October 4, 2007 -- Panduit and RedSky Technologies, a provider of automated E911 systems for enterprises, have announced a joint initiative to provide location tracking of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phones by integrating the Panduit's Panview System fwith RedSky's E911 Manager software.
The companies maintain that one of the issues confronting medium to large size enterprises deploying VoIP networks is keeping track of changes to the physical layer connections. If a connection is moved at the patch panel, the physical layer map that associates the enterprise switch port to the location of a cable termination is compromised, unless meticulous record keeping is performed. The need for such record keeping is eliminated by the Panview System, says Panduit.
The Panview System provides visual mapping and location identification of VoIP phones by gathering accurate information on asset movements and changes to the cross-connected patch field. The system records this information to a central database. Via the joint initiative, RedSky's E911 Manager software draws MAC address information from this database and sends phone location updates to VoIP call server platforms from Cisco, Nortel and Avaya.
"Through this partnership with Panduit, we can deliver the state-of-the-art integrated software solutions that Fortune 500 companies require," contends Nick Maier, SVP of RedSky. "Panview is the leading system for managing and identifying physical layer connections, and E911 Manager is the leading E911 software application. By integrating the two, we can further automate location management, asset management, emergency calling and ultimately other location-based services."
According to the companies, the integrated platform will meet the needs of enterprise customers who manage thousands of IP endpoint devices and rely on automated systems to drive network performance. E911 Manager also provides interfaces to Local Exchange Carrier (LEC) Automatic Location Information (ALI) databases, thereby automating the process of record management across different LEC providers.
"The seamless integration of E911 Manager and the Panview System enhances the location-based information for IP telephony deployments," concludes Ron Partridge, VP of sales and marketing at Panduit.