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Defense Acquisition University, a college that provides certification training to the acquisition workforce in the Department of Defense and other government agencies and defense-related private industry, is swapping out its classroom walls in favor of telepresence solutions from a Pleasanton, Calif.-based.

 

Polycom (News - Alert), Inc., a company that offers telepresence, video, and voice solutions is working with Apptis Technology Solutions to install Polycom RealPresence Experience, immersive telepresence suites in 10 locations throughout the nation. The university is using Polycom’s telepresence systems to transform its remote teaching network, which previously used legacy video teleconferencing systems that offered suffered from poor video quality, long lag times and frequently dropped connections.

 

"Critical thinking is a big part of this program, so continuity is vital," said David Newberry, who heads DAU's SSCF program, in a statement. "Without it, you lose the quality of learning that you need."

 

DAU is already using Polycom telepresence to extend the reach of its Senior Service College Fellowship program, which launched in 2006 to help prepare the DOD's more experienced Defense Acquisition Workforce personnel for advancement, company officials said. The university previously installed three systems in Huntsville, Ala., Fort Belvoir, and Aberdeen (News - Alert) Proving Grounds, Md.

 

"We wanted to create an environment where participants had the sense they were truly involved with one another," said Dave Scibetta, DAU's director of operations, in a statement.

 

Nearly all 10 systems are expected to be installed by year's end, officials said.

 

 

 

 

Using a cinematic, 16-foot video wall, the Polycom telepresence solution virtually places participants "across the table" from each other, the company said. The solution creates a dynamic learning environment that lets people naturally interact with one another. Content sharing capabilities and an HD document camera lets users share and view instruction materials any location.

 

Bobbi DeLeone, professor of acquisition management in DAU's School of Program Management, said the Polycom’s solution is a vast improvement to the university’s previous system. She said lag times were so severe with the previous equipment that students wouldn't hear a question until 10 seconds after it was asked.

 

"It's like night and day compared to what we had before," DeLeone said in a statement. "With telepresence, the resolution is fantastic. And we can bring in the teaching tools -- like the whiteboard, computers and video -- that we use here on site. Students tell us it enhances their ability to learn, because it's like they are in the same room as instructors and they are not distracted by technical glitches."

 

 

 

In related news, Polycom the Colorado Department of Transportation, is saving an estimated $1 million by deploying high-definition telepresence solutions from Polycom. As TMCnet reported, the new system – which includes the Polycom HDX 7000 telepresence and Polycom VSX 8800  – lets employees collaborate without having to be in the same room.