The Marron Group

Every retirement community is bound to provide tailored services and compassionate tech-enabled care to its residents. As such, it is imperative for them to ensure uninterrupted connectivity for general Internet use, such as browsing and content streaming, and for a growing number of web-based/Wi-Fi enabled healthcare products. Although fiber optic cable proves to be a feasible option for high-speed Internet, most retirement communities struggle with poor quality Internet services due to constrained budgets and lack of dedicated IT staff.

To that end, Chicago-based network engineering company, The Marron Group, equips retirement communities with next-gen optical fiber networks and enables gigabit passive optical networking (GPON). The company's network services include LAN/WAN Networking, Wireless (Wi-Fi) Network Survey/Design and Deployment, and Network (IT) Security Systems. The Marron Group also offers fiber optic testing services that include fiber characterization, Campus and Data Centers, Out Side Plant(OSP), and Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing (CWDM) and Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM). “Our company offers different levels of Internet services according to the client's needs. Understanding organizational changes, we can help retirement communities to mitigate risk, introduce new ideas and ensure on-time and on-budget delivery of projects." Gregory P. Marron, President/Owner of the company.

With such services, The Marron Group has helped retirement communities to revamp their connectivity. In one instance, the company helped a retirement home struggling with slow Internet by using optical networking for setting up GPON. The Marron Group provided high-speed, reliable and secure Internet at an economical price. Having expertise in designing network infrastructure, the company used existing partial filled pathways, such as one-inch conduit runs, to pull the fiber optic cable resulting in minimal or no modification to the existing walls.

We pride ourselves on being great listeners. We believe in being transparent and candid. We strive to understand our clients' views, values and business challenges. That’s why we’re different

To provide unified management of devices and to streamline the data flow, The Marron Group installed a GPON modem (Internet modem) and a Meraki Wi-Fi AP device in each residence of the retirement community. As part of this project, the company helped the client get rid of an Intermediate Distribution Frame (IDF) occupying 100 square feet of space on each floor, as well as the costs associated with the Ethernet equipment in each IDF and any unnecessary construction, thus saving money and returning valuable real estate for other use. In a nutshell, by saving massive expenses and having reliable and secure internet connectivity, the retirement community could serve the residents better while bolstering their quality of life and safety. “Using our fiber optic networking, we strive to turn the normal cost center of IT for retirement communities into a profit center,” asserts Marron.

Scripting many such success stories, The Marron Group has established a relationship of trust with their customers. Reflecting the same, Marron says, “We pride ourselves on being great listeners. We believe in being transparent and candid. We strive to understand our clients' views, values and business challenges. That’s why we’re different. It’s all about understanding their business and applying our experience and know-how to achieve the best results.”

To serve clients better, The Marron Group provides a service-level-agreement (SLA) with minimal turnaround time. Through such SLAs, the company aims at providing great value, revenue streams and high customer experience to its clientele. The Marron Group plans to continue its growth in the retirement community industry. Further, the company will be targeting condominium associations for non-retirees with the goal of providing them personal Internet at a lower cost. “Our strategy is to work with retirement communities and continue building a relationship of trust. This is how we want to place ourselves in the upcoming years,” concludes Marron.