Comms-Care and ADA Networks land £4.5m BBC deal

Third-party services firm and VAR tie up three-year support contract with broadcaster

Third-party services specialist Comms-Care and reseller ADA Networks have bagged a three-year support contract with the BBC worth a potential £4.5m.

The two channel players have been awarded preferred supplier status to provide the media giant with support services for broadcasting hardware and operating systems.

A contract notice for the deal was first published on the European Journal in September, and Comms-Care and ADA came through the pre-qualification process to be placed on the shortlist for the definitive tender. Comms-Care claimed the BBC was looking for suppliers that could provide value for money, rock-solid service-level agreements (SLAs) and a flexible working framework.

The Crewe-based support services firm indicated it offered the broadcaster guaranteed-fix SLAs, hefty spares-holding clout, a variety of ISO accreditations and a nationwide network of engineers. Comms-Care claimed its attainment of the ISO 27001 IT security management accreditation badge across its whole business - and not just for a few select contracts - helped set it apart from competitors.

Ashley Snelling, managing director of ADA, hailed his firm's enduring relationship with the third-party support outfit.

"Our strong partnership with Comms-Care is something that was recognised by the BBC during a stringent tendering process," he said. "They could see the added value a support specialist such as Comms-Care could bring to this strategic partnership by increasing operational efficiency through the implementation of very responsive and robust SLAs."

After the tendering process for the deal was complete, Comms-Care and ADA were subject to a number of interviews and other due diligence exercises. The contract was awarded in April and the paperwork completed in June, with work commencing on 1 July.

Comms-Care managing director Ben Davies (pictured) said: "Being awarded this contract illustrates how end users' needs are shaping the way the channel has to react in order to succeed.

"The more rigid, less responsive support organisations that use reputations from a bygone era to try to win business are going to lose ground to those who are at the forefront of service delivery and have a strategy of positioning the customer at the core of their business, both today and in the future."