The Convention Centre Dublin (the CCD) has revealed details of the ICT infrastructure at the venue, which opened last September. The systems in place make it one of the largest IT fit-outs delivered in Ireland in the past year.
Eircom won the competitive tender to design and deploy the network and ICT infrastructure. The value of the deal was not disclosed. The CCD had sought a single supplier to provide the systems.
Strategically, the CCD intends to make its ICT and its facilities a competitive differentiator in the convention market. The technology is set up to provide customers with tailored IT according to the needs of the events being hosted at the site. It’s also designed to allow event managers and technical production managers at the venue to offer flexible and multi-purpose meeting spaces and events addressing the customer’s requirements efficiently.
The infrastructure is designed to be scalable, so the CCD can cater for the bandwidth-heavy requirements of large international conventions, where large groups of users are likely to be using the network at the same time. Eircom said the bandwidth can be delivered so that normal service for CCD staff and customers isn’t affected during these times.
Cisco technology is powering the LAN – both wired and wireless – in addition to secure services for voice, data and video and unified communications for the telephony and contact centre services. Wi-Fi coverage extends throughout the venue, including the 2,000-seat auditorium. Eircom also provided the HP-badged desktop and server and storage technology and applications, including Microsoft SharePoint.
The project was delivered on time and on budget, according to Killian Carroll, the CCD’s finance director, who praised Eircom’s programme management, from design through to testing and handover. The company has scored some notable successes in winning contracts for large venues, having already provided communications systems to the revamped Croke Park and Aviva Stadium.
