CASE STUDY ADC PASSES THE TEST FOR MEASURED PROGRESS TrueNet ® Category 6 End-to-End Solution Supports Peer Gigabit Network CHALLENGE • Enormous data traffic from millions of scanned test booklets • Steep seasonal spikes in number of network users scoring tests • Maintain rapid turn around of test results despite company growth • Reduce time and cost of reconfiguring processing areas STRATEGY • End-to-end TrueNet ® Category 6 Structured Cabling Solution • AirES ® conductor insulation for superior cable performance • Angled patch panels and LSA-PLUS ® silver plated IDC contact tags for secure cable terminations and improved reliability • All ports lit for gigabit Ethernet with multiple consolidation points RESULTS • Network supports gigabit Ethernet with zero bit-error performance • Infrastructure operates error free, enabling quick return of scoring results to schools and districts • Change equipment line-ups and support influx of part time scorers without recabling CASE STUDY BUSINESS CHALLENGE Measured Progress is a not-for-profit organization that designs and administers customized, large- scale student assessments. The Dover, New Hampshire-based company develops assessments that help states and school districts meet federal mandates to evaluate the effectiveness of classroom instruction through assessment, rather than merely ranking students. Of course, the primary goal for both Measured Progress and its clients is improving teaching and learning for children. From a process viewpoint, the bulk of Measured Progress work starts with creation of test booklets for individual states and districts. These booklets must be collated into classroom packs and district level packages and shipped to schools. Once students take the tests, booklets are returned to Measured Progress for scoring. Upon receipt, each booklet is scanned, assigned a barcode and then made available to scorers who score each booklet. In the end, results are reported to schools and districts. While this seems like a logical and routine process, it all happens in a compressed time frame; most schools want to test children in the spring and receive results back in the summer of the same year. As a result, the population of part-time scorers and other employees can vary dramatically from week to week. During scoring, the number of people working in the Measured Progress system grows exponentially — and many of them need access to the network. The scanning of millions of documents and providing scorers with electronic access to each document for scoring creates an enormous amount of high- bandwidth data traffic over the network. FACING THE CHALLENGE OF GROWTH Over the past two decades, Measured Progress has earned a reputation for creating innovative, high-quality educational assessment instruments. With passage of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, the company’s workload has grown significantly. The increased volume of work placed pressure on the staff to ensure that logistical, scoring and reporting systems support the business so that schools and districts continue to receive rapid turnaround of results. As expansion plans were discussed for a new processing building and headquarters complex, planners determined that the network infrastructure needed to be flexible enough to handle temporary spikes in user access as well as allow the network to grow and change with the business. Given the volume of documents handled electronically, the network was to be designed as a peer gigabit environment — both between and within buildings — that would support applications in the future, such as VoIP and conferencing. More important, the network needed to be highly reliable so Measured Progress could continue to quickly process and return scoring results to schools and districts. Dynamic Angle Right/Angle Left Panels combined with 45 degree silver-plated IDCs help improve reliability of the Measured Progress local area network. CASE STUDY For Measured Progress, partnerships are important. Management considers its clients to be partners rather than just paying customers, working collaboratively to deliver assessment solutions that ultimately improve the learning of children. In choosing Howard Systems to design and implement the network infrastructure, Measured Progress chose a partner with similar goals. By listening to and understanding the Measured Progress business and technology needs, Howard Systems was able to recommend a design for the technology infrastructure and set of structured cabling products that would be flexible, manageable and easily adaptable to the changing user and technology environment. Integral to the design was ADC’s TrueNet ® structured cabling solutions, which provides Measured Progress with an end-to-end Category 6 compliant channel solution that is guaranteed for 25 years to support gigabit Ethernet with zero bit- error performance. FLEXIBILITY REQUIRED FOR CHANGING CONDITIONS The process assembly lines in the warehouse are a constant work in progress because Measured Progress continually searches for efficiencies in the process of shipping and receiving millions of test booklets each year. Howard Systems established a communication grid in the warehouse that would allow Measured Progress to experiment with different line assemblies, and relocate equipment without having to recable the building. “In the processing area, we rarely do anything twice the same way because we continually search for equipment and processes to improve our efficiency and productivity,” said John Woodman, facilities manager for Measured Progress. Even the normal reconfiguration of the warehouse — in the spring for shipping and then back into a receiving mode in the fall — was made easier with the distributed design of the warehouse network. “We are always aware that there could be a better way to do things. We now have the ability to experiment with different line assemblies and relocate equipment without putting a guy on a lift to run new data cable,” said Woodman. Flexibility was also designed into the network for the grading areas where hundreds of part-time scorers converge in a cyber café environment, accessing