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First Office Systems Ltd
14-16a Albion Road
Tunbridge Wells
Kent TN1 2NH

AVAYA SME Expert Partner
Canon Gold Standard
Canon Solutions Partner
Mitel Partner
Samsung Advanced Partner

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BSI ISO 9001:2008

News archive - Telecommunications

Sussex Copier Customer expresses satisfaction to First Office Systems for our "impeccable service"

We supplied The Crowborough Tuition Centre with a copier back in 2006 and have serviced the copier for them since. However at the end of last year they had some problems with the print quality as it was quite an old machine and we were called out to fix the problem. Special thanks went to Jason Seal and Gordon Brown for their "impeccable service".

Telephone System Relocation for Surrey Based Health Business

We recently relocated an AVAYA IP Office telephone system for our good customer, Health Response, based in East Molesey, Surrey. This relocation was a little unusual as the customer decided to sort out their own cabling, telephone lines etc - normally, we project manage all of that on the client's behalf. We were therefore asked to merely relocate the system on the given day.

We checked this morning and received the following feedback from Shelley at Health Response: ''Yes the move went well Thank You - Matt was fantastic!''

This merely shows that whether we are managing a turn key relocation, or just providing a small but critical element, our service is excellent.

Interestingly, we did not originally supply the AVAYA system to Health Response - it was supplied by another AVAYA dealer - Health Response changed to us several years ago when it became apparent their supplier was not able to provide reliable maintenance and support for the IP Office System.

New Telephone system in Brighton, Sussex for Medical Emergency Business

When Mayday Assistance Ltd in Brighton, Sussex needed to move office, they found First Office Systems through Google and gave us a call.

We went down to see Richard, the Managing Director who was faced with an office move from one location in Brighton to another more central location.

Mayday were using an old telephone system. Also, since they are a medical emergency company, they had an Oak Call recording system that they did not know how to use. Due to their office move and a new business partnership that meant their call recording solution had to be more robust and usable, they commissioned First Office Systems to handle their relocation in terms of telecommunications.

One thing they had not banked on is changing their telephone number - they had assumed that, just because they were moving from one location in Brighton to another, they would be able to keep their telephone number. Their published number was known to many people and changing it was not an option. Due to our experience, this is one thing we never overlook and when we checked, they were moving from one Brighton exchange to another and keeping their telephone number on an ISDN line was not possible due to the limitations of BT's national network - you cannot move telephone numbers from one BT exchange to another.

We therefore suggested that we port their number to our SIP Trunk provider. That way, their geopraphical location became irrelevant (we have done this for quite a few customers relocating). One month later, their relocation took place and their new AVAYA IP Office telephone system was installed with a new SIP connection on their existing number. They also now used AVAYA's Phone Manager making their staff extra efficient when on the phone, a new SIP trunk Call Recording solution from Oak (Oak Record) and a new Call logging solution, also from Oak (Oak Report).

They were so happy with what we did for them, they have published a testimonial on their web site home page!

New Telephone system for Kent law firm in Tunbridge Wells

New Telephone system for Kent Law firm in Tunbridge Wells.

First Office Systems have recently installed a new AVAYA Telephone system for Buss Murton LLP in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. This was quite a testing solution as we had to relocate their main communications cabinet from the previous location to a new location on the same floor, maintaining their voice and data communication and links to their 4th floor computer room. This involved the relocation of all IT services, structured category 5e cabling, fibre cable links for data, their leased line, telephone lines, ISDN30 (upgrade from DASS to Euro protocol's) and so on. A new AVAYA IP Office telephone system was installed to replace their ageing (and costly) BT Meridian system.

BT's charges just to relocate everything were very high and they could only provide a quotation to the customer of between £ 5,000 and £ 15,000! Understandably the customer could not work on that basis.

So the customer ended up with a new AVAYA IP Office Telephone system with almost all handsets being AVAYA IP Phones with a few digital AVAYA 5420 telephones at Reception for resilience. Their Reception staff have also been provided with IP Office Soft Console Reception software enabling fast dealing and actioning of calls into Reception.

The customers other two branches have been deployed with AVAYA IP Phones using a mixture of leased lines and dedicated broadband connections using VPN technology.

The cutomer commented as follows:

''Back in October 2008 Buss Murton made a decision to sublet some floor space to another company. In order to achieve this, we had to redesign and build our new working area to accommodate existing members of staff. We also had to completely relocate our entire Communications Cabinet including all internet, WAN, telephone systems & BT lines. We thought this would be an ideal opportunity to upgrade the telephone systems. However, due to budget constraints, it was decided that the best option would be to relocate all the existing hardware as it was.

We chose First Office to assist us with this project as we have a 25 year long standing business relationship with them so we knew that all aspects of the project, including the design and refurbishment, would be taken care of to the highest standards. We knew that we could trust them 100% to do a first class job with the least amount of disruption and or downtime.

Throughout the project we felt 100% confident in the knowledge that everything was being fully project managed and would be taken care of in a fast, effective and professional manor. The communication was very good at all times. However, BT came back to us with extortionate costs and unrealistic lead times to relocate our existing phone systems.

First Office therefore suggested that we revert back to the original idea of upgrading our phone systems. They very quickly came up with a proposal for a new Avaya IP System to suit our requirements. Being BT Partners was a massive help as First Office were able to liaise directly with BT on our behalf. Their engineers were also able to carry out some of the work that BT would usually have to do. This not only enabled us to carry on with the project within the agreed deadlines, it also saved us over £5000 of BT’s costs. Thanks to First Office and their entire team, we managed to complete the project on time, and have a completely new IP phone system up and running within our firm.

Since the phone system has gone in everybody within the firm has benefited from having their own personal voicemail. We now have all our remote branch offices connecting into the same system giving our clients a seamless service.

