Cisco Cisco Wireless Control System Version 4.0 Folheto
Customer Case Study
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Service Company Brings Wi-Fi to Commercial Truckers
IdleAire Technologies unlocks new revenue by deploying a Cisco Unified Wireless
Network for its transportation customers and employees.
Business Challenge
Founded in 2000, IdleAire Technologies is a unique
company that addresses a problem common to
commercial truck drivers all over the United States.
By law, commercial drivers are required to have 10
hours of rest for every 11 hours that they spend on
the road. Often, these drivers do not want to leave
their cargo or their rigs unattended, so they sleep in
the cabs of their trucks. Historically, drivers have let
their engines idle during that resting time, in order to
keep their cabs heated or air conditioned,
depending on the weather. But the noise of an idling
engine can result in insufficient rest for the driver,
and the air pollution is significant.
IdleAire’s Advanced Travel Center Electrification
(ATE) system features unique electronic service
modules attached to large, concentric hoses, which
hang from a large truss under which the drivers
park. Utilizing a simple, $10 window adapter, the
modules fit into the passenger window of a truck’s
cab, pumping heat or air conditioning through the
hose, so that the driver can remain comfortable with
the engine turned off. Available at 112 travel centers
so far, the ATE service module has evolved to
become an entertainment and communications unit,
too—providing amenities such as movies, television, phones, and Internet access.
A few years ago, IdleAire decided to create a secondary revenue stream: Wi-Fi hotspots for those
professional drivers who did not require the full services of the ATE System, or who might want to
use the Internet somewhere other than inside their trucks.
“We wanted the ability to offer service to the drivers who were not parked under our trusses,” says
Jon Duren, CTO of IdleAire. “Commercial truck drivers are largely relegated to travel centers
whenever they need to stop on the road. Large trucks cannot pull into the nearest Starbucks and
get Internet access.”
Separately, IdleAire needed wireless network access for its own executives and employees, both
in its corporate offices and in the corporate parking lots, where they perform demonstrations in
model trucks.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
IDLEAIRE TECHNOLOGIES
●
Transportation services
●
Knoxville, Tennessee
●
1341 employees
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
●
Provide wireless voice and data network
connectivity to both corporate offices and
outdoor research and testing labs and travel
centers.
outdoor research and testing labs and travel
centers.
●
Offer wireless Internet access to visiting
vendors and potential customers
●
Create wireless hot spots at travel centers
throughout the United States
NETWORK SOLUTION
●
A secure Cisco Unified Wireless Network –
composed of wireless controllers, lightweight
access points, IP phones, and management
software – was deployed at corporate offices.
access points, IP phones, and management
software – was deployed at corporate offices.
●
Separate SSIDs for employees and guests
help ensure secure network access
●
Standalone wireless access points are
deployed at more than 100 travel centers,
creating wireless hot spots
creating wireless hot spots
BUSINESS RESULTS
●
Reporting tools in the management software
help the IT staff maintain Sarbanes-Oxley
compliance
compliance
●
A single-vendor solution helps ensure prompt
and reliable system support
●
Wireless hotspots create a new revenue
stream and enhance IdleAire’s reputation for
providing advanced services
providing advanced services