Gables UK is an industrial and commercial roofing contractor based in the North-West of England. Founded in 2001, their business has grown over these years and now has a national presence. Gables UK needed a phone system upgrade and came to us for some advice having worked with Tech IP as a supplier previously.
Project
Gables UK was originally referred to us back in 2014 through one of their previous telephone system engineering contacts. We agreed 2022 would be the best time to upgrade to VoIP as we are leading up to the 2025 switch-off, which meant the current phone system and lines would no longer work.
To learn more about the 2025 switch-off or to see how it could affect your business, click here.
After considering several VoIP options they chose our services based on their previous experience with us and our high levels of customer service and continued support.
Their current Panasonic phone system was old and due for a refresh. It was difficult to manage changes in programming as a Panasonic engineer was required and had to attend the site as remote access wasn’t available. Gables UK also wanted to introduce a new automated attendant service for inbound call handling, this means that calls will be transferred to the desired phone or phones without human intervention by playing an automated greeting and giving options for the caller to select.
With their new system, they wanted a lower cost of ownership and to have the ability to implement changes quickly and easily. Additionally, they also wanted to improve call handling for incoming callers. Gables UK also wanted to free up some network outlets in the offices as they have very little spare, or even none in some areas.
The only risk which we discussed relating to the upgrade was downtime. We wanted to ensure there was little to no downtime at all, and make sure the staff were fully trained on the new phones and features as quickly as possible.
Solution
We recommended a new broadband service designed to run phones and computer traffic with quality of service for phones/VoIP, a new VoIP phone system with state-of-the-art telephones using pass-through on the phones to the PC, resolving the network outlet issues as these can run the phone and the PC off a single network outlet.
We installed new desktop software to allow easy access via the PC to the telephone system directory and the ability to make calls by simply highlighting any number on the screen and selecting the copy command linked to the desk phones.
The migration from their old system to the new one was managed during working hours with no disruption to the business.
The key benefits for Gables UK were:
- New VoIP telephones with new features and a new automated attendant to handle inbound calls
- The new VoIP phones were able to share a single network outlet with the PCs which meant that after upgrading Gables UK had freed up plenty of network sockets for future use
- Access to free-of-charge PC software which works with the new phones for ease of dialling
The installation took place in March 2022. Gables UK received a lower cost of ownership, new features, and improved call handling for incoming callers. We also fully project-managed the installation working with Gables UK and their IT provider to ensure a smooth upgrade.
We found Gables UK were a great company to work with.
Comments from Polly Henry – Office Manager:
“Having known and worked with Tech IP as a supplier of ours for many years, we felt confident that they were the right provider to help us upgrade our Internet and office phone system. The upgrade was very well managed, and we are finding the new system works well for us. It was great that Tech IP liaised with our IT support company on our behalf also when planning the upgrade and changes and we would not hesitate in recommending Tech IP to anyone looking for a good quality phone and Internet supplier”.
