Unisys to provide prison phones

Unisys will replace the Bureau of Prisons’ inmate telephone system with a solution based on its hardware and Intel telephony products.

The phone replacement work is part of the Inmate Telephone System-3 contract, which Unisys announced today. In addition to deploying the nationwide phone system, the company will also provide operations and maintenance services.

Unisys estimated the contract’s three-year base period to be worth $37 million. The contract’s total value could reach $96 million if all options are exercised.

The telephone solution will be built around Unisys’ ES3120 dual-processor servers. The mid-level server will use Intel telephony cards to enable it to process telephone calls, a Unisys spokeswoman said. Value Added Communications (VAC) will provide the inmate telephone software application.

The spokeswoman said the new system will replace a system VAC developed. Deployment of the current phone system began in 1998, she added.

Unisys cited hardware space reduction as one of the new phone system’s benefits, noting that the company’s solution uses one-eighth of the hardware space that the current inmate phone system requires. The company plans to offer similar solutions to state, local and international correctional institution markets, according to the company.