Case Study One- Telecom Savings
Background
This client is a non-profit with multiple branches within the Delaware Valley. They range in size from 300 users to 9 users. They were approaching the end of a contract with the provider that supplied voice connections to all of their sites. They have old phone systems in place and the IT Department expects that funding to replace these will be available in the next two years.
One key trigger for the VoIP deployment is the pending sale of their largest site which will provide funds and allow them to do some consolidating of people and services. That is expected to happen approximately two years out. The IT Department feels that timing for VoIP replacement is not good when we meet. They are prepared to extend the current contract for voice until they are prepared to do a VoIP provider evaluation.
Crown VoIP & IT Approach
Our approach was to do a complete evaluation of the current costs. This meant reviewing all of the invoices from the provider. A report was created with a spreadsheet showing all of the cost items and details of the connections. This allowed us to get a clear look at the entire network of sites and compare the costs across the network.
Results
As a result of this review, Crown was able to identify changes in the network that had the potential to provide savings for the client. We then negotiated with the provider to make technical changes and provide savings for the client. The client then signed a one year contract based on the new configuration. This provided savings of approximately 20% for the client. It also provided flexibility at the end of the one year contract.
Over the term of the new contract, Crown monitored the invoices and found errors and other changes that needed to be addressed. This ensured that all of the savings were received by the client.
The CFO provided a Letter of Recommendation to Crown for this effort.
Case Study Two- New Voice/ Internet Solution
Background
This client is a very successful not-for-profit organization that actively promotes business in the Delaware Valley. They have a number of employees creating new digital content. They have several applications in the cloud and some servers on site. They have one office in Center City Philadelphia, and they have filled the space to capacity. A few employees work remotely for part of the week.
In place when we started was a 20 Mb fiber and a Voice over IP telephone solution supplied by one telecom supplier. They also had a backup Internet connection from Comcast Cable Broadband at 150/20 speeds. There were three WiFi access points to cover their office
Crown VoIP & IT Approach
Analysis – Recommendations – Follow Through
The first thing that Crown did jointly with the IT Department was to analyze current services and the shortcomings that needed to be addressed. We looked at current cost to get an idea of the budget available. We reviewed the contract to confirm that it had not aut0-renewed.
They identified a number of concerns and requirements that were important to the continued success of the organization. When current service was installed, it was a substantial upgrade from their previous Internet and voice system. However, in the five years since installation, their usage had grown substantially. The need for faster Internet speed was critical. Current fiber was too slow to handle the traffic. The fiber would occasionally go down, and voice would completely stop. The Internet traffic would move over to the Comcast Cable Broadband, but the speed was so slow that it made it hard for employees to be productive.
Because they were at the end of their contract, replacing the fiber meant also replacing the phones. So they also wanted to review options for hosted VoIP telephones.
Another concern was the Wi-Fi in the office. It was old and was slow and was not covering the space so there were a number of dead spots.
Key Requirements:
- High Speed Fiber
- Redundant Fiber backup
- Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phones system in the cloud
- Improved Wi-Fi
- Within budget
In looking for new services, we reviewed fiber offerings within the building and the surrounding area. Two fiber options were found to be available and of reasonable cost. The primary is 100Mb and the backup is 50Mb.
Crown then worked with the IT department and management of the company to create a requirements document that would be used to be used as a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a new voice solution. This RFP was sent to 4 providers who proposed solutions. They did live demos of their solution and addressed the specifics of the requirements outlined by the staff and Crown.
The final solution was chosen through an organized evaluation that measured the responses and the capabilities of the voice providers. Crown helped to add details to the contract to cover special needs of the client. During the installation, Crown provided additional project oversight in conjunction with the Project Manager of the provider.
Crown recommended a managed service company that provided new Wi-Fi and firewall. There are now 5 Wi-Fi access points covering their space. As one walks from one end of the building to the other, the connection is automatically handed off to the next access point.
Results
As a result of the cooperative and analytic approach, a new VoIP Telecom solution is installed using their new fast fiber connection. The solution has a number of features that were specific to them, including soft phones that are installed on cell phones or laptops for travel, voicemail delivered to email, and more.
New fiber and redundant fiber are installed and working. The final step in the project was to test automatic failover. This was done by unplugging the primary fiber and testing services to see they are working. So a failure of the primary fiber circuit means that all services including the voice will automatically move from the 100Mb to the 50 Mb fiber.
The new Wi-Fi has been installed and coverage of the office is complete and high speed.
The final review of results are:
- 100Mb Fiber with 50Mb Fiber backup (combined 150Mb). This replaces much slower – 20Mb Fiber and 150/20 Cable.
- New Voice Solution replacing Old Voice Solution
- New Wi-Fi (5 access points) replacing Old Wi-Fi (3 access points)
- Redundancy in place so failure of Fiber 1 immediately moves traffic to Fiber 2
- Monthly costs dropped from $3,160 per month to $2,830 (annual savings of $3960).
- After 3 years the monthly will drop to $2,350 (annual savings of $9720).
Case Study Three- Audit of Services Supporting Office Building Management
Background
This client is the owner of 10 multi-story office buildings in the city and suburbs of Philadelphia. They use a combination of plain old telephone service (POTS) lines and Comcast or Verizon to provide Internet to support some critical infrastructure elements: alarms, elevators, HVAC management, security cameras, phones for lobby and maintenance. Total spend annually was estimated at more than $50,000.
Crown VoIP & IT Approach
Analysis – Recommendations – Follow Through
It was agreed that a full audit of the services to document all items and all costs would be valuable. This process resulted in a list of issues to be solved:
- Lack of clarity on each bill and which phone lines were in service
- Minimal information on what each phone line was connected to (alarm, elevator, etc.)
- Need to understand cost and how to reduce price of lines that are in use
- Speed of some connections are slow and are causing issues with cameras.
- Main office had one Internet connection and temporary outages brought things to a halt.
- After hours emergency voicemails provided callback phone numbers spoken so quickly that it was often impossible to call the person back.
Crown invested time in reviewing all bills, exploring basement entry points for service, testing dial tone, reviewing modem levels, getting to know each of the maintenance engineers and the specific building requirements. In the process of testing and verifying, a number of lines were determined to be not in use, even though they were in service and being billed.
Results
As a result of its analytic approach, Crown was able to cancel lines and services, which reduced or eliminated bills. For the services that were kept, Crown found the lowest cost POTS lines available and changed providers to reduce costs. Some Comcast circuits were upgraded for faster speed, discounts pursued, static IP addresses added. A new Voice over IP solution was installed in the main office and the lobby desk and maintenance office of each building.
Summary
- New VoIP phone system for main office
- Redundant Internet at the main office
- Updated Comcast speeds for many buildings
- Cancellation of unused circuits
- Full documentation of remaining phone and Internet services in each building including:
- Verizon account numbers and details (IP addresses, speeds)
- Comcast account numbers (IP addresses , speeds)
- Full list of phone numbers attached to elevators, alarms, faxes, lobby desks, etc.
- Management tool that will keep track of changes and prevent future uncontrolled ordering of services.
- Consolidation of accounts and vendors
- Documentation of who to call for service issues
- An improved after hours Emergency Message Service that calls, texts and delivers calling number information from callers who have maintenance emergencies.
- High satisfaction with the professional results of the Crown VoIP & IT work and documentation
- Savings of $30,000 in annual costs
