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<p>Optimal Solutions, Inc. has been integrating voice-over-data telephone
systems since the technology first emerged in 1998. Today, we support
installations across the state of Michigan, serving businesses, schools and
local governments. Our engineering know-how doesn't end at the phone jack;
from working with Telco carriers to designing IP networks, we have the
additional experience and knowledge needed to get your voice network up and
running. This means hitch-free system deployment and a faster return on
your investment.</p>
<h1 class="style3">Phone Systems</h1>
<p>Convergence of Voice, Data and Video on a single network platform drives
productivity while reducing costs. More businesses and institutions
are deploying Voice over IP for their phone systems than traditional PBX
today. For sites purchasing 400 or fewer phones, 3Com is the leader
in IP Telephony. 3Com offers SIP-enabled phones, advanced
applications such as Call Centers, and several Voice over IP Telephony
platforms designed to be scaleable and feature rich. 3Com systems
support both Digital and Analog phone circuits and can be configured with
as few as 2 phones to as many as 1500. </p>
<p>Applications include:</p>
<ul>
<li>Convergence Application Suite</li>
<li>IP Messaging Module</li>
<li>IP Conferencing Module</li>
<li>Presence Module</li>
<li>3Com Executive Assistant</li>
<li>eXchange Call Center</li>
<li>IP Contact Center Module </li>
</ul>
<p>Platforms include:</p>
<ul>
<li>NBX V3000 </li>
<li>NBX V5000</li>
<li>VCX V7000 </li>
</ul>
<h1><span class="style3">Call Recording</span><br />
</h1>
<h1 class="style2"><strong>eXchange and IP Contact Center
Module</strong></h1>
<p>Because organizations of all types and sizes benefit from Call Recording
applications, all 3Com Telephony Systems support them. Applications
ranging from formal Corporate Call Centers who use Call Recording for order
verification, quality control and training to more ad hoc requirements of
schools and businesses whose needs for Call Recording are more On Demand
and dynamic.</p>
<br />
<p><strong>3Com Education Module</strong></p>
<p>Using 3Com’s Education Module, any school employee can activate
call recording in the middle of a threatening phone call. The entire
call will be recorded and that recording will be automatically emailed to
pre-determined staff member for review and action. Furthermore, a
message will appear in those defined staff member’s phone display,
indicating which extension is in the process of recording a threatening
message. This creates a subtle “SOS” that allows building
administrators to begin initiating safety procedures.</p>
<br />
<p><strong>Executive Assistant and CallRex</strong></p>
<p>Small Businesses may rely on Executive Assistant for similar
“on-the-fly” call recording as the Education Module, or can
deploy scaleable call recording applications like CallRex, enabling a
Supervisor to monitor Customer Service Representative’s phone calls
and archive them for Quality Assurance and review. These recordings
can also be used in Operations to verify delivery instructions or order
verification. Insurance companies can use these to archive requests
for policy changes and reduce the potential for disputes later.</p>
<p class="style2"></p>
<h1 class="style3">Pager Systems </h1>
<p align="left"> 3Com Telephony Systems offer flexible paging options to
meet the unique needs of each installation. A 600 ohm paging port is
standard with the 3Com NBX, allowing the NBX to interface with third party
paging systems from Dukane, Bogen, Valcom, Quam, and others. These
paging systems may support multiple zones via external speaker.
Internally, the 3Com NBX has 9 paging zones. This allows our
customers to page specific phone extensions based on an area such as
building, wing or department. </p>
<p align="center"><a href="../contactus/contactusindex.html"
target="_top">Contact</a> Optimal Solutions for more information. <a
href="mailto:info@optimalinternet.com">info@optimalinternet.com</a></p>
<h1 class="style3">Design & Implementation</h1>
<p> <img src="../images/Pictures/phones01.jpg" alt="NBX Phones" width="234"
height="136" hspace="10" align="left" />Good design strikes a balance
between the demands of the present and the needs of the future. We design
solutions that are appropriate but scalable. It's important that your
original investment continues to provide value as your voice network adapts
to changing requirements. We're proud to note that today the core
components of every system we have deployed remain compatible with our
latest, state-of-the-art solutions.</p>
<p> We know every customer is unique. A successful project is one that's
tailored to meet your individual needs and communication goals. Some
typical features that customers look for include : </p>
<ul>
<li>Designing and implementing flexible dial plans </li>
<li>Routing inbound calls to specific extensions based on time of day or
staff availability </li>
<li>911 and e911 </li>
<li>Least Cost Routing for multi-site installations </li>
<li>Extension to Extension dialing over WAN or Internet </li>
<li>Direct Inward Dialing, allowing for callers to dial to an extension
directly </li>
</ul>
<p>We have the experience to help you achieve these goals and many more in a
way that works best for your organization.</p>
<h1 class="style3">Telco/Carrier Provisioning</h1>
<p>Successfully coordinating schedules and operations in a voice/data
project can be challenging. Having a systems integrator that will
"carry the ball" and keep a project moving forward is often the
key difference between a system that is up and running on-time and one
that languishes amid miscommunications and technical oversights.</p>
