Challenge
As one of the most matured engineering firms in Texas, Alan Plummer Associates, Inc. carries a 30-year track record of servicing their clients with quality and integrity. As their organization continues to grow, they continue to strive for improvements in communication and technology in order to better serve their clients and business partners. In early 2008, they began evaluating the technology that supported their communications for their 120 employees. They realized they were not utilizing current technology effectively, specifically in terms of mobility, presence, video collaboration and conferencing. A more startling realization came when they realized that they were paying more than market rate for their outdated communications technology. As a result, they began seeking a solution that would help them leverage current technology and cut communications expenses.
Solution
In May of 2008, they chose Unified360 with a Cisco Unified Communications solution and Paetec network to support their four offices (MPLS with SIP). Throughout the next 160 days, Unified360 implemented a Cisco Unified Communications Manager platform which would enable all locations to more effectively communicate with one another as well as their clients and business partners.
Result
William A. Manning, PE, Vice President of Operations for Alan Plummer Associates stated, “We are very pleased with the solution Unified360 provided. They were able to work with Cisco and Paetec to give us increased bandwidth between locations at six times the speed we had before thus allowing our communication and productivity to improve. We also implemented new Cisco voice and data networking gear for all locations with five years of fixed, controlled rates under Cisco’s SmartNet program, and a new telephone system that allows more mobility and availability for our clients.” He also noted that Alan Plummer Associates now has “a state of the art, standardized Cisco voice and data network with 6 MB of bandwidth for each location at approximately the same monthly rate we were paying before, with no capital outlay at all.”