I recently I told about three cases where companies built large telephone networks based on boxed telephone systems and Snom devices. And this time I will share examples of creating IP telephony for employees working at home.

IP telephony solutions can be very beneficial for companies that use remote workers. Such solutions can be easily integrated with existing communication systems and have good mobility in case workers move. Phone numbers can be saved, minimizing possible inconvenience to customers and reducing service interruptions. Snom phones allow workers to connect to an IP network by simply connecting devices to routers with a network cable or Wi-Fi. Phones can be configured in the office or warehouse and then distributed to employees by mail. Or you can use SRAPS - this is a special Snom service for automatic remote configuration, with its help you can configure the phone even from the other side of the planet.

By connecting to the company's telephone network, remote employees have access to the same features that are available to office workers. This includes on-net call transfer, voice messaging, voice-to-e-mail, mobile phone forwarding, answering machine, CRM integration, call recording, and free calls to other users on the network.

The benefits of using VoIP for remote employees include:

• Availability of features. Remote employees can take full advantage of the central communications platform and easily interact with colleagues.
• Scalability. Ease of scaling up or down as needed.
• Direct dialing. This feature is available not only to office employees, but also to remote workers.
• The processing of the global customer database is accelerating as the business grows.
• Cost reduction. VoIP eliminates the costs associated with the central office and remote employees.
• Centralized management. Simplifies the entire communication infrastructure.

Studentenwerk Freiburg

Studentenwerk is the German National Association for Student Affairs. Studentenwerk Freiburg is a medium-sized service company with around 400 employees serving more than 35 people. The Studentenwerk is funded by the Student Union and helps organize various events at nine universities: Freiburg, Offenburg, Gengenbach, Fürtwangen, Köhl and Villingen-Schwenningen.

In 2007, the 10-year contract of the Student Union for the support and maintenance of the Siemens-Nixdorf telephone system ended. The aging system no longer met modern requirements, it lacked flexibility in customization, it was expensive to maintain and did not meet the daily needs of universities. Studentenwerk no longer wanted to become dependent on another proprietary and inflexible system, and therefore looked for a technology that could be expanded as needed. The customer needed the independence of the new solution from vendors and the ability to integrate applications. They also required separate mailboxes for each new subscriber, and a central fax server capable of receiving and sending faxes directly from local computers. A CTI connection was needed so that students could make and receive calls, and even create conference calls directly from their computers.

The Freiburg-based service provider, badenIT GmbH, a branch of the city's energy company Badenova, received the contract to build the new network. After consulting with a contractor, Studentenwerk decided that a VoIP phone system suited their needs and opted for a boxed open source Asterisk PBX. The main advantage of the open source solution was the absence of license fees, regardless of the number of subscribers. The contractor recommended the use of Snom IP phones, and after testing them, the Student Union agreed.

First, the customer checked whether the existing network had the necessary bandwidth for VoIP operation. The result was positive, and a gradual transition was planned. The new IP PBX boxes were configured and connected to the existing Siemens system. During the migration period, the old and new systems worked in parallel. After a series of tests and adjustments, all calls began to be served by a boxed IP PBX, and then telephone sets were also replaced. The old system was turned off only after the replacement of the last phone.

The new VoIP solution consisted of 30 ISDN lines and about 110 devices. Three models of Snom phones were used: Snom 300 had all the functions important for the office; The Snom 320 allowed communication via wireless headsets and supported third-party conferencing devices; The Snom 360 had more sophisticated features such as detailed call information and fine-tuning.

Using phones has become much easier. Features such as automatic directories, call back display, and caller identification have been improved. Users really liked the convenience of personal phone books, callback features and voice message information. It became possible to use such advanced tools as integrated voice mail and CTI applications (allow employees to make phone calls directly from applications). It is also now possible to centrally set up and configure devices through applications that use databases, and users themselves can change the default settings, for example, by assigning new ringtones.

