A1 Lofts has deployed the Alcatel-Lucent Office Communications Solutions portfolio, including the OmniPCX Office IP telephony platform, along with the Alcatel-Lucent Extended Communications Server (ECS), which provides secure email, internet and instant messaging, and shared access to information for on-site and remote workers.
ECS is running open-source software from Sugar CRM and Drupal’s content management system. By using these applications, A1 Lofts avoids paying user licence fees and is able to easily optimise applications according to their needs. Both Sugar CRM and Drupal, which have been fully integrated with the OmniPCX Office by applications partner Amigo Software, are accessible to employees remotely via a web-browser from any PC or web-enabled mobile phone.
“We’re under pressure to maximise the use of our internal resources in order to win new business while maintaining a high standard of support for existing customers. We’ve always recognised the value of CRM and resource-sharing tools, but were deterred by the substantial licence fees involved in deploying other systems,” said Steve Mills, managing director at A1 Lofts. “The Comms Company identified Alcatel-Lucent’s open-source approach as the most cost-effective solution for our needs.”