One Week To Install Extra Phones For G7 Summit

Just seven days before the start of the G7 Financial Ministers Summit, Xpert Communications was called upon to help install 200 extra phone lines at The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre so that it could act as the Summit press centre.

Conference Centre ICT Manager, Richard Battersby commented: "With only one week to go until the summit, we needed an incredibly fast turnaround. Xpert was familiar with our system so they were able to install extra PRI (Primary Rate Interface) cards in just a few hours enabling us to provide an extra 200 phone lines for the two day summit."

This installation follows Xpert upgrading the centre’s 18-year-old phone system. After a rigorous tender process, Xpert Communications was identified as offering the best value-for-money, and because of the company’s professionalism and attention to detail, were chosen to upgrade the existing Plessey ISDX switch, to a Mitel 3300 Integrated Communications Platform (ICP).

"We were aware that the technology was becoming out of date," continued Battersby, "and we wanted a more modern system that would provide better functionality and make maintenance easier. The new system has integrated voicemail and is far more reliable."

The Mitel Networks 3300 ICP offers over 500 features including voicemail, auto-attendant, hot-desking and support for touch-of-a-button, drag-and-drop video and audio conferencing. The system also has support for the broadest range of IP desktop devices within the industry today.

With The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre only closed for four weeks during the summer, this upgrade also had to take place during a strict time frame. "Xpert completed the upgrade in just four weeks and it was this rapid turnaround that convinced us that they were the right suppliers when it came to installing the new phone lines for the summit," explained Richard Battersby.

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About Xpert Communications
Xpert Communications is the UK’s leading independent converged IP solutions provider, with expertise in contact centres, voice and video, IP networks and security. Offering solutions for health, education, local government, retail and finance, Xpert Communications understands the unique demands faced by organisations in these sectors and is able to specify solutions which provide real commercial advantage and operational efficiencies. Xpert Communications partners with the world’s leading providers of hardware, infrastructure and applications, including Avaya, BT, Cisco, HP and Mitel.


About The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre
The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (QEIICC) is a premier purpose-built venue in a prestigious location in the heart of London. The QEIICC is an executive agency of the office of the Deputy Prime Minister and is uniquely situated against the stunning backdrop of Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, The Houses of Parliament and The London Eye.

The QEIICC has four main auditoria, seven conference rooms and over 20 smaller meeting rooms across seven floors, catering for events from 40 to 1,000 delegates in plenary session and 3,000 in total capacity. It is renowned for the experience and professionalism of its staff, the quality and reliability of its services, its high level of security and use of leading-edge technology.

The majority of the QEIICC's business is private sector, whether corporate or association business. In the last financial year, over 400 events were held at the Centre. The Centre's turnover in the last financial year, 2003-2004, was £9.263 million – up 18 per cent on the previous year.