From academic institution to conference venue

IT Manager Dave Johnstone looks after all their technology requirements, including internet and Wi-Fi connectivity. For two thirds of the year, the colleges are academic institutions where communities of up to 800 students, fellows and staff live, work and study. During university vacations, the colleges play host to conferences and events for commercial and public sector customers, including hundreds of visitors and delegates.

A rational decision based on value and capability

Dave approached TP-Link directly and worked with our account manager to specify and complete the sale, with no reseller involvement. "It was an easy decision in the end," he says. "To fulfil the requirements of our finance process, I obtained detailed costings from three suppliers. TP-Link's quote stood out clearly. Most of the competitor products either lacked capability or were only available at a price point that was three, four, five or even six times as much!" Dave was impressed that the Omada by TP-Link gigabit switches exceeded the capability of the obsolete equipment.

Power to every port and easy management

The new network switches deliver better performance and higher Power over Ethernet (PoE) budgets than the legacy equipment, with the added advantage of easier management and configuration. Previously, switches had to be manually reconfigured to ensure power was provided in every location where conference organisers needed it. Dave explains, "Before, to save cost, we didn't have power to every port. With the Omada by TP-Link switches, power is included everywhere. This makes it far easier to maintain consistency in our set-up and standards."

A combination of excellent value and leading features

Other brands' network switches also offer centralised management, but as Dave observes, it usually comes at a much higher cost. "A lot of other vendors charge a large annual fee for a limited lifetime warranty, which is included with Omada by TP-Link. Because we don't have a per-device annual subscription, I knew exactly what the cost of ownership would be when I first chose the Omada switches. Some of the competitor switches I looked at had less power per switch, so I would have had to purchase more of them to achieve the outcome we wanted."

Technology that outperforms

Dave Johnstone said, "I would absolutely recommend Omada by TP-Link's switches to anyone. It's a powerful and cost-effective solution. When my colleagues talk about the features of their solutions from high profile brands, I know that we have everything they do and more, without their annual costs and license fees."