t designed for today’s needs. These systems also typically have one zone, meaning that messages go out over every speaker. Administrators may get annoyed with having to listen to morning announcements, and neighbors complain about hearing announcements from the outside speakers. At the same time, issues with wiring and bad speakers often create no-coverage areas throughout the building.

These systems would be obsolete if it weren’t for the need to make emergency announcements. However, it seems almost futile and depending on the situation dangerous, to run to the main office to make an announcement that most likely won’t reach everyone.

To better meet their school safety and emergency notification objectives, schools should upgrade to a modern head-end unit with a zone controller that enables messages to be directed to appropriate areas of the building. For example, morning announcements can be directed only to classrooms while emergency announcements go to all speakers.

A modern head-end unit can also be tied to an IP phone system, allowing school officials to make announcements from any phone in the building. This is extremely beneficial in an emergency. With Eastern DataComm’s LENS solution, if the principal sees a dangerous situation, she can go to a nearby phone, dial in a code, and make an announcement and notify students and staff of an emergency without having to run back to the main office. In addition, modern head-end units typically have an override port to ensure that an emergency announcement gets control of the speakers.

In order to maximize your investment in communication and school safety technology, existing wiring and speakers that are still functioning may be able to be reused and augmented with additional speakers to cover hallways and other areas with no coverage. Most school paging systems installed decades ago were intended for morning announcements, so additional speakers are generally needed to ensure that emergency announcements can be heard throughout the school no matter where you are on school grounds.

It’s imperative that you work with a team that understands schools and knows where there may be areas throughout school grounds that are not covered by your existing speakers.

Schools should also consider implementing a modern bell schedule with an easy-to-use, browser-based interface. This eliminates complex configuration during the beginning and end of Daylight Savings Time or when schools have delayed openings, and ensures the time is always accurate. It also allows the bell schedule to be tied into the paging system so that a bell or other tone can be played over the speakers rather than actual bells installed throughout the building.

At Eastern DataComm, we’ve worked with over 100 schools in NJ and NY Metro Area. We understand the technology challenges schools face and have developed practical, budget-friendly solutions to maximize investments. Let us help you upgrade your bell schedule, paging system and emergency notification system to relieve maintenance headaches and improve your school safety preparedness.

Paying for Technology—4 Ways Schools Can Upgrade on a Tight Budget

Security On A Budget

We work with a lot of school districts and one challenge that almost always comes up is how can the school afford a technology upgrade? Unfortunately many of these purchases are rather expensive: upgrading the data network, upgrading and increasing the wireless network, replacing a legacy business phone system, etc. To make matters worse, schools and libraries are expected to be current with their technology but are usually not given the budget or the resources to do so. They have Wall Street needs on a Main Street budget.

However, there are ways that schools and libraries can close the budget gap with a little effort and creativity. Here are a few ways to do so:

State Contracts

Putting purchases out to bid or issuing RFP’s (Request for Proposals) may seem like a good way to get the cheapest price—and it usually is—but it won’t provide the best value. It’s important to understand that the cost of technology doesn’t end with the initial purchase but extends throughout the life of the system. I’ve seen many unsuspecting schools go with the lowest bidder only to find they achieved the cheapest price but did not purchase the best solution. In the long run, they ended up paying much more which ate in to future budgets for future needs.

State Contracts allow schools to focus on buying the best solution which meets all their current and future needs and can provide the lowest TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) throughout the life of the system. Additionally, state contract pricing is pre-negotiated and often very competitive to ensure a more budget friendly upfront cost. In New Jersey, in addition to state contracts, schools have the ability to purchase off of a variety of recognized state and national purchasing agreements to help make the purchasing process even easier and less costly to the school such as WSCA and PEPPM.

Grants

There are numerous grants out there with plenty of money to pay for technology upgrades but it does take time and effort to find the right ones. It’s important to understand that a grant won’t be written to pay for a specific technology per se but will provide money for a solution. For example, there’s probably not a grant for purchasing security cameras but there are grants for schools to improve safety and security for the faculty and students. Since security cameras can improve safety, the money can be used for that.

One piece of advice would be to consider paying a professional grant writer for this service. There are professionals who are well-versed in available grants for schools and know how to write the request for the money in such a way as to give the school the greatest chance of being awarded the funds. The cost of hiring the grant writer is usually a fraction of the money that becomes available if they’re successfully awarded the grant. If a school district has never worked with a grant writer before, Eastern DataComm would be happy to recommend one with experience in education.

Equipment for Services (EFS)

One thing all schools must pay for is his phone and internet service from a carrier such as Verizon, Comcast, Optimum Lightpath, or Windstream to name a few. Shopping around when your contract expires with one of them can help free up some budget money. Even better, there are programs that can provide money for technology upgrades. One of the larger carriers has such a program called EFS, or Equipment for Services.

How the program works is the more services you purchase and the longer the contract you sign, the more money becomes available to use for purchasing technology—almost any technology. Over this past year alone we had a number of schools that had most (and in one case, ALL) of their technology purchase paid for by this program. And in all of those cases, this carrier gave the school the best deal on the monthly cost for their phone lines and internet! It’s amazing how so few school districts are aware of this program or take advantage of it.

Work with a Solution Provider, not a Reseller

What does this mean? Well, a reseller is only looking to sell you a piece of hardware or software. Most technology manufacturers don’t sell directly but rather use independent companies, or partners to sell their products. If you ask a reseller for a business phone system, they’ll gladly sell you a phone system and that’s the extent of it. However, if you work with a solution provider like Eastern DataComm, we will seek to understand your current situation, what challenges you are facing, what long-term goals you are trying to achieve, and look to provide you with the best possible solution. The solution provider can look at the big picture and offer insight on best practices and ways to possibly save money over time.

For example, we worked with Fort Lee Schools, a rather large school district that was paying for dozens and dozens of Centrex lines that were costing them close to $40 per line—many of which weren’t even being used! As a solution provider, we worked on their behalf to help them eliminate those lines, replace them with a few PRI’s, and restructured their auto-attendant and call routing plan which improved communications throughout the district and reduced their monthly carrier bills by over $4000 a month! They also took advantage of the EFS program which gave them an additional $100K towards their new VoIP phone system.

Conclusion

Technology purchases are often expensive and most schools don’t have a large budget to pay for them. As you can see, however, there are many ways to still make it happen. And this is not an exhaustive list. There’s E-Rate (although that has changed recently—helps with wireless projects but not data networks, phone systems, etc.), leasing options, and others. The big takeaway is if you feel new technology is needed for your district and you have the will to make it happen, there will always be a way.

How has your district creatively found ways to pay for technology?

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