Siemon Helps Con Edison Prove Knowledge is Power
Every year, nearly 14,000 people come to Long Island City, Queens, to refresh their skills, learn the latest techniques, enhance their leadership abilities and attend meetings. No, it's not a college, technical school or conference center they're going to. It's The Learning Center, a state-of-the-art training facility owned and operated by Consolidated Edison Company of New York.
The Learning Center was built in 1992 along New York's East River, on the site of an old Con Edison training center. At a cost of nearly $40 million, the facility was literally constructed on top of the old building, utilizing it as the fist floor. Carson Woods, Con Edison Systems Manager, Information Resources observed, "We had previously tested and reviewed several category 5 products and standardized on Siemon because of its flexibility, quality, cost, and excellent customer service.
But The Learning Center was by no means a typical installation. "The scale of the place was a challenge," noted Benjamin Friede, a Technical Specialist with Con Edison's Technology Integration Services, who was responsible for the infrastructure design. "Category 5 distance limitations necessitated using 10 network service distribution closets. A redundant fiber optic backbone links the closets to diverse network switching facilities. This redundant configuration provides The Learning Center with a highly reliable network infrastructure to support mission critical applications."
A tour through The Learning Center is a learning experience in itself. The "campus" houses laboratories, workshops, power plant simulators, conference facilities, a 200-seat auditorium, complete audio-visual and media service, computer hook-ups, interactive kiosks, even virtual offices — all to support a curriculum of nearly 500 courses.
"From the very beginning, total flexibility was key," said Stephen DiNardo, The Learning Center's Facility Manager. "We knew we'd be configuring and reconfiguring classrooms to meet student and instructor needs. With the help of Siemon, we're wired for change...and built with plenty of capacity." Ben Friede added, "And by using highend category 5 multiple access points, any application including 155 Mbps ATM can run now and any future application can run later. After all, we don't want to have to wire this place again for at least 10 to 15 years.
With a network of thousands of feet of fiver and category 5 cabling, installation became a formidable task. Siemon Certified Installer BBH Solutions of New York City rose to the occasion. "Because of the building's structure and finish, we were required to feed cable overhead or through raised floors," recounted Bruce Hoernecke, President of BBH. "It was not unusual to have over 300- foot runs in the place, which is why we required the fiber optic backbone." Another challenge for BBH was Con Edison's requirements for complete flexibility in the classrooms. Said Hoernecke, "Because the physical layout of the classrooms has to be able to change, we needed a system that was adaptable. We utilized Siemon's Multi-User, Multimedia outlet. It handles up to a dozen category 5 connections in one box. Then we mounted them in strategic locations under the raised floor of the classroom in such a way that they could be relocated easily.
Carson Woods had this to say about BBH. "They did a great job for us. They understood the unique project requirements and worked within our critical timeframe. We require certified installations with performance guarantees, and that's why Siemon installations are so important to us. I'm a Siemon certified designer myself, so I know the training and testing is rigorous. It's an intensive week-long program." John Flaherty, another Senior Systems Specialist with Con Edison agreed, "I've got a lot of respect for CI's like BBH. They and Siemon were consultants and sounding boards for us all the way."
"The Learning Center represents Con Edison's commitment to its people and community, reflected Director John Torchia. "A full 60% of our training is in environmental and health and safety compliance. And much of what we do today is helping to shape the company's culture in this age of deregulation." Siemon is proud to help power this kind of knowledge.
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