Hosted Telephony, SIP Trunk & Contact Centre Case Study

Solution driven for maximum success

The system is fully web administered and operated. Contact centre agents can utilize either a hard phone or a WebRTC browser based phone inbuilt into the agent desktop.

Security, integrity and reliability are key issues for our client, given the nature of their business and the fact that they are holding the data of thousands of end-customers. Rigorous testing and built-in security update notifications ensure the reliability and security of the PBX.

The solution is scalable and flexible and is compatible with most hardware and virtual environments. The PBX can scale to meet the customer’s growing needs on a budget. The solution has the ability to integrate with O365 suite.

A 50 seat contact centre was a key requirement for our client, offering call routing functionality and call statistics data. Calls are answered initially by a simple front end auto attendant and are then routed through to a contact centre agent. VEI has initially supplied SIP handsets with headset capability and Jabra headsets. The customer chose a 5 year support contract which covers a help desk and all ongoing hosting charges. the robust solution deployed is fully compliant with all requirements asked for within the customer’s tender. This highly secure solution was delivered in a phased approach in order to limit any operational disruption and the project was delivered on time and within budget.

Acetech Vehicle Intelligence

Acetech Vehicle Intelligence is a global manufacturer of vehicle intelligence for emergency service fleets. The company opened a new site in Tullamore, Co Offaly and VEI Global was selected to implement a new, fast and resilient voice and data network into Acetech’s new premises.

VEI Global designed, project managed and delivered a complete voice and data infrastructure solution based on a mixture of Aruba 2980 48 port networking switches all connected with 10GB fibre links with a Firewall and Aruba WiFi access points for the customer’s data infrastructure and an Asterisk PBX to support the voice traffic. VEI set up separate VLANs for Data, WiFi and Voice.

Solution driven for maximum success

The solution comprises a cloud-managed network powered by Aruba Central. This allows central configuration management of the wireless and wired network through a web browser. The solution is fully multi-tenant capable allowing the on boarding of additional tenants with completely separate network configuration and monitoring/reporting access through a portal. All Firewall rules and Routing requirements installed continue to be managed by VEI.

The new PBX supporting the customer voice traffic is based on Asterisk and delivered as a Yeastar S100 appliance. This hardware appliance supports up to 200 extensions and 60 concurrent calls using either ISDN or SIP or both for added assurance. All users have voicemail as standard and they also have their own direct dial number. Each user has their email address added for Voicemail to Email support – This sends the voicemail as a WAV attachment to the users email address.

The phones/soft clients register with the PBX using SIP and can be used from anywhere within the local area network or remotely via VPN. The PBX, has as standard IVR, Queue, Voicemail and Call Recording (to external storage) for all users. The system has a built in, secure Cloud managed soft phone solution for remote users. A major benefit of this application is that the handshake between device and PBX is done in the cloud so there is no need for any changes on the customer’s Firewall. This gives access to the users from an internet connection without the security risk normally associated with remote users.

Acetech also requested VEI Global to install a Yealink IP video conferencing unit for its board room that can facilitate meetings for up to 20 people. The solution was fully designed and delivered by VEI Global. The full installation including configuration off site and deployment onsite with full staff training was delivered to the customer on time and budget. VEI provide standard care support from 0900 hours to 1800 hours weekdays. Due to the satisfaction of the initial deployment, the customer is now adding to a further building with additional switches and devices.

Patrona Insurance

Patrona Underwriting Limited is a dynamic and flexible underwriting agency based in Ireland. The company provides tailored insurance products to the Irish market exclusively through a network of brokers. Personal interaction with its customer base is a key feature of Patrona’s broker relationships and exceptional service and support to their customers is of key importance.

VEI Global has had a close working relationship with Patrona Underwriting since we were awarded the contract to provide a hosted voice and contact centre solution 5 years ago.

Solution driven for maximum success

VEI deployed a private cloud hosted Asterisk PBX to Patrona. The hosted, open standards based PBX is based on the robust Asterisk call processor with Sangoma front end administrative GUI. VEI host the infrastructure in ISO27001 certified data centres. The PBX is responsible for call handling, IVR, contact centre queue and voicemail needs as applicable. The PBX is sized for 120 concurrent call legs with up to 1000 extensions. All voice call centre routing requirements are met by the queue application within Asterisk and a statistics and monitoring application from Asternic provides all of the call centre statistics. A contact centre for 80 agents was a key requirement for Patrona offering call routing functionality and call statistics data. Calls are answered initially by a simple front end auto attendant and are then routed through to a contact centre agent.

PCI compliant call recording with start/stop options for the contact centre agents is achieved by using an external total recorder with Open API. The system is fully web administered and operated. Contact centre agents utilize a hard phone and FOP2 client to connect to the connect centre.

Security, integrity and reliability are key issues for Patrona given the nature if its business and its data holding of thousands of customers. Rigorous testing and built-in security update notifications ensure the reliability and security of the PBX.

The solution delivered is scalable and flexible and is compatible with most hardware and virtual environments. The PBX has a browser-based GUI interface which facilitates easy system changes and maintenance. The solution has the ability to integrate with O365 suite and VEI was chosen to integrate the customer’s solution into MS Teams. This was achieved with the installation of a session border controller to provide the integration from the PBX to the back office users who used teams.

Patrona’s Integration with Microsoft Teams

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020/21 has shown how businesses can come to rely on robust and remote communications. With so many people working from home, the deployment of communications and collaboration tools becomes a critical aspect of operations. It can also come with a few challenges, particularly when it comes to connectivity.

Patrona, like a lot of businesses has had to adapt to remote working but still retain an enterprise-class solution that supports employees working from home. Microsoft platform technologies are at the core of most operations for businesses today offering access to instant conference calls, collaboration and document sharing without compromising security. This is a radical change from the onsite office environment. However, one of the most common forms of communication between employees and external businesses is still the traditional phone. Patrona’s business is highly reliant on personal phone contact with its customers. VEI worked with Patrona to successfully integrate their existing telephony infrastructure with MS Teams, meaning that internal and external calls can be placed at any time and from any location. Integrating their phone system with MS Teams offered Patrona huge benefits:

Patrona’s project to integrate its phone system was made easier by having a highly skilled team to do it with them. VEI Global took care of multiple aspects of the deployment for them, evaluating their current needs and ultimately providing Patrona with a single platform for all its communications and collaboration. This left Patrona time to focus on what mattered most—its attention to its customers and its business growth.