We also no longer have to pay BT’s call out charges every time we need to make configuration changes to our phone system, as this is now all managed in house. First Office after sales support and service is second to none. Full training was given to all users and administrators. Any support requests have been dealt with quickly and efficiently.''

First Office Systems' Office Refurbishment team were also heavily involved in the project as the new office space had to be space planned to properly accomodate the changing number of personnel.

New Telephone system for Kent Research business

A new telephone system has been installed for Kent based Business Advantage Group - Orpington.

The new AVAYA IP Office telephone system (IP500) was installed in August 2009. The system installed was an AVAYA IP Office IP500 with Voicemail Pro, ISDN2, analogue lines, some digital AVAYA 5410 handsets and some analogue handsets. The customer was previously battling with nearly 30 BT featurelines with no functionality. First Office Systems arranged for their main number to be retained and upgraded their lines to a mixture of ISDN and analogue lines, retaining their very competitive call routing company in the mix. This was quite a complex installation as the engineers had to work out which lines and extensions where delivered to which socket and achieve a seamless transition.

They now have sophisticated call recording and listening in facilities which help with training and they can forward call recordings by e-mail to clients so their clients can hear samples of thier work which helps them to win new business and retain existing clients.

The customer commented as follows:

“First Office worked with Business Advantage over many months, helping us to select the best possible telephone solution for our company. Once we were ready to move forward, they handled all the paperwork for us, with both Avaya and BT, and arranged the installation on a date and time to suit us. This was not easy due to the complicated nature of our business which involves continuous telephone research taking place. The engineers couldn’t have been nicer – they were knowledgeable, patient and polite at all times. The installation went very smoothly, with little down time, providing us with a seamless transition. Post-installation care has been just as excellent, with the same engineers being made available to assist with any nuances we have encountered. A first class service – thank you.”Sally Martin – The Business Advantage Group, Orpington, Kent

New AVAYA IP Office Telephone System software launched

AVAYA have launched level 5.0 software for their market leading IP Office Telephone System as from 3rd August 2009.

IP Office is now available in just three formats. IP Office Essential edition is for customers requiring non-complex solutions that you would expect such as Voicemail. IP Office Preferred Edition is a more advanced level providing customers with powerful voicemail features such as Automated Attendant (Dial 1, etc), Call recording and queuing. IP office Advanced Edition is for more complex Call Centre solutions.

With the launch of level 5.0, the IP Office IP500 can now expand to 384 users/ports. SIP end points are now supported as well as a new IP DECT solution. There have been a large number of other enhancements including improvements to the centralized directory and call logs, increased conferencing capacity, multi-site Small Community Networking enhancements, Dial by Name access on Voicemail, AVAYA One-X portal allowing control of your telephone via a web browser, Call Centre enhancements and alot more.

Some of the current software products have been renamed for simplification. Mobile Worker allows a user to have one number access so that their desk phone and mobile ring simultaneously. Depending on their mobile device, they can hold calls and transfer calls back to the office. Teleworker allows a home user to work at home as if they were in the office via their internet connection (free calls and full visibility of each destination). Power user includes both Mobile Worker and Teleworker features plus the benefit of Unified Messaging and a PC softphone.

Please call Nick Brandon on 01892 776004 for more detail.

Telephone System upgrade for Kent based security company

Obsidian Security Ltd in Maidstone, Kent has recently upgraded their old Samsung DCS816 telephone system to a new Samsung OfficeSERV telephone system - the phone system upgrade was perfromed by First Office Systems.

Simon George, MD of Obsidian stated ''As a way of future proofing our investment we felt the new unit gives an easy upgrade path to IP telephony to keep up with the changing times. The improved voicemail and web browser access are a definite improvement over the older system as well. We decided to keep our existing handsets as they were compatible with the new system and they work fine. The other useful feature our staff members have noticed is the new recording capability – having both sides of the conversation for reference is ideal for confirming facts after a call. We were very pleased with the installation and the transfer from old to new only caused a loss of service for a couple of minutes with no impact on our business.''

First Office Systems supply, install and maintain telephone systems throughout Kent, Sussex, Surrey, London and the South East.

Telephone System supplier in Kent achieves new BSI accreditation

First Office Systems based in Tunbridge Wells in Kent has just achieved The British Standards Institution's latest Quality Management System Certification, ISO 9001:2008 - certificate date 28/05/2009.

This accreditation covers the sales, installation and service and support of Telecommunications and network printers, copiers and fax machines. Telecommunications includes business telephone systems.

First Office Systems has held an ISO certification since 1999. This standard means that First Office Systems have a defined Quality Management System and manual which explains how the company's internal processes work in detail as well as detailing what internal documents are used, how complaints are handled, how orders are placed etc.

The company is audited every quarter to ensure everyone is doing what they state should be done in the manual. A further annual audit is perfromed by a BSI representative.

Nick Brandon is one of the internal auditors - he stated ''We originally went for BSI for two main reasons. The first one was that, as we grew, it became apparent that we needed systems in place that we documented and were kept to by all staff in order to do the best possible job for our customers as well as keeping our staff happy in the knowledge that they all knew what was expected of them. We also saw this as a key differentiator in the market place that we could add to our already impressive list of unique selling points. Only 5% of businesses in the UK have this accreditation so, although it can sometimes be a bit time consuming ,it is definitely worthwhile as we aim to continually improve our committment to our customers and service.''

First Office Systems supply telephone systems, cabling, office refurbishment services, copiers and networked printing solutions to businesses in Kent, Sussex, Surrey, London and the South East.

AVAYA Special offers - only 2 IP Office Starter Packs left!!

We have only 2 AVAYA IP Office 32 Digital User starter packs left!

