Nortel partners merge to form £10m VAR

VARs Applinet and Unified Group have merged to create a company which the two firms hope will be one of the UK's foremost Nortel resellers.

The newly established company will be called Proximity Communications and will be headquartered in Newbury. Former Applinet boss Darren Boyce will take the role of chief executive, while Unified chief Michael Lloyd will be managing director.

The merger creates a company with an annual turnover of more than £10m. Boyce claimed the deal would give Proximity a comprehensive portfolio of communications kit.

"As a result of the merger, our buying power is significantly enhanced, enabling us to help customers drive down the capital and operational expenditure of ICT, as well as exploit the efficiency benefits of a unified communications strategy," he said.

Lloyd added: “With the largest pool of Nortel-accredited technicians and engineers in the UK, we can provide customers with a service experience that is second to none.

"Complemented by an array of Microsoft accreditations, Proximity Communications is in a strong position to deliver intelligent solutions and services that draw on the increasing convergence of fixed and wireless infrastructures with real-time applications such as voice, video and social media.”