and scoring individual tests electron- ically from the network. Howard Systems recommended consolidation points in the ceiling so Measured Progress cannot only accommodate the influx of part-time employees, but also experiment with different configurations in the grading areas to continually improve the process. “This is the first building I have worked in where every port is lit up gigabit and live all of the time,” said Paul Fiscarelli, IT manager for Measured Progress. The flexibility of having a plug-and-play environment to move users from space to space costs a little more in terms of switches and patch panels, yet has been worth the investment, according to Fiscarelli. “Before (in the old building), there were always issues with people trying to get access to the network. We had to run around trying to scavenge a port and there were always delays getting people on line,” he said. “Since moving into the new space, we have live ports everywhere so people can do their jobs and we can meet our clients’ deadlines,” said Fiscarelli. ADC’s patented AirES ® (Air Enhanced System) conductor insulation system for copper cabling improves data throughput and saves space in cable pathways for Measured Progress. CASE STUDY RELIABILITY STARTS WITH HIGH- QUALITY COMPONENTS Whether meeting client deadlines or providing scorers with virtually uninterrupted access to the network through its Tier 2 data center, Measured Progress has earned a reputation for being highly reliable. For example, when a state receives its tests, there are naturally questions directed to Measured Progress customer service. “We ordered 17 tests but we have two more children in the class — what do I do?” Because most calls come in during the school day, customer service demand is highest within a compressed period of time. Reliable access to data, as well as incoming phone service, is crucial given teachers’ limited time to make a call for help. One way that reliability was designed into the network was Howard System’s recommendation of ADC’s TrueNet cable, patch panels, patch cords and connectors – a certified system that reduces noise and increases throughput in the network. “Quality of the (ADC) products was apparent,” said Bob Hayes, network engineer for Measured Progress. Hayes cited the reliably solid punch down connections that grab more surface area of the copper conductor and the reinforcement binding on patch cords as the engineering extras from ADC that translate into more reliable connections. “There is just no way that a patch cord or terminated cable is going to pull from the connections. When we do have network issues, there is nothing in the middle we have to worry about, just the equipment on the ends,” he said. “We have made our own network so reliable that the cabling infrastructure is never a source for downtime.” In fact, now that both Hayes and Fiscarelli have been managing the network for some time now, they are at a loss to describe any network issues attributable to the passive cabling infrastructure. “By placing quality products behind the walls and in the ceilings, we have one less thing to worry about, one less headache to deal with,” said Fiscarelli. Because Howard Systems proposed a design/ build solution with a complete set of construction bid documents and defined performance specifications — rather than just a layout showing drop locations — Measured Progress was able to solicit competitive scrutiny of the recommendation from both a design and product perspective. The ADC TrueNet solution easily met the analysis, showing to be not just a reliable set of products, but also a cost-effective and proven solution. “What really pushed us away from other vendors and in the direction of ADC was Howard Systems,” said Fiscarelli, who sought a partnership rather than a vendor relationship for designing and implementing the network. “Their understanding of our requirements, experience in the field, and commitment to be with us for years to come convinced us that ADC was the correct solution for us,” said Fiscarelli. CONCLUSION Since its inception over 20 years ago, Measured Progress has continually sought out new technologies to improve operations and productivity. Today, that puts the pressure on facilities and IT managers to ensure that all users and clients experience instant gratification as they access the network or make inquiries from customer service. When it comes to throughput and availability, the solidly reliable peer gigabit network is working admirably. In addition, the new network has enabled operations to more easily experiment with set- up of workstations and processing lines to find additional improvements in the sending and receiving of millions of test booklets each year. Along with sure network reliability, the built- in flexibility of the network enables Measured Progress to sustain its reputation for accurate, on-time performance with its clients. Web Site: www.adc.com From North America, Call Toll Free: 1-800-366-3891 • Outside of North America: +1-952-938-8080 Fax: +1-952-917-3237 • For a listing of ADC’s global sales office locations, please refer to our Web site. ADC Telecommunications, Inc., P.O. Box 1101, Minneapolis, Minnesota USA 55440-1101 Specifications published here are current as of the date of publication of this document. Because we are continuously improving our products, ADC reserves the right to change specifications without prior notice. At any time, you may verify product specifications by contacting our headquarters office in Minneapolis. ADC Telecommunications, Inc. views its patent portfolio as an important corporate asset and vigorously enforces its patents. Products or features contained herein may be covered by one or more U.S. or foreign patents. An Equal Opportunity Employer 103582AE 11/06 Original © 2006 ADC Telecommunications, Inc. All Rights Reserved . CASE STUDY ADC PASSES THE TEST FOR MEASURED PROGRESS TrueNet ® Category 6 End-to-End Solution Supports Peer Gigabit Network CHALLENGE • Enormous. the design was ADC s TrueNet ® structured cabling solutions, which provides Measured Progress with an end-to-end Category 6 compliant channel solution