Ben Uzor Jr
Cisco, a leader in networking solutions has announced that the installation of Cisco TelePresence exchanges in its Lagos office. The TelePresence solution offers a live, face-to-face experience that enables people from different offices around the world to meet virtually using the power of video conferencing. The ‘real-life’ meeting experience provided by the TelePresence technology is delivered through ultra-high-definition video that reveals subtle facial expression conveying nonverbal reaction.
Furthermore, spatial audio allows the transmission of every nuance of the conversation and enables participants to interact as they would in person. This however marks the second major deployment of the TelePresence solution in Nigeria following the announcement, in April 2010, that MTN had become the first service provider in the country to offer public Cisco TelePresence rooms in three locations: the Southern Sun Hotel in Lagos, the Sheraton Hotel in Abuja and the Le Meridian Hotel in Port Harcourt.
With this solution, Nigerian businesses seeking ways to reduce travel costs amidst unfavourable economic conditions can do this without necessarily constituting a downside to employee productivity. But more importantly, the TelePresence solution will also facilitate a greener company environment by reducing its carbon footprint. It will bridge geographical divides, by enabling highly secure virtual meetings with multiple locations inside or outside the corporate firewall.
Besides, with the MainOne cable now live and its 1, 920 Gbps, 7000 kilometres long, submarine fibre optic cable system linking West Africa to Europe active; the company has also revealed plans to drive content through the cable to consumers. According to Cisco, the wide adoption of collaborative solutions, like Cisco TelePresence, in all sectors from education, to health and entertainment, will help drive economic growth in Nigeria as well as make it a true globally connected nation.
Den Sullivan, chief information officer, emerging markets, Cisco who spoke to newsmen via a live video conferencing (TelePresence) session between Brussels, Belgium and Lagos, noted that the deployment of Cisco TelePresence technology can now be increased significantly throughout the sub-Saharan African region with the arrival of submarine cables which offer high bandwidth at attractive prices.
“Cisco’s vision is to be the leading enabler of ICT and broadband acceleration in emerging markets through innovative, scalable, high-value technology offerings and solutions. This Cisco TelePresence solution will not only transform the way business is conducted in Africa but also help make vital services like healthcare and education more accessible to those who need them most”, he added.
In the same vein, Richard Edet, managing director, Cisco Nigeria said that the solution will have a transformational impact all sectors of Nigerian society from healthcare and education to safety and citizen inclusion. “Healthcare professionals, for example, will soon be able to collaborate more easily, regardless of location, thereby improving both the timeliness and the quality of care delivered and patients will be able to access physicians and specialists from remote locations.
“Likewise, for educational establishment, Cisco TelePresence will help transform the learning environment, providing a means to bring education to remote locations and also connect with colleges, institutions and tutors from around the world. With the adoption of TelePresence, Nigeria is set to mark its 50 years of independence milestone by becoming a truly smart and connected nation”, he concluded.
For more interesting articles, check out my blog, www.benedictspace.blogspot.com
Monday, August 30, 2010
Phillips Consulting addresses bandwidth constraint with portable e-learning solution
Ben Uzor Jr
Conscious of the fact that infrastructure, bandwidth availability and cost remains a significant impediment to the adoption of e-learning in Nigeria, Phillips Consulting, an indigenous company offering management consulting and training services to corporate organisations in strategic partnership with NetDimension has introduced a portable e-learning solution running independently from a flash drive.
The solution, mEKP (Mobile Enterprise Knowledge Platform) is designed to enable organisations to revolutionise training delivery to learners around the world with a truly portable LMS (Learning Management System). With the technology, learners can take courses or exams whenever and wherever it is convenient, without the need to connect to the internet.
Paul Ayim, managing consultant, Phillips Consulting Limited Nigeria who spoke at an e-learning seminar organised by the company and which had in attendance Human Resources (HR) executives from the banking, oil and gas sector, said that mEKP was a much more powerful solution than offline players. “It is a portable e-learning environment that can support all courseware and exam detail delivery, as well as tracking user information and activity that can be found in the master EKP system.
“It supports single and multi-user environments”. In the same vein, Steve Curtis, channel director, Europe Middle East and Africa, NetDimensions said that businesses today are seeking e-learning solution because they want to improve the expertise and performance of their employees with regards to improved service delivery. He further added that portable version of the EKP can intelligently manage user information (AICC, SCORM, exam data) while offline and communicate with the master EKP system to synchronise user-specific information when access to the internet or company intranet is available.
