IRVINE, CA--(Marketwired - May 21, 2013) - Toshiba America Information Systems Inc., Telecommunication Systems Division (Toshiba -- www.telecom.toshiba.com ) has helped Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART -- www.smartbus.org ) exceed its communication goals with a new IP edge® business telephone system. The IP edge system processes more than 250,000 incoming calls each month and is expected to save more than $400,000* in the first five years of use.
Created in 1967, SMART is Southeast Michigan's only regional bus system. Helping people connect to work, school, medical appointments, shopping centers, entertainment and cultural events, SMART provides 11 million rides annually and operates 234 Fixed Route buses on 43 routes with more than 5,000 stops, seven days per week, 22 hours per day. Through its Connector Service, SMART also provides 1,100 rides per day for seniors and people with disabilities who can't access SMART's regular Fixed Route service. SMART also partners with 75 municipalities and organizations to support local transit service.
SMART's IT manager, Mel Evans, identified SMART's communications objectives, which include:
- Improving communication with SMART's community of riders, many of whom use the Connector Service and need to call to reserve rides;
- Setting up a Call Back feature for the contact center to help avoid long wait times for callers while ensuring their needs are met;
- Creating a feature-rich contact center with call reporting, call recording and call management applications to improve customer, agent and supervisor experiences;
- Delivering Unified Messaging to deliver email, voice and fax messages to a single inbox;
- Enabling SMART's IT team to handle some of its own system administration to save time and money; and
- Providing a reliable business telephone system that was affordable while delivering cutting edge technology features with a fast return on investment.
Sue McGill and Ric Dorman, sales representatives at CTS Companies ( www.CTS-Companies.com ) of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., recommended Toshiba's IP edge . "We knew that Toshiba's IP edge would exceed SMART's objectives," McGill said. CTS Companies has been an Authorized Toshiba Dealer since 1980. CTS Companies is Toshiba's longest-standing dealer.
Solution: Toshiba's IP edge Delivers Affordable, Reliable IP Telephony
Installed and serviced by CTS Companies, SMART's IP edge system consists of:
- Four IP edge systems, including one IP edge EM at SMART's terminal in Troy, Mich., where IT administration is located; two IP edge ECs located at SMART's other two bus terminals; and one additional IP edge EC located at SMART's Detroit headquarters;
- A fifth location (transit center) with just IP telephones;
- More than 350 Toshiba 5000 series IP telephones and 13 IP4100 wireless telephones ;
- IPMobility to connect users' smartphones as extensions on the new systems;
- Toshiba ACD applications , which include TASKE reporting, OAISYS Tracer call recording, and Tapit call accounting;
- Toshiba's Call Manager™ unified communications solution;
- Unified Messaging , delivering a single inbox for email, voice and fax messages; and
- Enterprise Manager for simple, browser-based administration and remote management of all locations.
"SMART service provides a critical link for people in their daily lives, helping them get to work, medical appointments, and everywhere else they need to go. Toshiba and CTS Companies exceeded our expectations, giving us exactly what we wanted so we could easily communicate with our customers using an affordable, IP business telephone solution with robust contact center plus saving us hundreds of thousands of dollars," said Mel Evans, IT manager, SMART.
"With Toshiba's IP edge , SMART's users are empowered to communicate more effectively, be more efficient, and have greater access to their customers, partners and each other," added Ric Dorman, sales rep, CTS Companies.
Result #1: Affordable, Richly Featured System Improves Communication
Toshiba's IP edge met SMART's requirement for an affordable, richly featured business telephone system that helped improve communication both internally and externally. Unified Messaging delivers a huge time savings by helping users stay connected with all email, voice mail and faxes coming into a single inbox.
Result #2: Contact Center With Unified Communications
Toshiba's ACD system includes Call Manager, a unified communications solution that empowers agents to Chat with supervisors for support while they are on a call and allows supervisors to easily manage agents from their computers. The TASKE contact center reporting, Tracer call recording and Tapit call reporting applications help ensure the system is supporting the 250,000+ monthly incoming calls.
Result #3: Enterprise Manager for Browser-based, Remote Administration
With Toshiba's browser-based Enterprise Manager, the SMART IT team can remotely make moves, adds, changes and global updates to all the IP telephones on the system quickly and easily from their desktop computers.
Bottom Line:
Toshiba's IP edge to Save Up to $400,000 While Improving Communication
Toshiba's IP edge IP business telephone systems exceeded SMART's communications objectives, including delivering an expected cost savings of more than $400,000 over the first five years. Bottom-line benefits include:
- Smooth handling of 250,000+ incoming calls per month;
- Improved internal and external communications with unified messaging and mobility capabilities;
- Robust contact center capabilities; and
- More than $400,000 in anticipated cost savings in the first five years of use.
IP edge Overview
Toshiba's IP edge business telephone system delivers multiple unified communications applications on a single Linux server, including call processing, voice mail and unified messaging, Call Manager unified communications, meet-me conferencing with Web collaboration and video , native SIP line and SIP trunk support, mobility, networking with other IP edge and/or Strata® CIX™ systems, centralized administration, survivability, and feature-rich telephone endpoints. It also includes Toshiba's IPMobility client application, delivering single-number reach to Apple® and Android™ smartphone devices for both incoming and outgoing calls.
For more information on Toshiba's IP edge , visit http://www.telecom.toshiba.com/Products/IPedg...System.cfm .
For an Authorized Toshiba Dealer, visit www.telecom.toshiba.com .
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About Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. Telecommunication Systems Division Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. Telecommunication Systems Division is one of the three business units of Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. (TAIS) and offers business communication solutions for SMB enterprises and enterprises with multi-site or regional locations. Toshiba's VIPedge cloud-based business telephone solution supports up to 500 users, and the IP edge and Strata CIX systems support from 8 to 1,000 users and offer Voice over IP, voice mail and unified messaging, conferencing and collaboration, unified communications applications, networking, mobility and more. Together with Toshiba's PCs, tablets, copiers, and surveillance video cameras/recorders, Toshiba's Telecommunication Systems Division helps enterprises maximize business efficiency in communications and mobility. For more information, visit www.Telecom.Toshiba.com .
Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., TAIS is an independent operating company owned by Toshiba America Inc., a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, a world-leading diversified manufacturer, solutions provider and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products and systems. Toshiba was founded in 1875 and today operates a global network of more than 550 consolidated companies, with 202,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing 6.1 trillion yen (US$74 billion). Visit Toshiba's Web site at www.toshiba.co.jp/index.htm .
*According to calculations by Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART).
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