These special starter packs provide a 15% discount off of the normal price (plus additional discount probably) when comparing to buying the items seperately. These packs are ideal for businesses wanting a new telephone system for 20-30 users or more and represent excellent value. Included is a new AVAYA IP Office system, Standard to Professional Upgrade license, modules to support 38 digital extensions, 30 ISDN30 PRI channels and a 6 port Voice Mail Pro solution providing voicemail to e-mail, queuing, call recording, mailboxes and automated attendant plus free Phone Manager software allowing PC call control, dialling from Outlook (Microsoft Outlook) and alot more! Price - £ 5,700 or £ 122 per month based on 5 year lease rental agreement or £ 475 per quarter on 0% finance - all costs exclude VAT - Finance subject to status.

Please speak to Nick Brandon or Paul Berry on 01892 776004 or 01892 676710 for details. DATE POSTED 17/3/09.

New Telephone System for Tunbridge Wells School

A new telephone system has been installed for Southborough Primary School in Tunbridge Wells, Kent by First Office Systems.

A new Samsung OfficeSERV 7030 telephone system was installed in January 2009.

The school commented "We were very impressed with your pre-sales service, any queries we had were quickly and efficiently dealt with. Following confirmation of our order, installation arrangements were very well managed and co-ordinated with BT. On the day of installation there was little disruption to the running of the school offices and the actual installation took less time than anticipated. Paul and the team from First Office provided a first class service from start to finish. Thanks for all your help and patience.

AVAYA INDeX upgrade promotion extended

AVAYA INDeX telephone system customers have until the end of May 2009 to upgrade their AVAYA INDeX telephone systems to AVAYA's new IP Office IP500 telephone system.

AVAYA are offering an additional 10% discount off of the price of a new IP Office system when ugrading from INDeX. First Office Systems are passing this onto our customers. This is a customer's very last chance to earn something from their redundant INDeX equipment which is unsupported by AVAYA with effect from 31/5/09.

We have upgraded many of our customers already and they are reaping the benefits in terms of features and productivity.

We are still providing AVAYA Maintenance in Kent, Sussex, Surrey, London and the South East for all AVAYA INDeX customers (as of June 2009).

AVAYA IP Office support provided to Kent based IFA

First Office Systems have recently taken over the service and support of the AVAYA IP Office telephone system installed at AV Trinity’s office in Tunbridge Wells in Kent.

Nick Brandon from First Office Systems – ‘’AV Trinity had previously used another AVAYA Supplier located some distance from their office in Kent and were finding it difficult to get a good response from them. We have also supplied them with some additional AVAYA DS5410 handsets which are very easy to use and they are now enjoying the benefit of a high level of local support for their AVAYA Telephone system – they have also received further training and the system has been tweaked so they gain maximum benefit.

They have since stated that they were ‘very happy’ with our AVAYA engineer’’.

First Office Systems have taken over quite a number of AVAYA IP Office maintenance and service and support contracts throughout Kent, Sussex, Surrey, London and the South East. Nick added ‘’Our competitors tend to ‘throw in’ systems without much planning and thought for the customer. In these instances, it is a big missed opportunity for customers who have spent thousands on telephone systems and are not gaining the advantages and benefits available to them – it is really quite surprising’’.

Telephone system quotation comparison

How do i compare phone system quotes? - This is one of the most frequent questions we get asked at First Office Systems as most telephone system quotations differ from one to the next - no two quotes are the same. One of the easiest ways to compare is to pick the supplier you feel the most comfortable with and send them a copy of each quotation omitting pricing for their comments.

If they are any good they will be able to scrutinse each phone system quote and come back to you with some answers.

This has worked really well for us in the past as in most cases, customers trust us having met us - we understand that customers need to know they are comparing 'apples with apples' and there is often a degree of uncertainty as they need to ensure they are getting value for money.

Here are a list of questions you should ask:

Which telephone system supplier have I met that I trust the most?

Telephone system quotations should quickly show you the 'big picture' of what is on offer if that is what you prefer as well as some detail to drill down into in case you like detail (everyone is different) - which system supplier has done this?

Phone system quotes should always be easy to read and have no spelling or grammatical errors - pick these out.

A Quotation for a new phone system should always be delivered professionally and by the deadlines agreed.

Telephone system suppliers can be notoriously vague with the full details and often make their quotations look as cheap as possible in order to win the business. If phone system quotes vary to any degree, there will be a reason for it.

Check out whether the phone system supplier is also an accredited maintainer - this is very important.

How far is the system maintainer from your office? It is no use if you are in Hampshire and they only cover Kent, Sussex, Surrey and London!

How many engineers do they have? For example, we have 5 engineers covering Kent, Sussex, Surrey, London and the South East. If a competitor suggests they are better as they have 20 engineers, that is not the case if their engineers have to cover the whole of the UK.

Make sure you like the salesperson and that the company is well established - you are going to have to deal with these people for many years!! Also, ask for some references nearby - you will probably know some of their customers if they are successful.

We are constantly quoting customers for new telephone systems from AVAYA, Mitel and Samsung and when we see the competitor quotations all of the above comes to light.

For help and assistance please call us on 01892 6767000 or e-mail nick.brandon@firstoffice.co.uk

Samsung OfficeSERV 7030 telephone system for Kent PR company

Suzanne commented '' The phones are working and they are brilliant. You have selected exactly the right phone system for Suzanne Howe Communications. You have been friendly and professional throughout and the two engineers couldn't have been nicer. We have all been very impressed.''

Paul Berry, Account Manager at First Office Systems added ''Suzanne had not had the best experiences with telecommunications in the past. Consequently, she was very cautious about which telephone system supplier she chose. I did my very best to provide best advice and find out about what she needed and what was going to be the best system for her business. We considered other telephone systems in our portfolio from both AVAYA and Mitel but in this instance the Samsung OfficeSERV 7030 system was perfect. The brief was to be uncomplicated and we quickly dismissed the idea of an IP telephone system.''

