NEW CASTLE SCHOOL DISTRICT DEPLOYS DISTRICT-WIDE WIRELESS NETWORK WITH THE MERU NETWORKS WIRELESS LAN SYSTEM
 

Sunnyvale, CA — October 10, 2006

Meru Networks, the global innovation leader in wireless infrastructure for the All-Wireless Enterprise, today announced that New Castle School District of New Castle, Indiana, is deploying the Meru Networks Wireless LAN System across its district to enable its more than 4,000 students and 500 staff and faculty to access a broad range of wireless voice and data applications. When completed, the wireless deployment will span New Castle's seven elementary schools, a middle school, high school and vocational school, the district's administration building and its technology center.

New Castle's initial search for a wireless LAN solution was driven by its desire to provide the greatest number of services possible to facilitate teaching and learning in its classrooms. Given the state of Indiana's one-to-one computing initiative, which mandates a computer for every student, New Castle recognized that running wires for each client would be cost-prohibitive. By contrast, wireless technology would dramatically lower the cost of networking all of the clients, and could enable the kind of "anytime, anywhere" learning environment the district sought. With a wireless LAN and several mobile computer labs, New Castle could allow entire classrooms to use computing resources efficiently and cost-effectively. In addition, the district wanted a solution that could be used for both data and voice over IP, allowing staff to keep in touch as they move about the school's campus during the workday.

Prior to selecting Meru's Wireless LAN System, New Castle evaluated several enterprise wireless LAN suppliers, but found that wireless clients would drop connections during roaming between access points (APs), and signal coverage was spotty even when the wireless clients were stationary. With its Virtual Cell technology that allows all clients and APs to reside on a single channel, Meru's Wireless LAN System solved the roaming and connectivity problems and, in the process, saved the district time and money.

"Because the Meru Wireless LAN System allows all APs to reside on the same channel, a site survey proved unnecessary, saving us valuable time and reducing our costs," said Shawn Iverson, Network Administrator for the New Castle School District. "We've been able to distribute the APs evenly throughout our buildings, knowing that the cells would overlap. The end result has been greatly improved reliability and complete coverage. In user terms, this means that our students and faculty can access a wide range of services, from basic Internet access to educational applications in the classroom, without having to worry about interruptions or lost connections."

With faculty and staff using laptops and PDAs, and students accessing mobile computer labs in the classrooms, New Castle is providing a wealth of applications over its wireless LAN. These include basic software applications like Microsoft Office, OpenOffice and Accelerated Reader, as well as a variety of edutainment packages and grade-book programs. Teachers can also access classroom instruction applications and can link to projectors in each classroom for presentations. The district also plans to equip teachers and staff with wireless VoIP handsets, so they can roam from building to building throughout their day, achieving all of the benefits of mobility without the high monthly costs of cellular service.

About Meru Networks
Meru Networks is the global leader in wireless infrastructure solutions that enable the All-Wireless Enterprise. Its industry leading innovations deliver pervasive, wireless service fidelity for business-critical applications to major Fortune 500 enterprises, universities, healthcare organizations and local, state and federal government agencies. Meru's award-winning Air Traffic Control technology brings the benefits of the cellular world to the wireless LAN environment, and its WLAN System is the only solution on the market that delivers predictable bandwidth and over-the-air Quality of Service with the reliability, scalability, and security necessary to deliver converged voice and data services over a single WLAN infrastructure. Founded in 2002, Meru is based in Sunnyvale, California. For more information on Meru Networks and its products, visit www.merunetworks.com or call (408) 215-5300.