Studentenwerk Freiburg has gained the flexibility they desired, which was unattainable with the old proprietary technology. Remote offices can now connect phones via VPN, so it is planned to increase the total number of phones by 56 times.

San Lucar Fruit

SanLucar Fruit is one of the main distributors of horticultural products in Spain. The company was founded in Valencia in 1993 and consists of more than 120 employees and farmers in more than 30 countries who trade hand-grown and harvested fruits and vegetables, paying great attention to product quality. The company's offices are located in Valencia. In Germany, SanLucar distributes its products from Ettlingen (Karlsruhe) and Austria from Vienna. The company also has offices in Italy, France, Turkey, Tunisia, South Africa, Central and South America.

SanLucar Fruit needed a new, distinct telecommunications system capable of integrating voice, video, text messaging, and web access, as well as supporting mobile telephony. Customers were looking for a solution that was appropriate for a company of their size. They believed that creating an environment that provided high-quality, fast, and efficient communications was essential to the best possible business. Scattered across Europe and operating in a very active market, SanLucar Fruit needed real-time information about the status and availability of each user. They needed fast and efficient integration. In addition, the customers wanted the new solution to combine modern functionality with their company's environmental philosophy. The system was supposed to provide video communication and collaboration on documents not only within the office, but also with remote employees, regardless of their location.

EuropeSIP Communications designed the system based on Microsoft OCS 2007 R2, which is compatible with Enterprise Voice, uses Snom phones with custom firmware for Microsoft (Snom OCS edition) and Asterisk clustering providing advanced gateway and fax capabilities. The computers have a Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 client with the SCUPA Business package for remote phone management. Communication with remote users is supported using the Snom client and phones through the Edge Server OCS infrastructure server. The connection to the PSTN is made through the Mediation Server, which is connected to an Asterisk cluster equipped with Sangoma cards.

The resulting solution provides the required integration of voice, video, text messaging, web access, and mobile telephony functionality. The new network meets the company's needs in terms of speed and efficiency. In addition, the solution satisfies SanLucar's Green Computing requirements. This was achieved through the virtualization of various elements, the use of Snom phones with low power consumption.

Rivit Srl

Rivit Srl is Italy's leading company in the production and distribution of fasteners, quick fastening systems and related tools, bolts and screws, sheet metal working tools and machines. The company was founded in 1973 and is located in Ozzano del Emilia, Bologna. It serves metalworking, roofing, window glazing, automotive manufacturing, air-conditioning, photovoltaics, and boat manufacturing and fittings. The company exports its products to more than 30 countries and sells them through a network of dealers.

In 2006, Rivit Srl deployed an analog telephone system, which quickly became obsolete. The company soon ran into the limitations of telephony, but lacked the ability to customize the internals and/or additional telephony services that would support the growth of the 41-year-old organization. So Rivit wanted to use its IP infrastructure to create a configurable, flexible voice communications system that would allow employees to easily communicate with colleagues in and out of the office.

Rivit contacted Centro Computer SPA, an infrastructure and telecommunications consulting company and Snom Certified Partner, who installed Snom UC edition phones and Microsoft Lync for Unified Communications. Centro recommended Lync and Snom because Rivit has already invested heavily in Microsoft technology, and because of the functionality, ease of deployment and customization of Snom UC edition phones. After careful evaluation, the company implemented 60 phones - Snom 710, 720 and 760.

To date, only Snom phones natively support direct provisioning from Microsoft Lync Server, and can provide very important features compared to other Lync-certified phones. Rivit saved on the installation of additional provisioning servers when deploying phones, which at that time was a major problem for other models certified for use with Lync. What's more, Rivit gained the ability to customize outgoing messages, music on hold, and dynamic calls to suit its needs, and the company benefited from cross-platform visibility into every employee's presence and the ability to communicate faster with customers and vendors with Lync capabilities.

Today, Rivit is looking for ways to optimize communications due to its geographic expansion. In particular, the possibility of installing Lync on tablets and smartphones of sales agents in India is being evaluated.

Source: habr.com