Prestigious museum adopts High Density 802.11ac Wireless to cater to tech-savvy audience

Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands is one of the top 10 art and history museums in the world.

We live in an era where information is available in the palm of our hands and traditional institutions such as museums are inevitably facing the consequences of this. Even though the museum dates back to the 1800’s with artifacts from the middle ages, they have embraced modern technology to adapt to the changing landscape. This was as a matter of survival considering the competition from other institutions.

 Network requirements

Rijksmuseum’s goal was to increase the number of visitors by providing a superior visitor experience. They had already taken some really innovative steps. For example,  seeing the rapid increase in the number of personal devices (BYOD) they developed a free smartphone app which helps users navigate their way through the museum similar to having a guide. Check out the app demo below.

The problem was that their building lacked a robust wireless infrastructure that is needed for the increase of personal devices along with running an interactive app.

They needed a network that:

• Supports network access for up to 15,000 visitors each day
• Is easy to manage for limited IT staff
• Does not take away from the museum’s aesthetic appeal
• Does not cause distractions when viewing the exhibits 

Network solution:

Since supporting thousands of devices was a major requirement, Rijksmuseum went with 802.11ac, the latest standard in wireless.

The Cisco Aironet® 3700 Series Access Points with support for 802.11ac and Cisco’s High Density Experience (HDX) solution that includes CleanAir® and ClientLink 3.0 which is designed to alleviate the introduction of more clients, bandwidth-hungry applications, and high-density network strain while providing an unparalleled user experience. They implemented Cisco’s Unified Access solution which enables them to have a secure and easy to manage network with limited staff.

See the complete product list here: Museum Increases Footfall with Richer Visitor Experience

Results

Rijksmuseum now have a network that allows them to deliver rich content that augments their exhibits. Their network has enabled them to have a personal virtual guide for each visitor using a device. They take great pride in educating the visitors with additional information, images and videos about their prized artifacts and this could not have been possible in a traditional setting.

The numbers speak for themselves. Since reopening, their number of visitors has increased from 1 million to 2.4 million within 10 months.

To learn about network implementation and even more benefits, read the complete case study Museum Increases Footfall with Richer Visitor Experience

Learn how your business can benefit with up to 3x greater network performance with Cisco’s  802.11ac Solution.