Relocation, relocation, relocation – building industry consultant turns to Icomm for technology relocation
Background
With the majority of service sector companies depending heavily on information technology to assist in the smooth running of their businesses, relocation to new premises can represent a logistics nightmare.
Companies want to minimise down time arising from a relocation, as well as wanting the ability to simply plug in their IT systems at a new office, confident that they will work with minimal adjustment or disruption.
When specialist sales consultancy Anne Sendall Group decided to relocate from Sutton Coldfield to Tamworth, the company turned to Birmingham based Icomm Technologies to manage the installation of IT systems at its new premises.
The company has enjoyed strong growth in recent years and as a result had purchased its own premises and this was the driver for the move
Icomm already has extensive experience providing technology solutions to a wide range of organisations in the service sector ranging from accountancy and law firms to media and design consultancies. Icomm Technologies is an end to end provider of IT solutions to businesses across the UK in numerous different sectors. The company provides a comprehensive service as well as post sales maintenance and development. The company is a Microsoft Certified Partner and is also a Hewlett Packard Centre of Excellence.
The Client
Prior to relocation, Anne Sendall Group was based in Sutton Coldfield where it employed more than 30 people. The company was founded by Anne Sendall, a former Midlands Business Woman of the Year. The firm now specialises in the design and merchandising of show homes for major national and regional house builders. The company, which has been operating for more than 13 years, implements more than 90 show home projects a year for clients including David Wilson Homes, Bellway Homes, Charles Church and George Wimpey
In addition to managing all aspects of design, implementation and merchandising, the group also offers a wide range of services including sales personnel recruitment and training for housing developments through to the provision of market intelligence to aid developers acquiring land.
The Challenge
Anne Sendall Group was looking to manage the relocation of its business from Sutton Coldfield to Tamworth. The IT infrastructure supporting the
business was significant and the company wanted to ensure a smooth transition with minimal disruption to the running of the business.
The company operates a Microsoft® Small Business Server 2000 and Microsoft® Windows XP Professional as well as a number of Microsoft® Office solutions.
Icomm had to address a number of key areas within the overall project:
- Ensure a fully operational cable infrastructure to support servers, workstations and telephones was in place in its new premises for when the move took place
- Ensure all data was backed up prior to the move to eliminate the risk of data loss
- Re-install all of its hardware at new premises including Microsoft – all PC based 3 designers joined
- Supply new PCs and monitors to provide facilities for new staff members
The Solution
On the advice of Icomm, Anne Sendall took the decision to stage the relocation over a two day period, closing the business on a Wednesday night and re-opening on the following Monday.
Icomm was able to gain access to the new premises which enabled it to install a CAT 5 voice and data cabling network which was fully tested ahead of the move thus enabling the company to move into new premises and connect its IT confident it would work with minimal adjustment.
Icomm also installed a new telephone exchange system at the new premises and managed the migration of all telephone numbers thus minimising the amount of down time for the business
The Benefits
- Disruption to the business was minimal and it was fully operational inside new premises on schedule
- The company has an IT infrastructure in place that will permit future growth
What the client said
“Moving offices is a major undertaking before you even begin to think about IT infrastructure. Icomm’s excellent planning and preparation combined with efficient and helpful execution ensured the move was completely hassle free and disruption to the business was minimised. The team at Icomm were highly knowledgeable and able to provide a one stop shop for both computing and telephony solutions” Martin Smith, Business Development Director; Anne Sendall Group.
If you would like to know more about how Icomm could benefit your company, or have any other enquiries, please contact our sales team.
2004.0129
