OREANDA-NEWS. Fujitsu announced that it has been selected as a partner by UTC Reading. The partnership, which was facilitated through solutions provider, European Electronique, will see Fujitsu provide CELSIUS Workstations and Q510 PCs to the recently opened University Technical College. It underpins UTC Reading’s ethos to provide cutting-edge technology – and to promote education that is directly linked to learning in the workplace.

With a specialism in Computer Science and Engineering, UTC Reading has a requirement for a sophisticated ICT infrastructure, above and beyond the levels of most schools and colleges. A year in advance of opening its doors in September 2013, the college issued a tender for the design and implementation of its entire IT infrastructure. It was vital that IT was built into the strategy and design of the college – rather than as an afterthought, or phased implementation. Furthermore, ICT needed to be integrated into the curriculum, with staff and students given access to the latest hardware, suitable and powerful enough to deliver the college’s specialist courses in programming and software development.

European Electronique was awarded the contract following a competitive tender process. The decision to recruit Fujitsu for its hardware capabilities was due to a longstanding and successful partnership in education, where the two companies have worked together on frameworks, such as National Server and Storage Agreement through which they have been successful in a number of tenders.

UTC Reading is utilising Fujitsu CELSIUS workstations as part of its engineering design course. The power of the Fujitsu workstations is helping students undertake real-world, complex design projects, such as online car design. Fujitsu’s Q510 micro PC was selected due to its small form factor and futuristic design, and fits well with the college’s modern environment.

“The decision to go with European Electronique and Fujitsu was a natural one”, said Joanne Harper, Principal, UTC Reading. “There’s a mutual understanding between all of us about what we want to achieve; the proposals ticked all boxes to provide the latest technology for our students and worked within the budget. Furthermore, they were able work in a high quality, fast and efficient way – which was vital due to the time critical opening of the college in September. We look forward to a long and successful relationship with both partners.”

“It’s incredibly exciting to have a part to play in the success of UTC Reading,” said Craig Parker, Head of product marketing, UK & Ireland, Fujitsu. “IT has a really strong role to play in the education sector and seeing Fujitsu’s technology maximise the learning potential at UTC Reading has been very rewarding.”

"This partnership has proven to be a great success" said Yolanta Gill, CEO, European Electronique. "UTC Reading is now well positioned to explore with us and Fujitsu the endless possibilities that technological innovation can bring to inspire young people and prepare them for the future we can only imagine."