Growing charity choose 8el WAN and ISP solution WRVS look to reduce total cost of ownership and build a more resilient network

Reading, UK, May, 2006 --- Registered charity WRVS has selected networking specialists 8el to provide a new data and ISP network. Worth £115,000 over the next 3 years the new network will go live at the end of June.

WRVS’ incumbent data network was proving too costly, so they were looking for a network supplier who could enable them to realise significant cost savings. WRVS also wanted a flexible network that would allow them to capitalise on future growth opportunities whilst being resilient to ensure business continuity. WRVS selected 8el after being impressed with their reputation and direct experience working in the charitable organisations sector.

Once installed, 8el will supply WRVS with a fully managed, secure and flexible network. The solution consists of a ‘Quality of Service’ enabled WAN (Wide Area Network), connecting their 2 main UK offices, a centralised Internet gateway offering direct Internet access and co-location of WRVS corporate firewalls into 8el’s secure, controlled data centre. Connectivity is direct from 8el to the Internet, eliminating the requirement for an expensive direct circuit from each office thus resulting in significant cost savings.

Said Pat West, Head of IT at WRVS ‘8el are a great choice for WRVS. I was impressed with their experience with charities, and even more impressed with the cost savings they offer us, the ability to upgrade the service as we grow, and their commitment to meet our tough installation deadlines. The additional resilience and 24/7 customer support team provided by 8el also sits well with the nature of our work – many of our volunteers are on call night and day, ready to help out in an emergency or disaster throughout the UK.”

The 8el network is fully future proof with flexible bandwidth options enabling a scalable solution that can be quickly and efficiently upgraded to match WRVS’ requirements. WRVS will also benefit from 24/7 customer support services offering a single point of contact and an industry leading SLA that guarantees delivery of data traffic.

WRVS has been helping people in Britain for over 65 years. Originally set up as the Women’s Voluntary Service in 1938, the charity played a crucial role during the Second World War, and now focuses on helping older people and others who need help to remain independent and get more out of life. The charity was renamed WRVS in 2004, and is one of the largest voluntary organisations in Britain with over 70,000 men and women helping people in their homes, the community, hospitals and in emergencies.

To learn more, visit www.wrvs.org.uk

8el is one of Britain’s fastest growing technology companies and was recently recognised in the Sunday Times Tech Track 100 report. With leading UK corporates such as ADP, MORI and Centaur Communications as customers, 8el is and established and trusted supplier delivering voice, data and converged network services to over 35,000 users.

Pronounced ‘A-Tel’, the company is an innovative, specialist network operator providing a comprehensive range of voice, data and ISP services to the corporate market. 8el offers UK businesses a one-stop-shop approach; delivering complete solutions that satisfy the communication challenges presented by their office, home and remote worker communities.

8el’s focus is on listening to customers and providing tailored solutions that match exact requirements, better enabling strategic, financial and quality benefits to be realised.

Building on an established reputation for providing high quality networks backed by first class support, 8el’s next goal is to deliver the benefits of Next Generation Networks. This includes providing Voice over IP (VoIP), data and media rich services over a single more efficient and cost effective infrastructure.

www.8el.com

For more information on 8el's converged solutions contact Chris Sayer on 0845 33 000 93 or email [email protected]