Suzanne Howe Communications is an independent public relations consultancy, specialising in trade and consumer campaigns for clients across the food, lifestyle, packaging and hygiene industries. See www.suzannehowe.com.

New Networking Strategy announced by First Office Systems

We will shortly upgrading our web site and part of this will be a 'LINKS' page. All our suppliers and customers will be invited to exchange web links with us. Some may be short testimonials but others may just be like small adverts with links to the relevant web site. All 'networkers' will be listed and be encouraged to contact each other to build up further links as well as contact their own suppliers and customers to further increase the effects.

Having web sites linking to your site is the single most effective way of being found high up on the search engine rankings. The more you have the more you will be found.

In the absence of our links page, we have listed below the first of our partners to join this excellent networking and marketing strategy.

First Office Systems have used Ideas and Info for some time for obtaining new business leads and also sales training. Ideas and Info also provide more general business training and help develop their customers businesses for improved performance and profitability. See www.salestraining.co.uk.

VoIP - do I install VoIP?

VoIP - Voice over IP - Many small business owners now ask themselves the question, why VoIP? What can it do for me? Am I being sold it rather than understanding the whole thing and buying into the real benefits?

We visit many small to medium sized businesses (5 to 150 users) and we are constantly amazed about how many business owners tell us that they ''want an IP system'' or they want 'IP'' or ''VoIP''. Some say, 'we want the latest technology'' - we can understand this as today's technology gets overtaken at the most alarming rates and business owners are normally torn between being sensible and keeping up to date. Quite often the customer has been visited by a telephone system salesman or even an IT salesman who is 100 times more interested in the order, his sales figures, and what his sales manager or peers might think about him at the end of the month than the customer's best interests.

However, from our point of view, there are several things to consider.

The first thing is that , in terms of critical voice applications (ie telephone systems) the more it has to do with IT or technology, the more support will be required and the more prone it is to technical problems and frailties. This is due to the small business being so reliant on ITand often not spending enough on IT and IT support, sometimes, the fewer critical parts of their business that are connected to the IT systems the better (it all works OK in the Lab or until something goes wrong doesn't it?) Plus, how regularly do businesses have to update parts of their IT systems to keep other parts working? . This is not to say that any telephone system connected using IP is bad - this is not the case as we have proved on many ocassions with our customers. However, the point here is that most businesses do not fully understand their options and if they go the 'IP' route, they are often misguided, misinformed and prone to making an ill-informed decision.

The second thing is this - most businesses already have their office voice and data cabling (Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6) in place. Therefore the argument for having IP phones everywhere so you only need one socket per desk is often ridiculous (unless a customer is moving into large offices and they can save 40% on cabling costs by having 40% less outlets - sockets to you and me). For everyone else, the IP argument could be a complete waste of time and money. which is being fuelled by the media, the marketplace, manufacturers, sales people - this list is endless.

If businesses deploy IP phones in their offices, they need to know the reality - 1. they may need local power supplies - dreadful for the environment and their office electricity bill. and potentially a big drain on their office consumer unit - do they have enough mains sockets??? 2. If they dont use local power, they will need POE switches. For those of you not up on this, with 'normal digital or analogue telephones', they dont need power as a very small amount of power is driven down the wire (cable) to the phone extension from the telephone system. With IP phones, this does not happen. Therefore, a computer hub (actually we call them network LAN switches these days) has to have the ability to drive each port with electricity (Power over Ethernet - POE). This can be expensive to provide these switches and even more so if the business has upgraded to Gb or Gigabit Ethernet (meaning their network runs at 1000Mb rather than just 100Mb) as the business will need to buy switches that satisy both POE and Gb (expensive stuff) . Note also if they have a busy netowrk, there may need to be switch configuration so that certain parameters are put in place (VLan/ Qsig/PPP) - note anyone installing separate switches for voice and data due to this has completely misunderstood the message and may as well have installed digital telephones (some people may argue with this point)!!

Anyone needing phones in locations where it is costly (or impossible) to run cables, then IP is an excellent option - ie warehouses, schools, home or remote workers. Furthermore, using VoIP to link offices that are distant to one another is of course a naturally obvious thing to do. Also, there is an argument that having only one network to manage (ie just data, not voice and data) will be cheaper and that any potential links from the telephone system to the computer database (for dialling from PC's and screen popping) may not be required - this remains to be seen in each individual case.

Also, we have not covered VoIP on the 'lines' side - this is another topic all together and we urge our customers and potential customers to take advice before making a decision!!

SIP problems

Artis in London recently purchased an Avaya One-X Quick Edition business telephone system utilising SIP trunks. After installing the Avaya one-X edition the original suppliers and installers where called back on several occasions to try to resolve various problems with the telephone system and the SIP trunks, resulting in a change of SIP trunk service provider and the subsequent installation of ISDN2E digital telephone lines. The problems experienced could not be pointed to either the Avaya telephone system, the SIP Trunks or the customer's IT network and it was agreed that Artis would look for an alternative telephone system from an alternative supplier.

Consequently, Artis found First Office Systems on the internet and following an initial appointment, Paul Berry (Telecommunications Consultant at First Office Systems) noted the customer's requirements for a reliable, tried and tested solution and proposed an Avaya IP Office IP500 telephone system configured to support ISDN2E telephone lines and Avaya 5410 digital handsets. The customer needed to be reassured that First Office Systems where the right company to partner with - Maria Quevedo, Artis Head of Operations commented, " My experience of dealing with First Office has been fantastic. From my initial meeting with Paul I expected them to be extremely professional and reliable, and that is precisely what they're like."

Paul Berry commented, "With any installation involving new and emerging technologies such as SIP the customer needs to be confident that they are supported by a telecommunications provider that understands the complexities of such solutions. Here at First Office Systems we spent a lot of time researching and talking to various SIP suppliers, before deciding upon Voiceflex as our preferred supplier".

