“As a district, we felt it was important that we had accurate time for the kids and for the staff in every classroom,” said Anthony Lautzenheiser, Fire and Life Safety Technician at Olentangy School District. “If we were going to take their phones from them, we wanted to make sure they had an accurate source of time.”

To ensure students received that accurate time, staff at Olentangy School District began analyzing their schools’ synchronized clock systems. Of 32 buildings, 10 had Primex systems, but most were an earlier generation that could benefit from a technology upgrade. That’s when Olentangy reached out to Primex.

Initial Contact Clears Vision for Primex Sync Upgrade

The existing Primex transmitter at Shanahan Middle School was just one example of an end-of-life transmitter that needed replacement. The model, which was part of the “XR Series” and installed in 2006, continued to tell time, but reached the age where it stopped automatically updating for daylight saving time.

“I was able to program the system to manually change the time zone,” Lautzenheiser said. “But I know this transmitter was near its end of life cycle, and I knew newer systems automatically update for daylight saving time. My boss recently connected with some Primex folks at a trade show and asked me to reach out.”

After getting in contact with a Primex sales member, Olentangy School District was essentially off and running. The first replacement was at Shanahan Middle School, which received an up-to-date Radio 72 MHz transmitter. In addition to automatic DST updates, this new technology unlocked additional benefits for school staff, like access to the cloud-based OneVue® software platform.

“I love that I have instant insight into the transmitters at all times,” Lautzenheiser said. “I can log in right now and check the status of any one of them. That, to me, because we’re 100-square-miles of district, is so valuable. It saves so much time by avoiding taking so many trips back-and-forth from schools.”

Simple Installation for Wireless Primex Radio 72 MHz System

Upgrading to a Primex Sync Radio 72 MHz Transmitter is a simple process, as Olentangy School District found out firsthand. The process begins when an in-house Primex engineer reviews building plans to determine the necessary equipment to guarantee synchronized time. After acquiring an FCC license to broadcast 72 MHz, a task which Primex completes, the transmitter is simply plugged in and starts sending radio signal to each clock within a school or campus. No invasive construction or excessive work is necessary.

“I couldn’t believe how easy it was to set up,” Lautzenheiser said. “It really was a set-it-and-forget-it type of thing. I don’t always have a ton of time, so having that quick setup process was really important to me. I just plugged it in, completed some settings within the [OneVue Device Configurator] app on my phone, and away it went.”

After a successful upgrade at Shanahan Middle School, Olentangy School District staff chose to upgrade seven other schools with new Radio 72 MHz Transmitters and OneVue access. Installation of the transmitters and clocks couldn’t be easier, according to Lautzenheiser. 

“I can’t think of any challenges,” he said. “After taking the old system down and out, I’ll turn the transmitter on so it’s transmitting new and real time, and then I’ll go through the school and hang the clocks for half a day. The setup is seamless.”

Future Plans to Upgrade More Olentangy Schools with Primex

Despite the successful installations and operations of Primex Sync Radio 72 MHz systems at eight schools, Olentangy School District still mostly has non-Primex clock systems at its remaining schools. Lautzenheiser likes the idea of an all-Primex district in the future, as he’s found Primex cost-effective and easy to manage.

“The other systems were already installed by the time I joined the district,” he said. “My vision is to make the district super tech-friendly and minimize the number of brands we have, which streamlines my work across the board. The district loves Primex because it saves us time and money. We’re going to try and change as many of these other systems over to Primex as possible.”

In the meantime, Olentangy School District will know their Primex-equipped campuses will continue to receive synchronized time, automatic daylight saving time changes, and mobile-friendly access to status checks via OneVue. When it’s time to upgrade other schools, the district knows the upgrade process is straightforward and Primex will be ready to collaborate to find each school’s perfect solution.

“The customer service and end-user experience are honestly second to none,” Lautzenheiser said. “I feel like we’re building a relationship, not just a work agreement between customer and vendor. I highly recommend Primex to everyone.”