Education - K12 to Post Secondary

Unity Connected Solutions has a broad suite of solutions for Education, from K12 to post-secondary. We are constantly looking at ways to save you money on technology and get the most out of what you already have.

We sell and support communications systems from Avaya and Mitel. We have particular expertise in helping education customers migrate their legacy Avaya platforms – extending their life, providing support and helping create migration plans at your pace. We provide SIP services that can save education institutions from 30% to 60% on their existing phone line costs. We also offer the best way to integrate your Microsoft Teams (Skype for Business) with your current telephone system.

We design and install alerting solutions to cost-effectively provide personal safety with automated notification. We also monitor environmental services like HVAC, smoke and fire alarms and provide pre-defined emergency response notification.

All That We Offer You

Unity Connected Solutions has offices in the major cities across Canada. We offer centralized, standard response with localized support as required.

We can be the single source Provider for your entire communications, life-safety and security infrastructure. Our solutions set include:

Communications systems
SIP trunking services – including Microsoft Approved Custom SBC
School and Campus Security with Alerting and Notification
Camera and Door Security
Environmental Monitoring
Unity’s 24x7x365 remote and on-site support services

Communications Solutions

We are Avaya Diamond and Mitel Gold partner (their highest levels) with extensive experience supporting Avaya legacy solutions like Avaya CS1K (formerly Nortel), BCM and CallPilot. We have been working with education institutions to help design their optimal migration plan. We can provide complete support and a variety of options.

Unity SIP 365 leverages a Microsoft approved custom SBC that allows call-forking via SIP trunks to both Microsoft Teams or Skype for Business and your current legacy PBX. This not only extends the life of your current PBX, it allows you migrate at your own pace, while also delivering savings over your current trunk/line costs or Microsoft Calling Plans.

SIP Trunks

SIP Trunks are far more flexible than regular PRI trunks or analog lines. SIP Trunks use IP technology to leverage lower cost broadband internet connections rather than fixed and expensive low bandwidth PRI and analog lines. Instead of sizing your line/trunks to fit your peak calling hour of the week, you can pay for enough SIP Trunks to manage your average calling behaviour and burst up, when needed to handle the peak. This reduces your monthly line/trunk costs anywhere from 30% to 60%.

For K-12 institutions you can create greater savings. You don’t pay for services that aren’t used during summer holidays.

Taking advantage of special pricing for Microsoft’s Office 365 for Education? You will find adding voice will be expensive using Microsoft Calling Plans. We have you covered with Unity SIP 365. Our custom SBC ‘forks’ calls to both your Microsoft Teams AND legacy PBX. As Unity SIP 365 is priced on an organization basis this reduces your calling costs by as much as 60%.

School & Campus Security

It is important that students and staff feel safe on campus and school grounds. This can be achieved with visible and integrated alarm management and notification. Response times can be dramatically improved using an automated system that uses pre-defined rules to consistently manage alarms, which could include alerting first responders. Alarm devices can be quickly placed around the facility- with no wiring required. Sensors can be placed on doors and windows.

Particularly vulnerable students or staff can be provided a personal device to alert when help is required, providing location information.

The solution can be integrated into almost any system including voice, email, paging, text and more. It can also integrate into smoke and fire systems to automate mass notification in cases of emergency.

Camera & Door Security

Safety and security of staff and students is paramount. Camera and door security is essential in K12 facilities.

Door security can be set up to lock down certain doors between certain hours, allow egress but not access to prevent unwelcome visits and more. There are many things to consider when providing door security, including meeting fire regulations. Newer door solutions offer digital control over Wifi and reduce wiring by controlling over data networks.

Cameras can come with a variety of capabilities and specifications. For example, exterior cameras should be able to operate effectively in the extreme weather conditions we experience in Canada and ideally operate well in low lighting conditions.

Unity has been providing complete camera and door security, including integrating with the data networks and cabling systems.

Environmental Monitoring

It is costly to manage and maintain the many systems used in facilities today. Most use proprietary control systems are not easily integrated. We can add sensors, integrate with existing systems and automate the alerts being generated. We can set up rules to send alerts directly to the appropriate maintenance personnel, including outside vendors and build-in escalation paths if not responded in a timely fashion. All of this can be managed and reported.

In addition to HVAC systems, we can monitor boilers, for water spills and damage, place temperature probes on devices, even smoke busters to prevent on property smoking as well as any smoke and fire alarm systems. In fact, anything that has a relay contact can be monitored.

Prevent costly damage by effective and efficient by automating environmental monitoring.

Unity Managed Services

Every educational institution we work with is different. But one thing remains common. The need for reliable and affordable support.

We back every solution we implement with remote AND onsite support – 24x7x365 – including statutory holidays.

We can provide basic but essential maintenance services all the way to completely customized managed services that supplement your existing staff.

Want more info? Fill out the form below and one of our Education specialists will be in touch.