For Scots College in Wellington, high performance technology is an important component in high performance learning. So when it was time to upgrade telephony, moving to a Trixbox system was the logical thing to do.

 

Background

Founded in 1916, Scots is a world-class independent boys' school catering for day and weekly boarding students, both preparatory and secondary. The school employs more than 100 teaching and administrative staff who are spread across a sizeable campus with more than 10 buildings. Although steeped in proud tradition, the college is very much a modern learning institution, equipped with first-class facilities and leading-edge computer technology.

A school of Scot's calibre and size requires a telephony system that supports fast, high-quality, cost-effective communication channels between staff, parents and students. Mark Embleton, ITC System Administrator for Scots College, knew that the incumbent Cisco phone system was struggling to meet the school's needs. Also, it wasn't compatible with the new handsets that the school wanted to move to. "It was clear that dated telephony functionality was beginning to impact on the day-to-day operation of the college", he said. Further investigation revealed that upgrading the existing Cisco system wouldn't be cost effective. Then, by pure chance, Mark found the international Trixbox website and recognised that it could be the perfect solution for the college. The website led Mark to Hitech Solutions, the New Zealand agents for Trixbox.

Danny Tomsett from Hitech flew to Wellington to assess the college's requirements and prepare a proposal featuring the Trixbox Pro Call Centre Edition telephone system. While Scot's College was considering the proposal, competitive proposals was presented by two other companies. After comparing the three recommendations, the decision makers at Scot's College unanimously agreed to proceed with the Hitech proposal. Mark's high opinion of the Trixbox solution was further reinforced by an acquaintance who had previously been an IBM engineer. After studying Trixbox's technology, the ex-engineer said "I can't fault it - it's great and it will be the thing of the future".

 

 

Implementation

Implementation for this job was particularly straightforward, because the college was already using an IP solution. In fact, much of the implementation preparation work was done at Hitech Solution's Auckland premises. Hitech's installation engineer was at the college for just two days - day one got the system up and running; day two was to fine tune the system and iron out any difficulties with the handsets.  "We did have a few difficulties with the Cisco handsets we were using, but generally it was plain sailing", said Mark Embleton.

 

 

 

User experience

Functionality has been a highlight of the Trixbox system for Scot's College. In lots of little ways, the new system is helping with time management and efficiency. Here are a couple of examples:

 

Voicemail can be directed straight to a teacher's email, which is usually accessible during a class. With a couple of clicks, the teacher can playback the voicemail message. This system ensures that teachers always receive their messages, and that messages can be retained for as long as necessary.

HUD (heads up display) is another popular feature. The college's receptionist can see who's on the phone at any time, so that she can either put calls through or direct them to voicemail.

A key goal for the college was saving money, both in the short and long term. Mark Embleton said that cost benefits have turned out to be better than expected. Not only was the initial capital outlay for equipment considerably less than other systems they considered, but ongoing costs are totally under control. The college pays a flat monthly subscription that provides unlimited support and upgrades. What's more, the service is prompt. If the college needs a configuration change or a phone added, Hitech almost always provide same-day service.

 

 

 

Highlights:

• Significant savings on capital outlay and ongoing costs.
• Lifetime upgrades ensure that Scot's College will always be working with an up-to-date system.
• Easy installation - one day to get the system up, one day to fine tune.
• Exceptional support, which came in particularly handy when Wellington experienced an unexpected rash of power cuts.
• Functionality that makes it easy for teachers to receive voicemail in the classroom without using a phone.