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13th July 2005: Thus
THUS Provides Voice And Data
Convergence To The Funding Corporation
The Funding Corporation
migrates to MPLS IPVPN to accommodate rapid expansion and improve network
performance and resilience.
THUS plc today announced that it has
migrated The Funding Corporation onto an MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching)
IPVPN across its Wide Area Network (WAN). As one of the largest independent
finance companies in the UK, the upgrade will provide The Funding Corporation
with geographic convergence of all its voice and data services across a single
infrastructure, drastically reducing networking costs and allowing for greater
control, quality and bandwidth in supplying services to its branches across the
UK.
The Funding Corporation, based in Chester, provides finance and
loans to consumers under its own brand and through affinity partnerships. In
order to stay at the forefront of the Internet revolution The Funding
Corporation started working with THUS in 2002 to provide a positive online
experience to its customers and sales staff, and connect eight of its satellite
branches to its headquarters in Chester via Internet VPN. More recently,
company expansion and the need for greater network flexibility convinced The
Funding Corporation to migrate its existing voice and Internet services to an
advanced MPLS network, connecting further branches to its core site and
improving network uptime, performance and resilience.
Satellite branches
can now connect to the THUS MPLS network via leased line, ADSL and PaDSL
(Private access DSL) which is being used for Voice over IP. Branch Internet
access is routed through the MPLS to The Funding Corporation’s
headquarters so that traffic can be classified and prioritised for business
critical applications - such as the company’s electronic product
application service which is the main point of sale within its branches –
which require 24x7 uptime.
Critical voice services will be supported by
the MPLS network, delivering public and internal calls to contact centres and
in-house departments. Calls can now easily be routed to customers local
branches by using the THUS intelligent network and IVR platforms, which source
STD codes for land-lines and determines geographic locations of mobile callers.
Clear cost reductions will also result from the migration, as there will no
longer be a need for expensive firewalls which are unnecessary on a MPLS
network.
“Having already worked with THUS for two years we feel
that we can confidently expand our business across the UK knowing that they
fully understand our networking requirements. THUS has been flexible in
providing competitive bespoke solutions, which integrate hosting, co-location,
voice and data services seamlessly into our internal network. The extensive
THUS product range and approach means it fits with The Funding
Corporation’s culture and works well with us today and into
tomorrow,” said Robert Quayle , IT Infrastructure Manager at The Funding
Corporation.
As a result of the THUS Advanced Hosting Service (ASH),
which has been in place since the outset of the relationship, The Funding
Corporation can now host partners’ websites, including Capital One, and
provide partnership contracts backed by service level agreements (SLAs) of 99
per cent uptime. This is all underpinned by the THUS SLA.
In addition,
The Funding Corporation is using the THUS co-location service for hosting its
IBM mainframe systems holding inventory and customer information databases.
This co-location service interfaces with the core MPLS network enabling remote
branch access to company data and increased business continuity and high
availability.
“Our service management and operations teams have
aligned the overall solution with The Funding Corporations’ best
practices. From the outset of the relationship we have worked with The Funding
Corporation’s vision and managed their expectations by providing the most
suitable solution to fit their various needs,” said Phil Male, Chief
Operating Officer at THUS plc. “Our ongoing relationship with The Funding
Corporation has helped us understand the challenges faced by the company and
allowed us to tailor a communications solution that provides the company with
an edge over its competition.”
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