Case Study: Indiana Institute of Technology

At a Glance

• Industry: Higher Education
• Location: Fort Wayne, Indiana
• Website: indianatech.edu
• Previous Platform: The Permit Store
• Modules Implemented: ParkAdmin, ViolationAdmin, PL8RDR Mobile LPR, SAML SSO
• Equipment: Survision Picopak, PL8RDR, ruggedized Android with mount and printer
• Key Result: Full platform replacement — digital permits, mobile LPR enforcement, and SAML SSO — for less than the cost of renewing their previous software

Overview

Indiana Institute of Technology is a private university in Fort Wayne, Indiana, offering undergraduate and graduate programs with a strong emphasis on applied learning, engineering, and professional development. Like many mid-sized institutions, Indiana Tech’s parking operation had grown around a commercial platform that worked well enough — until the renewal pricing arrived.

When their previous vendor’s latest pricing increase landed on the desk of Indiana Tech’s parking administrators, it prompted a straightforward question: what else is out there, and what does it actually cost?

The answer led them to OperationsCommander — and a full platform upgrade for less than what they were being asked to pay just to stay where they were.

The Challenge

Indiana Tech had been managing campus parking through a commercial parking permit application. The system handled the basics, but when renewal pricing increased to a level that was difficult to justify for what the platform delivered, the university began evaluating alternatives.

Key operational priorities going into the search:

• Replace physical paper permits with a virtual, license-plate-based permit system
• Improve enforcement efficiency with mobile License Plate Recognition rather than manual plate lookups
• Maintain self-service access for students and staff with online permit purchasing and violation payment
• Integrate with the university’s existing identity infrastructure via SAML SSO
• Reduce overall platform cost without reducing capability

The bar was clear: do more than the current system, for less.

The Solution

Indiana Tech implemented OperationsCommander with a focused package of ParkAdmin, ViolationAdmin, and PL8RDR Mobile LPR — supported by a ruggedized Android device with mount and Bluetooth printer, and a Survision Picopak camera for vehicle capture.

ParkAdmin — Permit Management

ParkAdmin replaced Indiana Tech’s paper permit program with a fully virtual, license-plate-based system. Students and staff purchase and manage permits online, with no physical hangtag to distribute, track, or replace. Permit data is live and immediately accessible to enforcement officers in the field — a permit purchased at 8am is visible during patrol at 8:15am.

• Online self-service permit purchasing for students, staff, and faculty
• Virtual permits tied to license plates — no physical distribution required
• Customizable permit types, zones, and enforcement rules by lot
• Role-based administrative access for parking office staff
• Online payment processing for permit purchases and renewals
• SAML SSO integration for seamless login using university credentials

ViolationAdmin — Enforcement and Citation Management

ViolationAdmin gave Indiana Tech’s enforcement team a connected digital workflow for citation issuance, payment, and appeals — replacing whatever manual processes supported the previous platform.

• Handheld citation issuance with photo evidence and timestamped records
• Real-time permit validation against live ParkAdmin data in the field
• Online violation payment — parkers pay and appeal without visiting the parking office
• Complete violation history by plate for repeat offender tracking
• Configurable appeals workflow with online submission and administrative review

PL8RDR — Mobile License Plate Recognition

The addition of mobile LPR is the capability step that separates Indiana Tech’s new operation from what they had before. A Survision Picopak mounted on a patrol vehicle reads and validates plates automatically during drive-by patrol — comparing each plate against live permit data in real time.

• Drive-by plate capture and instant validation against active permits
• Automatic flagging of unregistered or expired permit vehicles
• Significant improvement in patrol efficiency versus manual plate lookups
• Integrated with ViolationAdmin for immediate citation issuance on flagged vehicles

The Results

Full Platform Upgrade for Less Than a Renewal

The headline outcome is straightforward: Indiana Tech replaced their previous parking platform with a more capable system — virtual permits, mobile LPR, SSO integration, and connected enforcement — for less than their previous vendor’s renewal pricing. That’s not a minor operational win. For a university managing a tight budget, paying less for more is a meaningful result.

Paper Permits Eliminated

The shift to virtual, license-plate-based permits removes the cost and administrative overhead of physical permit production and distribution. No printing, no mailing, no replacement requests for lost hangtags. Permits live in the database, tied to plates, updated in real time.

Enforcement Efficiency Improved

Mobile LPR changes the math on patrol coverage. Where manual enforcement requires an officer to stop and look up each plate individually, drive-by LPR validation means a patrol vehicle can cover a lot continuously — flagging violations automatically rather than depending on individual plate checks. For a campus managing multiple lots, that’s a meaningful improvement in what a single officer can cover per shift.

Seamless User Access via SSO

SAML SSO integration means students and staff log into the parking portal with their existing university credentials — no separate account creation, no password management, no friction at login. The same identity infrastructure that manages access to every other campus system now covers parking.

Why OPSCOM

Indiana Tech found OPSCOM through independent web research and reached out through the contact form. The evaluation process was straightforward: the platform delivered everything they needed — virtual permits, connected enforcement, mobile LPR, and SSO — and the pricing made the decision easy. When the alternative was a renewal increase on a platform without LPR capabilities, the comparison didn’t require much deliberation.

For universities evaluating parking platforms after an unsatisfying renewal conversation with an incumbent vendor, the Anderson University case study offers a similar perspective on replacing a legacy system with something that actually scales. For institutions considering the addition of mobile LPR specifically, the University of North Alabama case study shows what connected LPR enforcement looks like in a similar mid-sized campus environment.

About Indiana Institute of Technology

Indiana Institute of Technology is a private university located in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Founded in 1930, Indiana Tech offers undergraduate and graduate programs across engineering, business, health sciences, and the arts and sciences, with a focus on applied learning and career preparation. The university serves students from across the United States and internationally on its Fort Wayne campus.