\n\tBy SHANNON O. WELLS<\/p>\n
\n\tThe approach Pitt Digital takes in determining the strength of a wireless internet signal in a building or particular area of campus combines high-tech data-gathering equipment and good, old-fashioned shoe leather.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt starts with what\u2019s called a \u2018wireless signal survey,\u2019\u201d explained Chad Burton, executive director of Pitt Digital Transformation and Analytics. \u201cThat means a person is walking every floor in every building on the Oakland campus with a specialized device that gathers data on the signal strength and signal quality.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThat data gets fed into a simulation tool, to which Burton\u2019s team has uploaded floor plans for all campus buildings.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThat tool then generates what the optimal design should be: \u2018You want to move this one from here to here, you want to add two more on that side,\u2019 things like that,\u201d he said. \u201cIt creates that design. Then we have Pitt\u2019s network architect Eric Allen, and our service delivery team, \u2026 who review these designs and adjust as needed based on what they know about the buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tDespite the advanced nature of the digital technology, institutional knowledge still goes a long way. \u201cBecause they\u2019ve been in these buildings, they know more than any simulation tool ever could,\u201d Burton noted.<\/p>\n
\n\tThis process, carried out in every non-residence University building around Oakland, lays the groundwork for the Network Modernization Initiative, a major upgrade to the PittNet Wi-Fi and Wired Digital Network<\/a> taking place this spring and summer.<\/p>\n \n\tWith help from outside technicians, the Pitt Digital team started work just after spring commencement to install nearly 4,000 new Wi-Fi access points to eliminate coverage gaps. Other aspects of the initiative include upgrading the behind-the-scenes equipment and infrastructure connecting everything and fine-tuning coverage based on real-world testing. All campus buildings except previously upgraded residential halls will be affected.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cModernizing a network across dozens of buildings \u2014 many constructed as far back as the 1920s, with thick concrete walls that Wi-Fi signals struggle to penetrate \u2014 requires careful planning, specialized expertise, and ongoing adjustment once spaces are in active use,\u201d says a statement on Pitt Digital\u2019s page on the Network Modernization Initiative<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tMore than just replacing old equipment with new equipment, the project will add Wi-Fi and internet access points and move some equipment bases to other locations. As Burton explained, the way a Wi-Fi signal is shared has literally changed shape through the years.<\/p>\n \n\tPitt\u2019s original wireless network used a technology where the transmitting wireless signal spread \u201cvery far, very wide, so a few (routers) could cover a wide area, maybe a whole floor,\u201d he said. \u201cAs the technology has progressed, as our Wi-Fi has gotten faster, the signal is more of a cone (shape), so it doesn\u2019t spread as wide.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf you don\u2019t make changes to the placement of this equipment or the quantity of this equipment,\u201d he added, \u201cyou end up with dead zones, and that\u2019s where we have ended up.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAlong with eliminating dead zones around campus, the project also addresses what Burton calls the No. 1 issue that gets reported, which is \u201ca dropped connection as somebody is walking around a building. That shouldn\u2019t happen, but it does happen, because in our current state we have old technology and new technology,\u201d he noted. \u201cAnd those two technologies cannot talk to each other.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf you\u2019re in a part of the floor with the old technology and then you walk to a part with the new, you\u2019re going to lose your connection. It\u2019s going to have to reconnect, so that\u2019s obviously not a good experience. We want to eliminate that.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThat means ensuring all components of cross-campus wireless equipment are compatible with each other, to accommodate what Burton calls \u201creally smooth handoffs.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHopefully, the individual doesn\u2019t even notice when that\u2019s happening,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \n\tCalling the project the largest single deployment of wireless equipment since Pitt\u2019s wireless network was created, Burton noted that Pitt Digital works closely with Facilities Management any time a building is renovated.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf it\u2019s scheduled for renovation, we go in and upgrade it to the newer architecture and layout and everything, so it\u2019s not that no part of the campus has been touched in 15 years,\u201d he clarified. \u201cIt\u2019s just that we have not taken a holistic look at 100% of the Oakland campus to identify the areas, so you\u2019ve got some places that really haven\u2019t been touched in a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAmong those is Allen Hall, which was among the first buildings tackled for the upgrade. \u201cThe data that we gathered confirmed what we had been hearing from faculty there, which is \u2018My Wi-Fi is not very good.\u2019 It was, again, that issue with the signal: When it was designed, the equipment spread the signal far and wide, and the new equipment keeps it more narrow. And we\u2019re able to identify this.\u201d<\/p>\n \tFair warning<\/p>\n \n\tTo minimize disruptions, Pitt Digital is communicating all planned service interruptions in advance. Implementation will require localized planned service disruptions when a \u201ccut over\u201d from the old to the new system takes place. \u201cThere\u2019s going to be a period of time where there\u2019s no internet in that building,\u201d Burton explained. \u201cTo address that, we are working with managers for each building.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe Pitt Digital Customer Success Team also is communicating with all customers to understand variables including what events and experiments are going on this summer that \u201cabsolutely cannot be disrupted,\u201d where are classes for the summer term taking place, and asking if \u201cwe get to those before, after or in between?\u201d Burton said. \u201cAnd because we have flexibility with when we do the cut over for each building, we work with the occupants of that building to identify the least disruptive time to make that change.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIn addition to planning the conversion project for the summer months to minimize disruptions, Burton said savvy strategizing by the team led to notable cost savings in the wake of a global microchip shortage.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAs we started buying the equipment that we needed, we learned that there\u2019s a global microchip shortage that\u2019s been caused by the AI boom, so there\u2019s supply-demand economics that are causing the prices of all the equipment we need to go up significantly,\u201d Burton said. \u201cWhat we were seeing was every month the cost would go up by 12% and was expected to be at least 40% more by the end of this year.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tA team including Pitt Digital, the office of the chief financial officer and the Purchasing Department was formed to identify all equipment needed for the next 12 to 24 months and purchase it this spring \u201cto lock in today\u2019s prices.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThat was not an easy task,\u201d he noted. \u201cSo, yeah, I\u2019m grateful that we had a team. It was definitely a lot of work, but we ultimately saved a lot of money by mobilizing as quickly as we did.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tA 10-year veteran of Pitt\u2019s digital technology realm in \u201cvarious incarnations,\u201d Burton has led information technology operations for the past six months. In this role, he\u2019s made a point of considering what his department could do to \u201chave the greatest impact\u201d while respecting the University\u2019s \u201cfinite resources.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe network, everybody uses it: all of our students, all of our faculty, all of our staff,\u201d he noted. \u201cWe know it needs improvements, so it felt like the right time to just direct all of our energy over the summer to just really focus and have this big impact that will improve it for the whole campus community.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tShannon Wells is a University Times reporter. Reach him at shannonw@pitt.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tHave a story idea or news to share? Share<\/a> it with the University Times.<\/p>\n