How an Indianapolis School Stood Up Its Network, Devices and Camera System With AIS

Case Study: K-12 Schools

At A Glance

An Indianapolis school was preparing to open its building with new network equipment, student laptops and staff machines, and no internal IT team to put it all together. It chose AIS to design and stand up the full environment, then manage and monitor it day to day.

• Industry: K-12 education
• Services: Managed Services, Cloud Services
• Engagement length: 3 years (2020 to 2023)

The Challenge

The school had purchased firewall, switching and wireless equipment, 75 student laptops, staff laptops and a server, but it needed all of it installed, connected and secured before students arrived. Staff needed working email and collaboration tools, students needed configured devices, and the building needed reliable wireless coverage across two floors. Leadership also wanted camera coverage of the building that a small operations team could monitor without specialized training.

The Solution We Delivered

AIS met with the school’s stakeholders to confirm requirements, then delivered the work in phases.

• Infrastructure stand-up. Configured the firewall, switch and access points, set up the server, and implemented both Google Workspace and Office 365 so staff and students had the tools they needed.
• Device deployment. Set up 75 student laptops and the staff machines, with every device enrolled in monitoring and managed for security and encryption.
• Structured cabling. Coordinated cabling for 14 wireless access points, relocated two network closets, and ran the links between the main network room and both floors.
• Security cameras. Configured 21 cloud-managed cameras, verified each field of view, mapped every camera on the building floor plan, and built a video wall so the operations team could watch the building from one screen.
• Network upgrade. In 2021, planned and installed a new cloud-managed switch, documenting the IP scheme, wireless networks and access point placement along the way.
• Ongoing managed services. 24/7/365 network monitoring, help desk support during school business hours, patching and antivirus oversight, backup monitoring, and a monthly report on the health of the environment.

Results & Impact

• The building opened with a working network, configured devices for students and staff, and cloud email and collaboration in place.
• Every student and staff machine reported into AIS monitoring and was managed for security and encryption.
• All 21 cameras came online in a single dashboard, mapped to the floor plan, with access set up for the staff who needed it.
• The school had one partner for projects, day-to-day support and planning across a three-year engagement, instead of separate vendors for each piece.

Planning a new building, a device rollout or a network refresh? Talk to AIS about a free consultation.