Schools
New Fiber-Optic Cables Will Help Improve School District Communication
Installation of a new line to the south fire station is a catalyst for state-of-the-art communication at all district schools.
The new fire station in Western Springs, located on the south side of 55th street, is going to be linked to the village offices, police and fire departments with new fiber optic cables.
The construction of the station and the installation of these cables provides an opportunity for local schools to upgrade their communication lines at a discount. District 101 Superintendent, Brian Barnhart is jumping at the opportunity.
“When the village originally installed fiber optics six years ago, we connected Field Park School and McClure,” said Barnhart. “This is a natural extension. With a new southern run to the fire house, it is easy to link Forest Hills School as part of that installation.”
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Barnhart said that Laidlaw School, which is a bit further from the central line, will also be added at this time. “We wanted to extend to Laidlaw, and the cost to do so right now would be less than a ‘stand alone’ project down the line.”
The village does not pay for the lines that link the district schools to the new lines. The school district pays for their own lines between the central line and their buildings.
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Contractors will begin installing the new central line sometime this spring. According to Pat Schramm, the Western Springs Village Director of Technology, the new line will run down Grand Avenue all the way to the new fire station on 55th Street.
“That new line will connect the village hall to the new fire station,” Schramm said. “When we first installed new fiber optics in the village, we connected all the village buildings, including the Recreation Center and the Thomas Ford Library.”
Barnhart added that, “the specific benefits to the schools are greater bandwidth availability—hence much quicker transmission of data.”
He also explained that the T1 lines, which were the original cable configurations, are not fast enough. “We have several hundred pieces of computer equipment, and the present T1 configuration often bogs down," Barnhard said. "We also run our phone system on a Voice Over IP (VOIP) system, which also taxes present bandwidth.”
New fiber optic cables will allow all of district schools to run all of their data systems at top speed. According to Schramm, “fiber optics never get old or over-burdened—they seem to have infinite speed."
Schramm added that connecting all of the school buildings "provides additional networking and sharing potential between the schools."
The installation of the new cables will take approximately three months.
Schramm explained that a directional boring will drill into the ground along the parkway, creating a manhole. From that position, pipes will be installed. A new manhole is required for every 700 feet of pipe.
“Once the pipes are installed, the cables get fed through, the holes closed up and new grass planted,” Schramm said. “It is not too disruptive to residents.”
Barnhart said that, after the new main line is installed, then the schools would begin their installation process. “We will not begin our work until the summer,” said Barnhart. “There will be no impact on students, parents or staff.”
Schramm said that the new cables are “an investment in the future and a necessary upgrade for the village.”
“We are fortunate that we have never had to go to the taxpayers to help pay for fiber optics,” said Schramm. “We have always had grants and outside funding for these projects.”