“All course and exam completion data, including dates, times and scores are uploaded to the main server when an Internet connection is available”, he added. Curtis further explained that mEKP has the same security options and permissions settings of a master EKP system. “A user system may be configured for a range of security requirements, from dynamic creation of new users to master host authentication and verification of user identity before access is granted.
“Likewise, various USB encryption options are available to protect the device in event of theft or loss. Each mEKP is allocated a unique instance identifier by the master EKP system to better manage security and the integration of data from multiple sources. As an added level of security, administrators can tag specific items in the EKP master as downloadable material into mEKP”, he concluded. It was learnt that mEKP can also automatically remove materials (courses, exams, etc.) after they have been used offline and the results synchronized with the master EKP system.
For more interesting articles, check out my blog, www.benedictspace.blogspot.com
Conscious of the fact that infrastructure, bandwidth availability and cost remains a significant impediment to the adoption of e-learning in Nigeria, Phillips Consulting, an indigenous company offering management consulting and training services to corporate organisations in strategic partnership with NetDimension has introduced a portable e-learning solution running independently from a flash drive.
The solution, mEKP (Mobile Enterprise Knowledge Platform) is designed to enable organisations to revolutionise training delivery to learners around the world with a truly portable LMS (Learning Management System). With the technology, learners can take courses or exams whenever and wherever it is convenient, without the need to connect to the internet.
Paul Ayim, managing consultant, Phillips Consulting Limited Nigeria who spoke at an e-learning seminar organised by the company and which had in attendance Human Resources (HR) executives from the banking, oil and gas sector, said that mEKP was a much more powerful solution than offline players. “It is a portable e-learning environment that can support all courseware and exam detail delivery, as well as tracking user information and activity that can be found in the master EKP system.
“It supports single and multi-user environments”. In the same vein, Steve Curtis, channel director, Europe Middle East and Africa, NetDimensions said that businesses today are seeking e-learning solution because they want to improve the expertise and performance of their employees with regards to improved service delivery. He further added that portable version of the EKP can intelligently manage user information (AICC, SCORM, exam data) while offline and communicate with the master EKP system to synchronise user-specific information when access to the internet or company intranet is available.
“All course and exam completion data, including dates, times and scores are uploaded to the main server when an Internet connection is available”, he added. Curtis further explained that mEKP has the same security options and permissions settings of a master EKP system. “A user system may be configured for a range of security requirements, from dynamic creation of new users to master host authentication and verification of user identity before access is granted.
“Likewise, various USB encryption options are available to protect the device in event of theft or loss. Each mEKP is allocated a unique instance identifier by the master EKP system to better manage security and the integration of data from multiple sources. As an added level of security, administrators can tag specific items in the EKP master as downloadable material into mEKP”, he concluded. It was learnt that mEKP can also automatically remove materials (courses, exams, etc.) after they have been used offline and the results synchronized with the master EKP system.
For more interesting articles, check out my blog, www.benedictspace.blogspot.com
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Power constraint force telecoms operators to seek alternative energy sources
•Initiatives include low energy base station, infrastructure sharing
Ben Uzor Jr
The search of telecommunication operators for ways of beating rising diesel spend and the enormous cost of generators is finally headed in the right direction. With the falling prices of equipment for developing alternative energy, telecommunication operators have now discovered a number of initiatives geared towards creating more energy efficient networks, BusinessDay can now reveal.
These initiatives, it was learnt, include: designing low energy base station sites, deployment of base stations powered by renewable energy, and implementation of infrastructure optimisation and sharing. In the preceding year, the Federal Government had disclosed plans to initiate policy thrusts that would force operators to abandon generators for alternative sources of energy. However, the MTN Group is already making significant strides in this regard as the firm has recorded a major breakthrough in power generation with the development of a self-sustaining, environment-friendly power supply initiative.
It was learnt that a team of engineers at MTN’s Network Group came up with the alternative energy solution. The solution is a 2-megawatt (mw), methane-driven tri-generation plant, which is the first of its kind on the African continent. Analysts say that telecom operators investing in alternative energy sources for base stations could recoup the capital cost in as short a period as 24 months. Besides, GSMA, the global trade for the mobile industry, forecasts that by 2012 up to 50 percent of new off-grid base stations in developing countries could be powered by renewable energy.
Investigations show that there are over 22, 000 base stations in the country. These base stations are all powered by generators running on diesel fuel, which is increasingly becoming expensive. BusinessDay checks reveal that the price of diesel rose from between N85 and N90 two months ago, to between N98 and N108 per litre, an increase of more than 10 percent.