He added ''The customer lost all confidence in SIP as it was apparently badly managed and designed. Had the customer been better advised on the SIP provider and connectivity, there may have been a better initial outcome. This is not the first time we have picked up the pieces from other AVAYA suppliers or on projects involving SIP and I am sure it won't be the last''.

Artis is a leading performing arts education company based in London that works with primary schools on a regular basis to expand children's creative learning opportunities. Artis recruit and train high quality performing arts specialists. They are handpicked to participate in their award-winning and accredited training and development programme. Artis Specialists plan closely with class teachers to align their work to schools' priorities. Artis currently work in more than 100 schools in London, Manchester and Leeds reaching around 25,000 children every week. See www.artiseducation.com.

AVAYA INDeX to IP Office Upgrade offers released

AVAYA have released new rebate offers for small business telephone users with legacy AVAYA INDeX phone systems.

20% discounts on most IP Office system components are available until the end of September 2008 with a 15% discount available until the end of December.''Upgrade INDeX phone systems and get some money back while you can!'' is the message!

First Office Systems have been upgrading INDeX systems using AVAYA rebates to IP Office systems for some time now since the AVAYA INDeX End of Sale and End of Life were announced some time ago.

Nick Brandon, Sales Manager at First Office Systems commented ''Business owners for some time have been asking 'Should I upgrade my INDeX system?'. Although the answer is not always obvious as the INDeX system is perfectly good for many businesses, AVAYA have given INDeX users some excellent reasons to upgrade INDeX to IP Office including this attractive INDeX rebate which we are passing straight on to customers. This is of course on top of the many advantages that IP Office can bring over INDeX''.

''When considering replacing INDeX systems, customers should consider what they may want from a new system and choose a reliable system maintainer who can offer them a truly consultative approach so they can make an informed decision. Discounted phone systems are rarely available in the form of manufacturer discounts and really, if I were a customer, I would be taking advantage this before it is too late!''

For more information on AVAYA INDeX rebates and INDeX upgrades, please call Nick or Paul on 01892 676000.

New phone system for Kent based diary distributor

First Office Systems have installed a new telephone system for Castelli (Diaries) Ltd in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.

Their new AVAYA IP Office IP500 telephone system was installed last Saturday (16/8/08). First office have been supporting Castelli's telecommunications systems for well over 10 years when they first started in the UK. First Office initially supplied and maintained their Toshiba phone system in Chiddingstone near Tonbridge, Kent. They then moved to Tunbridge Wells and First Office relocated the system together with their BT network services and assisted with voice and data cabling. They then moved again circa 2002 to a new purpose built building in Tunbridge Wells where First Office installed their new structured voice and data cabling and installed a new AVAYA INDeX telephone system with integrated DECT cordless telephones.

This INDeX to IP Office upgrade was performed last weekend and is connected to their ISDN30 connection and has been supplied with AVAYA 5410 handsets, IP DECT cordless base stations and 3711 telephones for complete mobility using VoIP, Voicemail Pro with Auto Attendant and queuing and Oak Call Management software enabling Castelli to measure and manage their telecoms activity properly.

When asked why Castelli once again chose First Office Systems to support their ongoing telecommunications requirements, the answers were that First Office have provided excellent customer service and support over a long period and offered a professional solution. Castelli did consider other local phone system suppliers but considered First Office as superior in many ways.

Nick Brandon, Sales Manager at First Office Systems commented ''We are pleased to once again support Castelli with their new telephone system. Just because we have long-standing customers like Castelli does not mean we automatically win their repeat business and this was true in this case as there were other local phone system suppliers bidding strongly for their business as they are a prominent local company. We had to work hard to try and show Castelli that we were more professional and had a better understanding of telecommunications from both a Sales and Technical viewpoint. When you consider also that we supply and support nearly 200 businesses just in Tunbridge Wells alone, are BSI accredited, have achieved Silver AVAYA accreditation, employ our own team of fully-trained engineers, employ 23 people, have a bespoke computerised service management system and have been in business for 17 years, we can demonstrate that we have a truly unique proposition. I also think continuity counts for a lot. I have been with First Office for 14 years and consequently, Castelli's account manager has never changed. In fact nearly half of our people have been with the company for over 10 years and the remainder over 5''.

Castelli took advantage of AVAYA's current INDeX to IP Office upgrade program which means extra pricing support from AVAYA on top of the competitive package already offered by First Office Systems. Castelli are now looking forward to the next major release of AVAYA IP Office software which AVAYA have implied will allow IP Office Phone Manager to be used on their Apple Mac workstations via a web browser.

New Samsung Telephone System launched

Samsung recently announced a new business phone system that they are adding to their range of Samsung OfficeSERV telephone systems, the Samsung OfficeSERV 7030 telephone system.

This new business system will eventually replace the ageing Samsung DCS816 phone system and compliments the existing range. It offers many of the benefits of a large business phone system and is available for small businesses wanting a new phone system for their office.

All of the usual features and functionality are available including Voicemail, CTI and VoIP enabling businesses to give IP phones or soft phones to remote and home workers.

Paul Berry, Account Manager at First Office Systems commented ''For small businesses, a major problem for the business owner is deciding on which phone system to choose. Small businesses often have less budget available and the new Samsung 7030 phone system will help to fit their requirements of a cheap phone system offering a high degree of functionality''.

A small business phone system project can be daunting for business owners to embark upon. Which phone system to choose, which phone system supplier or phone system maintainer can be trusted? First Office Systems offer a consultative approach and will find out about each business and recommend a suitable system from their portfolio which includes AVAYA (INDeX and IP Office), Inter-Tel (5000 series - Mitel) and Samsung (OfficeSERV). First Office Systems can also offer Panasonic telephone systems if required.

First Office Systems are a telephone system installer and maintainer based in Tunbridge Wells in Kent covering Essex, Kent, Sussex, Surrey and London with customers in Befordshire, Hertforshire and surrounding areas.

