Message to the MIT Community

FSILG Network Upgrade Project

1/1/2008

The IRDF Grant Advisory Committee and the AILG IT-Telecomm Committee want to make sure the MIT community is aware of a large effort underway to ensure all Fraternity, Sorority, and Independent Living Group (FSILG) buildings are upgraded to the latest wired and wireless network infrastructure. As you know, for today’s MIT students, high quality computer network connectivity is no longer a “nice to have” but an essential educational prerequisite in their living spaces. With this in mind, the Information Services & Technology (IS&T) department upgraded in 2004-5 all the network connections for all off-campus Fraternities, Sororities, and Independent Living Groups (FSILGs) to high speed fiber optic links, similar to the connections for on campus living groups. This helped enormously. However, the internal wiring of many of the FSILG houses is old and substandard and so many could not take effective advantage of the new fiber optic connections.

During calendar 2007, eight MIT FSILG chapters received 100% reimbursable IRDF Project Grants for upgrading their internal house wiring. These were accomplished done as individual contracts with different vendors. In course of analyzing and approving these projects, it occurred to the IRDF Grant Advisory Board that it would be much more cost effective to sponsor a single, comprehensive contract to finish the job and upgrade the remaining internal wiring, and document for the entire FSILG community. So the IRDF group asked the AILG IT-Telecomm Committee to further investigate the issues. The Committee immediately partnered with IS&T, performed a preliminary network survey of the FSILG properties, and developed the detailed proposal at http://web.mit.edu/irdf/network/proposal.htm.

Last week, the IRDF Grant Advisory Board recommended funding Phase 1 of the project for $85K. The key deliverable from Phase 1 is a full-scale Request for Proposal (RFP) which will be released to the vendor community sometime in April. The full project is expected to exceed $1 million, based on industry rules-of-thumb and MIT’s own experience in bringing dormitories up to the latest standards. Thus we want to ensure the work is carefully and professionally specified in Phase 1. If they are to receive IRDF funding, each FSILG must elect to participate in the project during the coming year. It is anticipated that virtually every one will. After this, the IRDF would not support individual, expensive network upgrades as it did in the past.

The IS&T department will provide the technical and quality control aspects of all work. The IRDF will provide grant funds to the FSILG Cooperative, Inc. (FCI), which will provide administer Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the work. The actual RFP for the full project will be let by the FCI, not by MIT. As you may be aware, the FCI - a corporation owned by 36 MIT FSILGs – has been very effective in providing business services to this community. The vendor selected for Phase 2 will be paid incrementally as IS&T approves the work done in each FSILG. The anticipated target for completing all work is the spring of 2009.

Besides the primary goal of upgrading the network infrastructure of all FSILG, the Committee found this single contract can readily provide the following additional, but related benefits:

* allow for improved diagnostics for troubleshooting. Each chapter and MIT’s IS& T would have an up-to-date data package of jacks, equipment, and wiring.

* permit installation of a more advanced and reliable radio alarm service. Known as AES, this service can, at the chapter’s option, replace the two analog lines each house must now maintain. These lines have proved historically unreliable.

* bring the entire FSILG community up to the latest wired and wireless standards, including the new 802.11N wireless standard.

* ensure all wiring is done to the latest building code standards and removal of obsolete wiring.

* provide a VOIP (Voice Over IP) capable backbone.

* allow chapters the option of cost effectively purchasing related services at their expenses, such as CATV wiring, intercom system, or a VOIP switch.

We believe we have today the best, most cost-effective opportunity to do this work now and thank you for your support. For further questions, information or advice, please feel to contact me or any member of the IRDF Grant Advisory, the IRDF Board of Allocation, or the AILG IT-Telecomm Committee.