Dublin, Ohio Goes Mobile With Cisco Outdoor Wireless Network

DHB Networks to Build Citywide Wi-Fi Network to Enhance Public Safety and Drive Economic Development

SAN JOSE, Calif., October 6, 2006 - Cisco Systems®, the city of Dublin, Ohio, and DHB Networks, have announced that an innovative citywide wireless (Wi-Fi) network has been installed in the city’s metro core to improve public safety and drive economic development in the region. DHB Networks, an Ohio-based business offering wireless broadband and fiber Internet services to municipalities, businesses and residents, has selected Cisco to provide outdoor technology for the Wi-Fi deployment in Dublin.

Using Cisco’s mesh technology as the wireless infrastructure, DHB Networks has built an outdoor network and connected it into DubLink, Dublin’s existing fiber network system, which serves as the mesh network backhaul. Dublin’s police and municipal workers can use the dedicated wireless network bandwidth to access a number of innovative applications, such as real-time police video monitoring, high-speed data access for police cruisers, mobility for first responders and mobile field inspection. DHB Networks will offer wireless access services, under the Airwirz brand to local businesses and consumers. In addition, DHB will establish wholesale access agreements so that other Internet service providers (ISPs) can offer services and use the mesh network.

“This municipal wireless deployment will allow residents, businesses and city employees of Dublin to have mobile access to the Internet,” said Dublin Mayor Marilee Chinnici-Zuercher. “Our primary goals of this outdoor Wi-Fi network are to enhance public safety and improve the city’s operational efficiencies while also encouraging and creating growth opportunities for locally owned companies and residents.”

As part of the first phase of the wireless network rollout, DHB Networks will deploy Cisco Aironet® 1500 Series lightweight outdoor mesh access points which are attached to city buildings and streetlights to provide four square miles of coverage within the metro core. To reduce management costs and centralize network monitoring, DHB Networks is using Cisco 4400 Series Wireless LAN Controllers and the Cisco Wireless Control System. The initial deployment will be followed by a citywide extension of the wireless mesh network. Cisco 3200 Mobile Access Routers will be used to provide in-vehicle access for public safety applications, utilizing the mesh infrastructure for backhaul to city data centers.

Innovative Public Safety Demonstration

In conjunction with the city, Cisco and DHB Networks will host a wireless day on Oct. 16 in Dublin, where local communities in central Ohio will gather to see the mesh technology demonstrated and learn more about economic opportunities afforded by the mobile network. A series of innovative applications will be demonstrated including a public safety application that the city’s police department is implementing. In this particular application, a Cisco wireless mobile router was installed in the city’s Mobile Command Post (MCP), a state-of-the-art mobile communications vehicle that will have connectivity to the mesh network. The vehicle is deployable for special events and incident command situations to help ensure effective communications among first responders.

Using the Cisco mobile access router located in the MCP, Cisco and DHB Networks have enabled the city to wirelessly transmit video from surveillance cameras, operate a multi-station voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone network, utilize computer-aided dispatch and mapping software, and utilize mobile IP phones in and around the MPC using the mesh network.

“We selected Cisco’s wireless technology for the Dublin network because it will deliver performance and reliability while being highly scalable and easy to deploy,” said David Haimbaugh, principal of DHB Networks. “The solution uses well-established standards and offers a substantially reduced risk, cost and time to market.”

“The city of Dublin is a progressive community that exemplifies municipal Wi-Fi innovation,” said Alan Cohen, senior director of mobility solutions for Cisco Systems. “Cisco’s wireless networking technology continues to enable municipalities to build innovative mobile applications, while also providing additional tools for economic development.”
About the City of Dublin

Dublin, Ohio, a progressive and innovative city, surrounds the Scioto River in the northwest area of metropolitan Columbus. Dublin is within 500 miles of more than 50 percent of the U.S. population, 35 percent of the Canadian population, and 60 percent of the nation’s manufacturing facilities and consumer markets. Approximately 25 square miles and home to nearly 39,000 people, the city annually hosts Jack Nicklaus’ PGA Tour Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village. For more information, visit www.dublin.oh.us.
About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, go to http://newsroom.cisco.com.

# # #

Cisco, Cisco Systems the Cisco Systems logo and Aironet are registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. This document is Cisco Public Information.

Contact Information

Nancy Richison

City of Dublin

Contact via E-mail