Siklu provided gigabit millimeter wave equipment for project
Looking for a lower-cost alternative to fiber to connect multi-tenant public housing units, as well as a nearby homeless shelter, in Cleveland Ohio, Digital C worked with millimeter wave specialist Siklu to provide a wireless option to bridge the last mile cost of fiber and the digital divide faced by residents.
This project is part of the larger Connect the Unconnected initiative. Digital C and Siklu provided connectivity to around 800 residents living in Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority high rises, the Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries Men’s Shelter and the Stepstone Academy. In addition to the connectivity, community members could take a course on computer and internet use, and receive a refurbished computer for home use.
Boris Maysel, director of business development at Siklu, said the CEO of Digital CEO him that more than 30% of Cleveland residents don’t have home internet access. “It’s something that blows my mind.” He mentioned that after the project was completed, a survey of users was conducted to gain insight into usage. “After the network was up and running,” Maysel said, “the number one application is that [senior residents] grand children come to do their homework.”
He also discussed a retired veteran living in the community who took advantage of the training and laptop. “Now he’s going to be an IT manager,” Maysel said. “Internet access brought him back to normal life. It helps the community and, I think, from our perspective it was very important to show that this technology can deliver even for those low-income family homes and makes the business case work.”
Former Digital C CEO Lev Gonick said, “The technical architecture of the Cleveland Connect the Unconnected program is scalable and replicable. It’s a good example of using IT to advance the quality of life in a community and serve as a reference architecture for others.”