New AVAYA IP Office IP500 telephone system for Essex travel company

Kent based First Office Systems recently installed a new AVAYA IP Office IP500 telephone system for The Leisure Breaks Company Ltd in their new Essex office.

LBC have recently moved into the new offices in Epping and are benefiting from a new AVAYA telephone system.

AVAYA installers and maintainers, First Office Systems installed the new system last week. Installed with a BT ISDN30 connection, IP Office Voicemail Pro and 5410 digital station handsets, Leisure Breaks staff can now enjoy the benefits of one of the market leading telephone systems in the UK.

The telecommunication project was managed by First including ordering of the BT network services and a combination of new and re-terminated category 5e structured cabling which First Office tested with their Fluke testing equipment.

This is the third AVAYA telephone system that First Office have installed for the Albatross Travel Group Ltd including The Leisure Breaks Travel Company Ltd having already installed AVAYA systems in Albatross' Head Office near Maidstone in Kent as well as their Derbyshire office in Buxton.

Nick Brandon - Sales Manager: ''We are very pleased that Albatross have once again favoured us with their business. I know they are pleased with the AVAYA systems and our continued focus on service and support''.

First Office Systems are an AVAYA silver accredited Business Partner and have installed IP Office systems throughout kent, sussex, surrey and London as well as other parts of the UK. If businesses are looking for a reliable AVAYA supplier and maintainer, First Office systems can deliver.

AVAYA INDeX customer support and upgrades - First Office Systems new focus

AVAYA announced some time ago their INDeX telephone system would no longer be supported from June 2009.

First Office Systems have been re-assuring their customers that maintenance, service and support will still be provided after June 2009 even bearing in mind AVAYA INDeX discontinuation, although support pricing will inevitably rise. Some customers are very happy to continue using their INDeX phone system. The INDeX has been around since 1996 when it was known as the SDX INDeX system and then became the SDX Lucent INDeX. It then was known as the Lucent INDeX finally ending up as the AVAYA INDeX when Lucent spun off their telecommunications business into AVAYA.

First Office Systems have also been upgrading quite a few of their INDeX telephone system customers with AVAYA's latest platform, the AVAYA IP Office. AVAYA have been running incentives for businesses to do INDeX telephone system upgrades such as providing extra discount and offering 0% finance on the IP Office systems.

Although INDeX was a good system in it's day, you can no longer buy licenses for it although hardware is still plentiful in the second-hand market. The license issue is a major one however and it is very likely that servicing costs will rise.

The AVAYA IP Office offers excellent features and functionalities compared with INDeX such as Phone Manager call control from the user's PC, click and dial from Microsoft Outlook and other applications, VoIP for remote workers or to link offices, IP telephones and a whole lot more.

First have performed a lot of INDeX to IP Office upgrades for customers locally in Kent, Sussex, Surrey and London. One customer in Borough Green near Sevenoaks benefited from a rebate of nearly £ 3,000!

To find out more please contact Nick Brandon on 01892 776004 or Paul Berry on 01892 676710.

First Office Systems partner with Voiceflex for SIP trunking

First Office Systems have agreed to partner with Voiceflex. Voiceflex offer SIP trunks which are the very latest way of providing businesses with telephone network services. Nick Brandon, Sales Manager - Telecommunications, at First Office Systems stated ''We have been methodically searching the market place for the last 2 years or so for a reliable SIP partner. Many of our competitors have been offering SIP for some time now and all we have seen is one disaster after another. We have, on several occasions, 'ripped out' SIP connections provided by others and replaced them with a conventional ISDN connection. This partnership allows us to offer a reliable SIP solution at long last. SIP will start to replace conventional ISDN and PSTN connections as it is cheaper and more flexible. We have ordered a SIP connection for our system in Tunbridge Wells in Kent and once we are 100% happy with it, we will start rolling it out to both prospective and new customers. We chose Voiceflex as they are the partner of choice for AVAYA and they have also fully tested their product with Samsung, one of our other main partners''.

SIP from Voiceflex can be delivered in different ways to suit the customer. It can be delivered across an existing broadband ADSL connection. However preferably, it is provided via Voiceflex's own connectivity and can be used for voice only or voice and data for a truly converged solution. SIP can save small businesses between 30% and 50% approximately on their current ISDN line rental costs and is also an excellent disaster recovery solution.

SIP uses IP (VOIP) technology and is now the present and the future of telecommunications globally. Small businesses have historically been lured into changing from BT to other carriers by cost savings on lines and calls. Whilst there are still many opportunities out there in this scenario, SIP now provides businesses with even more opportunities to reduce their costs, with the majority of businesses being able to use the savings made via SIP to invest in a new telephone system for real business benefits and improvements. This is particularly important given the current economic climate.

Inclarity and First Office Systems form new partnership

Inclarity recently partnered with First Office Systems who will resell their Hosted IP Telephony Solution (IP Centrex).

Hosted Telephony is quite a new offering available to businesses and negates the need for the customer to have thier own telephone system in their premises.

First Office have been patiently researching the marketplace for a suitable hosted partner who can offer a reliable solution. Inclarity fits the bill in this respect and First Office Systems will be offering Inclarity solutions to prospective customers and new customers who are looking for the most cost-effective telecommunications platform.

''Like SIP, hosted has taken off in the main stream recently'' - Nick Brandon, Telecommunications Sales Manager. Nick added ''We have seen competitors install hosted solutions for businesses who have been lured by low prices, compared to conventional systems. However, all that glitters is not gold and we have seem some real nightmare scenarios. Consequently, we have been very selective on who we partner with. It is estimated by some that by 2012, 25% of systems installed in the UK will be hosted which is why we have been keen to embrace the idea and the technology. This will give customers more choice and particularly for those customers who are driven by budget more than anything else, this is a great opportiunity for both the customer and First Office Systems.''

