The Victorian Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) has announced that will set up a suppliers panel for Polycom high definition videoconference equipment and support services.
The panel, which will run up to three years, follows the decision in December 2009 by the DEECD’s Enterprise Architecture Board to standardise on Polycom’s videoconferencing products in 1,553 Victorian Government schools and corporate areas of the DEECD.
The panel is consistent with the DEECD’s existing corporate video network and school video network, which are also based on Polycom’s high definition videoconference equipment, according to documents from the department.
The DEECD expects the panel will help gain access to high quality suppliers and reduce costs and administrative time related to sourcing videoconference equipment.
“Videoconferencing provides reduced operating costs, enabling staff to spend less time in transit and more time focused on the delivery of educational outcomes,” the documents read.
“There is continued interest in broader utilisation of videoconferencing facilities in Schools for delivery of learning content.”
The news marks the second big win for Polycom in recent times, with the news last week that the company had signed on to be the hardware supplier for Telstra's new Telstra VVX 1500 business media phone.