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Case Study
Classroom Support at UNCC Goes Both Ways
7/5/2007
For technical support use, an instructor experiencing a problem simply pushes the intercom switch and describes the issue directly to Clark's support staff. Connection is instant. Clark has trained support representatives available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Clark said he is considering slightly longer hours. During the back and forth exchange over the intercom, the tech support person can quickly determine whether a service call is needed and can dispatch a technician to the room, if needed.
That can result in help within minutes, instead of a canceled class, as was happening before the new technology was in place.
A big advantage is that the TCP/IP-based intercom system doesn't require PCs, an important consideration since not every classroom at UNCC contains a computer.
Central management is the key to the system's efficiency, Clark said. "We're efficiently responding to volume of calls we're getting." Because he is using Crestrons RoomView software as well as the Digital Acoustics system, his staff can talk with instructors in classrooms over the intercom while remotely accessing the problem PC. RoomView allows a remote technician to monitor, manage and control any device in the classroom connected to a computer. "We can reboot systems manually, [do anything] short of replacing a light bulb," Clark said.
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