Innovator of the month: Secure foundations for a win
Joint winners Vodat Solutions and Applied Network Services linked up to construct a converged voice and data system for a building firm. Simon Meredith reports.
The potential benefits of the converging of voice and data networks are clearly demonstrated by the system that won this month's Computer Reseller News/Syscap Approved Technology Innovator of the Month award.
Specialist IP reseller Vodat Solutions and services provider Applied Network Services (ANS) have designed a converged system for national building company Willmott Dixon Group that uses ADSL links.
The system gives site workers network and internet access, email and voice facilities for as little as £20 per user per connection.
Voice calls made on the network cost as little as 2.5p per minute, while internal calls are free. The estimated savings for Willmott Dixon, which previously used BT KiloStream and ISDN links, are expected to be as much as 60 per cent.
The system is the result of a burgeoning partnership between IP technical specialists ANS and Vodat.
The firms worked together to deliver a standards-based managed service that would enable IP voice calls to be routed over a virtual private network with multiple sites, linked to a central connection for external calls.
Duncan Murray, network support manager at Willmott Dixon, said that the solution Vodat and ANS came up with was excellent.
"We wanted to make use of ADSL and we put out a proposal on that. We had not looked at adding voice to the system, but the divisions involved wanted to cut call costs on site," he explained.
"Vodat put this solution forward. It has certainly delivered and helped us to increase productivity."
Kevin Winstanley, managing director of ANS, said: "What we have done is brought together a number of different technologies. Vodat saw a need for that solution and we made the concept a reality."
ANS has provided all of the technical know-how and does all of the on-site installation and integration work.
Vodat, meanwhile, has delivered the managed services and the billing applications. Alex Waterman, managing director of Vodat, said the concept that it had been working on with ANS was ideal for Willmott Dixon.
"As far as we know we are the only people running voice over IP across broadband. The concept itself is simple but the delivery is very difficult," he said.
The Vodat/ANS solution uses only between 8k and 12k for voice calls but with no loss in quality.
Most voice over IP (VoIP) solutions need at least 12k bandwidth per call and many require 36k or more, massively increasing the overhead on the ADSL connection.
The core technology used in the solution comes from German vendor Innovaphone, for which ANS is the UK representative.
Winstanley sees a greater potential for the type of managed service ANS and Vodat have provided for Willmott Dixon.
"The potential is huge. We are offering it on a limited scale at the moment; it's only at the proof-of-concept stage. This is the tip of the iceberg," he said.
According to Winstanley, voice and data providers need to form alliances to deliver the service the market needs.
"The only way it will work is if you add value. Customers want wrap-around services, and you have to work in partnership to do that," he said.
Paul Briggs, CRN's editor, agreed. "Whether they come from a voice or a data tradition, it's almost certainly the case that neither voice nor data resellers can do it all on their own," he said.
"To deliver what the customer needs - as the Willmott Dixon example show us - you need to leverage the experience of other companies and technologies."
The Technology Innovator of the Month award is sponsored by IT financing specialist Syscap. It is also supported by CRN's sister title Computing.
Lisa Little, head of marketing at Syscap, said: "This is a great example of two firms working together to make use of technology in a creative way to the direct benefit of the end-user.
"It is what the Technology Innovator awards are all about: innovation, professionalism and skill."
ENTER FOR AN AWARD
The CRN/Syscap Approved Technology Innovator of the Month awards are sponsored by technology financing company Syscap and backed by CRN and Computing.
The 11 monthly winners selected by the judging panel will be short-listed for two annual awards, one for a project for the public sector and one for the private sector.
Winners, which are profiled in both CRN and Computing, receive a trophy, a wall plaque and marketing materials to promote their winning product.
To enter for the award resellers, or their customers, should fill in the online entry form which they will find at www.technology-innovator.co.uk.
You can also request a postal entry form by calling Lisa Glover on (020) 7316 9000 or sending an email to [email protected].