Inclarity's hosted solution is delivered by ADSL broadband provided by Zen or BT using IP (VOIP). Inclarity's platform checks the connection continuously and in the unlikely event that any faults or problems are detected, these are normally known by Incalrity before the customer even notices. This approach is critical.

The customer can choose from Cisco or LG handsets and have the choice of benefiting from most of the normal features that conventional telephone systems offer including hunt groups, voicemail, automated attendant, remote working, call management information etc.

AVAYA IP500 telephone system for new Surrey-based start-up

AVAYA IP OFFICE IP500 telephone system installed for surrey company, My Business Partner Ltd by Kent based First Office Systems.

Based in Croydon, My Business Partner answers telephone calls for local businesses using their new AVAYA IP Office phone system. The client calls are answered by staff using NCall (see www.nsolve.com), a database program that 'pops' on the user's PC when the call arrives. Calls can be answered in the businesses name with messages being taken and/or and forwarded to voicemail or directly transferred to the client.

Additionally, My Business Partner has home workers answering calls using VoIP. The remote workers can answer calls either with the AVAYA soft phone on their home PC (Phone Manager) or with an identical phone to those used in the office (AVAYA 5602, 5610 etc), via the internet (ADSL).

The AVAYA system has been deployed with an ISDN30 connection together with Voicemail Pro, IPSEC and CTI Link Pro using VPN technology. It uses AVAYA's VCM card to connect IP phones across the internet.

Nick Brandon, Sales Manager at First Office Systems commented ''We are pleased to provide services for MBP and to be able to demonstrate the versatilty of the AVAYA system as well as the technical capabilities of our staff. We are shortly going to set up a competitive call routing package for the customer, including 0800 numbers so they can rest assured that, not only do they use the best system and maintainer, but they will also be benefiting from the most competitive call rates'.

First Office Systems have supplied many such IP solutions to local businesses across Kent, Sussex, Surrey and London and have recently attained Silver Accreditation from AVAYA.

Samsung release news of their entry into the hosted telephony marketplace

Samsung have recently announced a new product that will provide customers with Hosted IP Telephony, backed by a major global brand. This, as far as we are aware is a world first. Until now, hosted telephony had been offered by companies that may be unknown to the 'man in the street'. Paul Berry, Account Manager at First Office Systems had this to say: ''We have been looking at bringing such a product into our portfolio for the last 2 years or so and have been hesitant due to stories of unreliability. Now Samsung have launched this new hosted IP telephony product, it will give resellers and customers alike a feeling of comfort knowing that, as it is backed up by a global brand, it is more likely to work without problems and, should problems ocurr, Samsung will have huge resource to resolve and deliver''. Samsung have teamed up with Thus and Teleware and the hardware is delivered by a Ubigate router. This solution will allow small to medium-sized businesses (up to 300 extensions) to have a workable alternative to traditional digital and PSTN/ISDN lines with the benefit of IP phones throughout their office and other offices wherever they are. Users can even install a special SIM into their mobile phone so it acts as an internal extension when they are in the office and a mobile phone when they are out - the term 'fixed to mobile convergence' applies.

First Office Systems will incorporate this new offering into their portfolio which will complement perfectly their impressive range of systems from AVAYA (IP Office), Mitel (Inter-Tel) and the popular Samsung OfficeSERV range of systems which all offer a traditional digital or analogue interface along with combined IP telephones and IP trunking. Free calls throughout their organisation is now possible without any complicated IP networking. Businesses will have the option of paying monthly, reducing the need for upfront outlay as Samsung are also offering leasing terms.

Mitel announce massive price reductions on Inter-Tel 5000 series telephone systems for small businesses

Today Mitel stunned the telecoms market by slashing their pricing on Inter-Tel 5000 series small business telephone systems.

Their starter pack bundles have reduced in price by between 41 and 50%. Nick Brandon, Telecommunications Sales Manager at First Office Systems commented ''This now positions Inter-Tel in a better price slot - previously, Inter-Tel had always been a more expensive option for customers and, although the Inter-Tel offers some really clever and attractive features, it has often been difficult to offer their product - now they really compete and will offer smaller business (meaning up to 100 extensions) real value and choice''. This is of particular interest to customers wanting to dial from their computer databases or deploying remote IP phones for remote workers at a modest cost.

First Office Systems supply and support 1,300 business customers throughout London and the South East (mainly) including Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hertfordshire, Befordshire, Cambridgeshire etc. They are also Samsung Advanced Partners and Silver Accredited AVAYA Partners for AVAYA IP Office.

First Office Systems is awarded AVAYA Silver Accreditation on IP Office

We are proud to announce that we have been awarded Silver Accreditation by AVAYA on IP Office. Nick Brandon, Sales Manager, Telecommunications stated ''This is an excellent achievement and one which stands us in even better stead when speaking to customers. We have put in alot of effort recently in engineering and sales training as well as installing many IP Office systems recently, thus increasing our spend on AVAYA purchases. This is another clear differentiator which will help us win more business. There are quite alot of IP Office resellers out there and we are now in the top 'echelons' when it comes to accreditation. Now we are aiming for Gold Accreditation through additional training for our engineers so they can become real experts in their field in the UK.''

First Office Systems, based in Tunbridge Wells, have supplied a large number of AVAYA IP Office systems in the South East and London including Kent, Sussex and Surrey.

Samsung release new OfficeSERV 7100 telephone system

Samsung Electronics UK have launched their new Samsung OfficeSERV 7100 system. This new telephone system joins the OfficeSERV 7200 and 7400 in offering VoIP and SIP trunking 'out of the box'.

It is designed for small to medium sized businesses supporting ISDN2e lines and up to 32 extensions or 48 using IP telephony. It offers embedded voicemail as standard and comes with a converged CPU with switch and router.

