The valuable service the Ottawa Food Bank provides is fixing to
get more accessible, thanks to a new web-enabled communications
tool.
A two phase project, dubbed FoodNet, to be completed next May,
includes an agency boundary-mapping system and rapid agency-look-up
utility, according to Ottawa Food Bank executive director, Peter
Tilley.
The first phase has been completed and consists of a food
ordering system and information sharing module, said Tilley.
"FoodNet will become the most high-tech food bank in Canada."
The Ottawa Food Bank is partnering with six public and private
sector partners, including the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Cognos,
Adobe Systems, Cisco Systems Canada Co., Rogers Telecommunications
Inc., and the Social Planning Council of Ottawa.
"The FoodNet project came about through a need for them to
better communicate with their member agencies," said Tilley.
"Because as we were growing in the last six years from 67 to 112
member agenciesb &we found it would be nice to have a universal
communication system."
The Ontario Trillium Foundation, an agency of the Ministry of
Culture, offered the funding -- $75,000 over the next two years --
to start up a project that would look at getting all member
agencies Internet compliant.
"We're not there yet, but thanks to theB funding, and now
thanks to our partners like Adobe, Cisco and Cognos, we're going to
have computers in all our agencies eventually."
He said that some of those partners have been doing work for the
Food Bank for years. Cisco has purchased trucks, and Cognos has
been writing software for inventory management.
"So when we approached them and said, 'We have some seed money
from the Ontario Trillium FoundationB to help us make all our
agencies Internet compliant,' well that's what they do for a
living, and they were tickled pink they could help the Food Bank
set something like this up," Tilley said.
One of those partners, Cisco, contributed laptop computers
enabled with secure wireless capability to help the Food Bank
communicate more efficiently, said Barbra Snyder, chairperson for
the Harvest of Hope Campaign at the Ottawa Development Centre for
Cisco Systems Canada Co.
"Cisco continues to be committed to helping the Ottawa Food Bank
reach out in our community to those who need assistance and FoodNet
is no exception," said Snyder.
Phase two will make it a lot easier for people to access the
appropriate food bank in their area, in addition to making the Food
Bank more efficient and freeing up resources,B Tilley said,
citing a previous summer in which the borders were closed to Prince
Edward Island farmers, and they had about 20 massive bins of
potatoes delivered to the Food Bank.
"Now we can push a button and get the word out to our agencies
that we have extra potatoesb &rather than 112 phone calls, faxes and
voice messages."
Jean-Paul Gagnon, a program manager with the Ontario Trillium
Foundation, said the funding will be directed towards additional
personnel.
"It will be used for the hiring of an agency relations
co-coordinator, a project management consultant, a technical
consultant and a web master in the first year," he said.
This project is part of a longer history with the Food Bank, and
the Ontario Trillium Foundation has supported various initiatives
for them, including the installation of a walk-in freezer for
perishable goods, and in 2004 the hiring of a consultant to assist
in the development of a complete stock control system, according to
Gagnon.
"Because everything was done by hand before it became apparent
that with the level and scope of services they provide to 112
agencies, they just couldn't keep track of everything they
needed."
The new system will be sophisticated enough, that once the order
is approved, the stock is accordingly controlled.
"(FoodNet) really solidified our investment in the Food Bank, as
well as leveraging so much participation from high-tech companies,
which is brilliant," said Gagnon. "I think we've seen just the tip
of the iceberg in terms of the ongoing benefits to the
community."
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