AITB Position Paper - Recommendation on UCLA Connected:   Proposal for Campus-Wide Deployment

March 20, 1998

The AIT Board met on January 15^th and 29^th to review and discuss the proposal - UCLA Connected: Proposal for Campus-Wide Deployment submitted to the Board by Associate Vice Chancellor Allen Solomon.

The discussion focused on four overall issues 1) the technical validity of the plan, 2) the funding for the plan and 3) subsequent resource impact on the department when it assumes responsibility for the network equipment after installation and 4) a funding source for future upgrades.

1. From what we know today the Board advises that the plan is well thought out and technically sound. The Board noted the plan did not address the inclusion of wireless LANs, a technology that is expanding rapidly. Though its exclusion in the proposal should not necessarily slow implementation, it is felt that Communications Technology Services (CTS) should stay informed in this area.
2. The projected cost to deploy the UCLA Connected Model to all academic space on campus is $39.7 million. The proposal recommends borrowing the full $39.7 million to complete campus-wide deployment as rapidly as possible. CTS and the Chancellor’s Office will pay the loan back at 5 million annually with equal contributions. The payoff would be approximately 8 years. Assistant Vice Chancellor Glyn Davies gave assurances to the Board that the model is viable but there is a debt capacity issue between UCLA and UCOP impacting this project. Davies estimated that it would be at least six months before it is resolved.
3. The current model provides central funding and technical support for the initial installation of wiring and networking equipment. On-going technical support and maintenance and upgrade costs are to be borne by the department. Although many departments are in agreement with this model – and the subsequent control it allows in the management of departmental local area networks – some academic units may not have the finances or technical expertise to assume that role. The Board recommends that a tiered service model be designed to deploy centrally managed resources to support those departments who select not to manage parts of or the entire networking infrastructure. Equally, while some departments may realize no increased cost in overall network management given the state of their current technology infrastructure and funding model, others may see an increase, especially if they have no current budget allocation for on-going maintenance and upgrades. This potential resource impact should be considered within the Planning and Budget process.
4. Finally, there is the prospect that once projects are funded there is limited long term sustainable funding identified for upgrades – this is especially critical for technology infrastructure. On-going upgrade and maintenance funds should be identified and earmarked for a 3-5 year renewal path.

Among the technology projects of which the Board is aware, UCLA Connected is the project of first priority. With sensitivity to the issues raised above, the Board urges the Chancellor and executive management to move this project as rapidly as possible with a target finish date of Fall 2000.