It was further gathered that MTN spent over N12 billion in acquiring generators to provide for its over 4, 798 base stations nationwide. The company also spends N500 million monthly on diesel and generator maintenance. The three other networks: Glo, Zain and Etisalat also spend huge sums of money on diesel and generators to power their base stations across the country.
Analysts say that alternative energy solutions could save telecoms companies as much as N6 billion annually. This is the cost spend on diesel and generator maintenance. Emeka Opara, Zain Nigeria's head of corporate communications, said: "Available records show that telecoms operators in Nigeria spend over 60 percent of their operating cost on power generation. This is the major reason why most operating companies are desperately considering alternative sources of energy that are not only cheaper but also environmental friendly.
"At Zain, we are doing something about this issue. We are looking at Hybrid systems because they comply with emissions regulations and reduce fuel consumption. Solar is been considered, even wind energy is also being considered industry wide" “The recent degradation in national grid power supply has increased the pressure on our generators, increased maintenance costs and outstripped local market capacity for supply of generators to telecoms operators”, a senior executive at MTN Nigeria who pleaded anonymity told BusinessDay.
Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has called on the government to solve, with immediate effect, all problems associated with electricity supply, as the economic cost and associated loss to the operators and the nation as a whole is too high.
“Nigeria’s power supply problems will create a major set back for telecoms development in Nigeria, and this might erode the gains of telecommunications which has become a way of life and performance enhancing tool for many, irrespective of trade and status”, Adebayo posited.
Ben Uzor Jr
The search of telecommunication operators for ways of beating rising diesel spend and the enormous cost of generators is finally headed in the right direction. With the falling prices of equipment for developing alternative energy, telecommunication operators have now discovered a number of initiatives geared towards creating more energy efficient networks, BusinessDay can now reveal.
These initiatives, it was learnt, include: designing low energy base station sites, deployment of base stations powered by renewable energy, and implementation of infrastructure optimisation and sharing. In the preceding year, the Federal Government had disclosed plans to initiate policy thrusts that would force operators to abandon generators for alternative sources of energy. However, the MTN Group is already making significant strides in this regard as the firm has recorded a major breakthrough in power generation with the development of a self-sustaining, environment-friendly power supply initiative.
It was learnt that a team of engineers at MTN’s Network Group came up with the alternative energy solution. The solution is a 2-megawatt (mw), methane-driven tri-generation plant, which is the first of its kind on the African continent. Analysts say that telecom operators investing in alternative energy sources for base stations could recoup the capital cost in as short a period as 24 months. Besides, GSMA, the global trade for the mobile industry, forecasts that by 2012 up to 50 percent of new off-grid base stations in developing countries could be powered by renewable energy.
Investigations show that there are over 22, 000 base stations in the country. These base stations are all powered by generators running on diesel fuel, which is increasingly becoming expensive. BusinessDay checks reveal that the price of diesel rose from between N85 and N90 two months ago, to between N98 and N108 per litre, an increase of more than 10 percent.
It was further gathered that MTN spent over N12 billion in acquiring generators to provide for its over 4, 798 base stations nationwide. The company also spends N500 million monthly on diesel and generator maintenance. The three other networks: Glo, Zain and Etisalat also spend huge sums of money on diesel and generators to power their base stations across the country.
Analysts say that alternative energy solutions could save telecoms companies as much as N6 billion annually. This is the cost spend on diesel and generator maintenance. Emeka Opara, Zain Nigeria's head of corporate communications, said: "Available records show that telecoms operators in Nigeria spend over 60 percent of their operating cost on power generation. This is the major reason why most operating companies are desperately considering alternative sources of energy that are not only cheaper but also environmental friendly.
"At Zain, we are doing something about this issue. We are looking at Hybrid systems because they comply with emissions regulations and reduce fuel consumption. Solar is been considered, even wind energy is also being considered industry wide" “The recent degradation in national grid power supply has increased the pressure on our generators, increased maintenance costs and outstripped local market capacity for supply of generators to telecoms operators”, a senior executive at MTN Nigeria who pleaded anonymity told BusinessDay.
Gbenga Adebayo, chairman, Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has called on the government to solve, with immediate effect, all problems associated with electricity supply, as the economic cost and associated loss to the operators and the nation as a whole is too high.
“Nigeria’s power supply problems will create a major set back for telecoms development in Nigeria, and this might erode the gains of telecommunications which has become a way of life and performance enhancing tool for many, irrespective of trade and status”, Adebayo posited.
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