Telecom Resource is a specialist provider of telecoms services. It has customers in sectors ranging from hospitals through to oil refineries and, given the critical nature of these industries, has developed a particular focus on business continuity.
Don Moore and Stella Garner, the company’s co-directors, spoke to Comms Business about their concerns in the run up to the digital switchover.
The footprints of next-generation connectivity networks have grown rapidly in recent years, but they have not yet extended to every corner of the UK. This means there are a number of organisations that will not have a simple migration process, and they could also face additional costs.
Garner explained, “IP telephony requires a reliable, high-quality internet connection. However, there are areas in the UK where such connectivity is currently unavailable, unless a leased line is installed. This leased line option comes with a substantial cost increase compared to SOGEA and FTTP alternatives.”
Garner said that, while enterprise-level customers may have the necessary connectivity, many small and medium-sized businesses may not.
She added, “The associated costs of ensuring reliable IP telephony could be something these businesses have not budgeted for. Furthermore, certain devices, such as lift phones, require adequate measures to ensure they can function during power outages.”
Telecom Resource is also working with organisations that have challenging work environments that make migrations difficult.
Moore explained, “We tend to operate in specialist areas, such as health or industrial settings where we might be dealing with a building that’s 50 years old, or with telephone systems that are 30 years old. The prospect of trying to change everything is often not possible.
“Sometimes there might be a need for a workaround that gives the organisation everything they want in the IP world without having to dig the road up or to lay any more cables. We typically work with customers that need a specialist because their challenges are not straightforward.”
Careful preparations
The company has been working with IP-based solutions for a long time, but PSTN lines have been a vital part of many deployments. Standard telephone lines draw voltage from the exchange, so they have been particularly useful in the event of a power outage. This will need to be addressed in replacement solutions.
Moore said, “We have ensured that all the solutions we have provided over the past 10 years are SIP-compatible. However, many of our customers’ PSTN lines are used for more than just day-to-day voice communications.
“To address this, we undertake full audits to identify PSTN lines and the devices that rely on them. Additionally, where these items are part of a backup solution, we ensure measures are in place for the solution to function in the event of a power outage.”
National attention
Moving every organisation off the PSTN will be a complex process, yet the issue is not yet a national conversation. Telecom Resource has joined Fit To Switch, an all-industry digital switchover awareness campaign from Comms Business, to help address that.
Garner said, “In contrast to the high-profile public awareness campaigns that accompanied other major national switchovers – such as the transition from decimalisation, town gas to North Sea gas or analogue TV to Freeview – the switch-off of the copper telephone network has received little fanfare.
“There have been no TV ad campaigns, no leaflets distributed, and no supplier-driven messaging to promote the switchover. Ofcom has also failed to provide any bold, prominent announcements about the transition on any mainstream media.”
She added that Telecom Resource anticipates that having access to a campaign like Fit To Switch, that is trying to bring the switch off to national attention, “can help in getting the message across, and also provide solutions to the impact it will have on organsiations in the UK”.
Garner cautioned that some providers are pushing customers to upgrade with fear, instead of helping them to understand the switchover and the options available to them.
She explained, “They’re saying to people: you’re going to get cut off and you’ll lose your number. And they’re not explaining why or what, or how they’re going to help. All they’re saying is: do this now, or this will happen. Nobody likes to be treated like that, and there’s no need for it.”
No time for disruption
The stop sell that is currently underway, with communications providers no longer able to put in new WLR orders or amend existing services, has created unnecessary challenges.
Moore said that there is no question that the transition away from ageing networks needs to happen, particularly given the increased difficulties with maintaining those networks, but the stop sell is also making number porting more difficult.
This is slowing down some migrations, particularly in sectors such as healthcare where there cannot be disruption.The good news is that, once organisations take up all-IP solutions, their employees and customers can expect wide-ranging benefits.
Garner explained that once businesses take up all-IP solutions, they can expect “easier management of devices at customers premises”, as well as “more flexibility with numbering, routing”.
She added, “Additional benefits will include the ability to reroute or divert calls on a single number basis, the ability to implement scalable disaster recovery and business continuity, as well as the ability to access additional value-added services.”
This interview appeared in our September 2024 print issue. You can read the magazine in full here.