A MUSEUM which exhibits some of the greatest-ever technological advancements has joined the digital age.

The Wroughton Science Museum home to the Science Museum's large objects collection is at Wroughton Airfield, a former World War Two airfield.

Communications there have always been difficult as not all the hangars are connected up by cable and the distance between them often means staff have to travel by car between sites.

This lack of a local communications infrastructure meant the site also lacked internet access, an essential research tool for museum staff. But now with help from new technology from Swindon computer chip firm Intel, communications have been greatly improved.

Intel has installed a new wireless network WiMAX with a much longer range than its predecessors.

Most wireless networks have a range of tens of metres for use in the home or office, but WiMAX has a range of several kilometres, perfect for what the Science Museum needs.

And installing an antenna is far cheaper than digging underground to install fixed wires and cables. James Dove, of the Science Museum in Kensington, London, said: "Intel wanted to find a situation or a problem that WiMAX would solve, and the Science Museum was a good example.

"We have some 30,000 items stored in 11 hangars on this World War Two airfield and the hangars are widely spaced to stop them being attacked during the war.

"Sometimes our researchers might need to study an item and update the database.

"With the new technology they can be studying that item and update the database while they are stood right next to it, rather than take details in notebooks and then drive back and input them." Now staff at the museum have access to the internet, and can communicate with each other.

The system even solves the problem of poor mobile coverage. A special headset gives them a cheap telephone service in any building on the site.

Mr Dove said that the system was already proving its worth.

Once Intel demonstrated the equipment they decided to donate some of it to the museum and now it is being routinely used by the curators.

He added: "We hope to continue working with Intel and one day we hope that we can use this technology for our many thousands of visitors each year."