First Office Systems install and support telephone systems in Kent, Sussex, Surrey and London. They cover the whole of the Sout East. Based in Tunbridge Wells, they also cover Tonbridge, Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Ashford, East Grinstead, Haywards Heath, Croydon and surrounding areas.

Please call Paul on 01892 676710 or Nick on 01892 776004 for more details.

First Office Systems become Inter-Tel Reseller

First Office Systems have recently become resellers for Inter-Tel Europe.

First will be marketing the Inter-Tel 5000 series range of telephone systems including the Inter-Tel 5200, the Inter-Tel 5400 and the Inter-Tel 5600 systems. These systems are delivered with IP capabilities 'out of the box'. Crucially, they also allow the customer to add analogue lines and extensions and digital extensions making this an excellent choice for small to medium-sized businesses.

The Inter-Tel systems offer all of the usual facilities you would expect from a telephone system including voicemail, direct dial, remote IP soft phone working and Computer Telephony Integration.

Nick Brandon suggested the main reasons for partnering with Inter-Tel: ''The Inter-Tel solutions offer something different for customers than the AVAYA IP Office, Samsung OfficeServ and Panasonic KXT-DA systems that we have been installing historically. As IP is on board fom the start, it offers a different kind of solution. However, almost as important is the fact that the Inter-tel systems are extremely strong on CTI (Computer Telephony Integration) enabling customers to dial any number that they see on their computer screen and also call centre working through the Callview Software''.

Inter-Tel also seem to be more proactive than some of the other manufacturers and their technical support team look very strong.

First Office Systems, based in Tunbridge Wells, are planning on marketing the Inter-Tel systems to new and existing customers. They will be particularly targetting customers using AVAYA INDeX customers as Inter-Tel are incentivising customers to upgrade from INDeX.

Please call Nick on 01892 776004 or Paul on 01892 676710 for more details.

First Office Systems see AVAYA launch their new IP Office version - AVAYA IP 500

AVAYA have launched their new version of IP Office, IP500, along with a new version of IP Office software, version 4.

IP 500 and IP Office version 4 offers legacy IP Office customers an upgrade path so that legacy modules and cards can be used in the new hardware variant. IP 500 is available in two variants, Standard (up to 32 extensions) or Professional (up to 272 users). The new features available through IP500 are SIP trunking, enhanced call handling, improved administration, visual voice mail on AVAYA 5410 and AVAYA 5420 digital station handsets and networking enhancements (when linking sites using VoIP).

Paul Berry, Account Manager at First Office Systems commented ''This release sees AVAYA take some important steps such as the support for SIP trunks. SIP is the future and it is important for customers to rest assured that they are able to migrate to the latest technologies when upgrading their telephone systems'' He added ''We also can offer SIP via the Samsung OfficeServ and will also be able to offer this with the Inter-Tel 5000 series shortly so AVAYA's move enables us to offer our customers the latest technology right across the board. Panasonic may also follow suit in the future but this remains to be seen''.

Please call Paul on 01892 676710 or Nick on 01892 776004 for more details.

New AVAYA IP Office Software

AVAYA has released Level 3.2 software for their market leading IP Office system. IP Office is designed to be a global solution for users with up to 360 extensions and 120 lines. This latest software release combines high-end voice and data applications, allowing businesses to deliver cutting edge customer service. As well as increased reliability through improvements to the core system software, the new software also incorporates technical resolutions to previous ‘bugs’ together with a new ‘wizard’ installation programme.

IP Office has revolutionized the telecommunications market place in recent years with on-screen call control and voicemail to e-mail integration as standard. Most of the other manufacturers are busy trying to play ‘catch-up’ with many failing to replicate the features, facilities and benefits offered by IP Office at the IP Office price level.

First Office Systems have the required technical competence and have successfully installed many IP Office systems locally. Indeed, due to our competence we have been chosen by other IP Office customers to provide technical support for their systems as they have been dissatisfied with the technical support provided by their original supplier.

For more information or advice call Nick Brandon on 01892-776004 or e-mail him at nick.brandon@firstoffice.co.uk

Samsung OfficeServ 7400 Series Telephone systems launched

Samsung Business Communications has recently launched the new OfficeServ 7400 Series voice and data system. The OfficeServ 7400 uses ‘wireline’ and ‘wireless’ technologies, making the new 7400 Series one of the most efficient and flexible platforms for business communications solutions currently available.

The new 7400 Series offers the same facilities as the successful and proven 7200 Series. However, the 7400 series will additionally satisfy customers who require a larger system that cannot be supported by the 7200 Series.

"The convergence of wireless and wireline is the next step in enterprise communications. For our business end-users, the platform increases convenience, efficiency and application possibilities while reducing costs by maximizing the capabilities of one platform." said Steve Gobeli, vice president of Samsung Telecommunications America, Business Communication Systems Division.

A month after the launch of the OfficeServ 7400 Series the system had won the coveted 'Best Buy' recommendation from What to Buy for Business.First Office Systems have installed many 7200 Series systems and are excited by the opportunities offered by the 7400 Series systems. We are fully resourced with the required technical competence to successfully deploy both systems.

For more information or advice call Paul Berry on 01892-676710 or e-mail him at paul.berry@firstoffice.co.uk

New Samsung Voice Recording Software

Samsung Business Communications has also launched new voice recording software providing a fully encrypted recording solution at an entry-level price. For more information or advice call Nick Brandon on 01892-776004 or e-mail him at nick.brandon@firstoffice.co.uk

back to what's new

5th February, 2012

What's New

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Copier customer for 20 years! Marion Simpson rewarded with a Thank You from First Office Systems!

Office relocation and refurbishment for EISL in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.

First Office Systems celebrate 20 YEARS in business in 2011

Sussex Copier Customer expresses satisfaction to First Office Systems for our "impeccable service"

Telephone System Relocation for Surrey Based Health Business

First Words

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