<p>Optimal Solutions has worked with many telecommunication companies
("telcos") to assure hassle-free cutover to a new system,
including TDS, Qwest, LDMI, and Verizon. In many cases, circuits were
provisioned for a new system to replace more expensive and less robust POTS
and CENTREX lines with T-1 and PRI digital circuits.</p>
<p>While dealing with telecommunication companies can be complex, you can
trust Optimal Solutions to assist you in ordering and provisioning your
telco lines for a successful cutover.</p>
<h1 class="style3">Remote Management</h1>
<p>We offer our customers post-installation maintenance agreements that not
only cover standard items like hardware warranty and replacement, but also
includes an ability to remotely access the phone system to provide almost
real-time access to the system. </p>
<p>Imagine being able to call us to discuss a needed change in programming,
and having a systems engineer able to make that change while you're still
on the phone! This allows us to jointly test the change to verify it is
behaving as desired. Does your current system allow for this?</p>
<p>Remote management means being able to troubleshoot, perform scheduled
firmware upgrades, and remotely administer the system as though an engineer
is on-site. Having this depth of capability saves on travel time as well
as downtime. Should an on-site visit be required, our engineers will be
able to resolve the issue faster, since much has already been learned from
having the Diagnostics accessible from our offices.</p>
<p>3Com is the first vendor to put high-quality voice and data on the same
network—reliably and affordably. This means you can avoid paying
duplicate costs for installing, operating, and maintaining two separate
voice and data networks. By having one network, integrating email with
voice-messaging and utilizing contact management applications to boost
productivity are both possible. Relying less and paying less for a phone
vendor to perform simple adds, moves and changes is also included with
this technology.</p>
<p>Having installed these systems in many different environments, we can
really partner with customers who want to take control of their
communications. By offering a wide variety of services and capabilities,
customers can leverage our experience with their needs to get it right the
first time. </p>
<p align="center"><a href="../contactus/contactusindex.html"
target="_top">Contact</a> Optimal Solutions for more information. <a
href="mailto:info@optimalinternet.com">info@optimalinternet.com</a></p>
<p align="center"> </p>
<h3>The City Of Big Rapids </h3>
<h2>The Challenge:</h2>
<p>Founded in 1869, the City of Big Rapids is located in central Michigan
along the Muskegon River and is home to Ferris State University. The city's
85 employees in 12 departments deliver a broad range of municipal and
emergency services to its 20,000 residents with the goal of making Big
Rapids an exceptional place to work, live, and play. </p>
<p>Previously, however, the city used an aging Mitel PBX system that was
anything but exceptional. Managing the system not only required Big Rapids
to contract an IT consultant 150 miles away, who charged an average of
$350 to make simple moves, adds, and changes, it also lacked basic features
such as call transfer, or conferencing. Moreover, city employees often
depended on "while you were out" notes, which were easily
misplaced and caused some citizens' inquiries to go unfulfilled. The phone
system supported only a low volume of calls, frequently confronting
residents with busy signals. Additionally, the city used a switched
Ethernet data network that hindered employees' ability to promptly respond
to citizens.</p>
<p>To address these issues and better serve its citizens, the city needed
to deploy a powerful, easy-to-manage yet affordable voice and data
solution.</p>
<h2>The Solution </h2>
<p>After consulting with OSI, Big Rapids solved it's dilemma with the
following solutions:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com® SuperStack® 3 NBX® Networked Telephony
Solution, </strong>which delivers robust, full-featured business
communications for up to 1500 devices (lines/stations). It has powerful
call processing features built-in: voice mail, automated attendant,
hunt/call groups, call detail reporting, computer telephony integration
(CTI), PC-based visual voice mail/email clients (IMAP 4) and more. Designed
for single or multi-site deployment at offices with from two to more than
1,000 phones per location, it features NBX system software that simplifies
third-party applications integration and offers extensive multisite IP
connectivity options. It easily integrates a wide range of off-the-shelf
applications, including customer relationship management (CRM), call
centers, and speech recognition. The NBX platform supports telecommuters
and remote access users with cost-effective, optional licenses. It
simplifies day-to-day operation with its built-in, easy-to-use
browser-based administration and user programming utility.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com SuperStack 3 Switch 4400, </strong> which provides 24 or
48 switched 10/100 ports for high performance Ethernet managed Layer 2
switching with two expansion slots for Gigabit or Fast Ethernet uplinks. It
also has enhanced multilayer features that include advanced traffic
filtering, Quality of Service (QoS)/Class or Service (CoS) functionality,
and optimized telephony support. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com NJ100 Network Jacks, </strong>which are "in the
wall" switches, converting existing wall-mounted RJ-45 Ethernet jacks
into four ports, each delivering 10/100 switched Ethernet connections.
