Buyer's guide to office telephone systems
by John Tyreman, Mason Communications
The Oftel Small Business Task Force has developed this quick buyer's guide to help you get the best deal when buying or upgrading your telephone system.
Identify what your business telecoms needs are
To help potential suppliers to give you a firm quote, first assess:
- how many staff need a telephone/Internet connection on their desk
- how many external lines are needed for phones (usual ratio: one external to five internal lines) and for Internet/external e-mail usage
- will you have a central receptionist who will receive all incoming calls or if you want DDI will you need ISDN lines
- what growth you expect in staff numbers and telecoms usage over (say) the next three years
- level of staff training needed so that routine changes to telecoms equipment can be done quickly in-house
- if not done in-house then how quickly can your maintenance contractor react
Talk to at least three potential suppliers
It may sometimes appear cheaper to buy telecoms equipment, installation and maintenance services from separate suppliers but sorting out problems will be easier with one supplier and be more economical in the long run. Most providers of network services, except BT, will not provide equipment.
Ask potential suppliers:
- how long they have been supplying/maintaining this type of equipment
- about their engineers' training in the equipment
- about their success in meeting customer requirements and their contracted commitments in your area
- how they deal with post-sales issues
- what post-installation training is provided
- what quality standards the company works to
- about the reliability of the equipment
- about the procedure for reporting a problem with your system and how quickly they will respond
- about any additional services they offer
Typical costs
It is difficult to provide accurate figures since system functionality, particularly with the advent of combined voice and data networks, varies so much. However as a rough guide typical installation and support costs for office telephone systems are given below. Remember to compare the full life cost of ownership (installation + maintenance + management service) with the cost of a managed Centrex type service (for the minimum contract period), taking into account the functionality of services on offer.
very small (<16 extensions) |
small (24-32 extensions) |
medium (>64 extensions) |
|
equipment |
£200-£1000 |
£5000-£10,000 |
£15,000-£30,000 |
installation |
£300-£400 + extension |
£2000-£3000 + extension |
£5000-£8000 + extension |
maintenance |
£200-£300 per annum |
£400-£1000 per annum |
£2000-£3500 per annum |
management |
£200+ per annum |
approx. £150 per hour |
approx. £150 per hour |
The following organisations may be able to help you to locate telecoms installers and maintainers in your area:
- Telecoms Industry Association Quality Assurance Scheme members (TIAQ) Tel: 01908 645000
- Telecoms User Association - Tel: 020 8449 8844
- Communications Management Association Tel: 01372 361234
They may make a charge for this service.
Reviewed June 2007
last updated : 15/06/2007
these sponsored links are keyword related to the page contentSee also our UK ICT Directory for supplier lists and links
copyright © 2000 - 2007 crucible multimedia ltd; all rights reserved - disclaimer