These allow the city to deliver more users Ethernet ports without the
complexity and management issues of running additional cabling. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com® Network Supervisor, </strong>which is a powerful
yet easy-to-use software and is downloadable from the web and also ships
with all managed 3Com switches and NBX® systems. It maps and monitors
the network and quickly alerts administrators to emerging problems. It
graphically discovers, maps, and displays network links and IP devices
including some popular third-party products (up to 1,500) and NBX
telephones. It enables stress levels to be monitored, thresholds and alerts
set, network events viewed, reports in user-defined formats generated, and
device configuration tools launched. When the network changes, 3Com Network
Supervisor can be prompted to regenerate the appropriate part of the map to
ensure it holds current information. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com 11 megabits per second (Mbps) Wireless LAN
Building-to-Building Bridge </strong> acts as a back-up network connection
between the City of Big Rapids' public safety and city hall buildings,
ensuring that voice and data traffic are transmitted even if the primary
cable is cut. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com Gigabit Server NICs </strong>enable Gigabit Ethernet
over copper links to the city's servers, accelerating data transfer and
information sharing. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>3Com 3C905 10/100 NICs </strong>deliver reliable,
high-performance network connectivity for the city's 85 employees.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h2>The Benefits </h2>
<p>Selected over systems from Nortel and Avaya for its superior features,
simple management, and high value, the 3Com solution is significantly
bolstering Big Rapids' constituent services. Moreover, by saving $1,500 per
month in analog phone line charges and eliminating IT service fees, the
city will recoup its entire 3Com investment within 36 months. </p>
<p>Using productivity-enhancing NBX system features, such as voice mail,
call transfer, and conference call, the city now swiftly responds to its
citizens. Hunt groups instantly route calls to the next available employee
in the caller's designated department, ensuring fast handling of every
call. Residents also more easily contact city staff using NBX direct inward
dialing (DID) numbers and no longer encounter busy signals - not even
during peak calling periods. </p>
<p>In addition, the NBX system's Caller ID enables Big Rapids to track
potentially threatening calls, while advanced CTI (computer telephony
integration) features instantly deliver historical data on citizen callers'
to staff. The voice system's TAPI (telephony programming application
interface) dialer lets city workers initiate a call by clicking on a
contact name in Microsoft Outlook. Users even retrieve emails via voice
mail, further streamlining the city's responsiveness.</p>
<p>The NBX system is also enhancing Big Rapids' emergency preparedness. If
a crisis arises, each "situation" team member will converge in
the city's emergency center, then plug his/her NBX handset into a network
port. Each NBX handset automatically "remembers" its extension,
enabling the city to sustain its communications. The NBX system also
prompted Big Rapids to change its weather emergency notification system.
Rather than rely on a phone chain comprised of several employees, the city
uses the NBX system's paging system as a dependable, easy way to alert
workers about a heavy storm or tornado watch.</p>
<p>The NBX solution's intuitive graphical administration tools also permit
the city to administer and manage the voice system in-house. The IT team
now quickly performs moves, adds, and changes and other management tasks
without requiring costly external consultants. </p>
<p>3Com SuperStack 3 Switch 4400s further extend the city's efficiency by
delivering a 10-fold increase in network speed. The switches better
facilitate data sharing among city departments and with citizens. Big
Rapids also uses the Switch 4400s to speed applications, such as Microsoft
Office and GroupWise calendaring, as well as for email and SQL traffic for
its finance, police records and cash receiving systems. The intelligent
3Com switches even prioritize voice over data traffic, ensuring clear
telephone communications at all times.</p>
<p>Using unique, 3Com NJ100 Network Jacks, Big Rapids now adds ports where
and when they're needed in minutes. During the recent renovation of City
Hall and construction of a new Public Safety building, the city used the
four-port 3Com switches in temporary offices built for workers in the midst
of re-locating. A practical alternative to the costly, complex task of
adding cabling, the compact NJ100s provided a fast and easy way to extend
the network without rewiring. Big Rapids uses a wireless
Building-to-Building Bridge as a resilient back-up in case it loses its
fiber connections between City Hall and the Public Safety buildings.</p>
<p>3Com Network Supervisor provides the city with a simple and powerful way
to map, monitor, and troubleshoot its entire network. When the NBX paging
function was not working properly, for example, the Network Supervisor
quickly determined that an incorrect range of IP addresses had been used
with the phones, and the city quickly corrected the problem. </p>
<p>"As a municipality, we're very conscious about the value of every
investment," said Tim Moslener, director of technology at City of Big
Rapids. 'With 3Com, we got an array of systems that let us provide better
service and safeguards to our citizens for a far lower price and total cost
of ownership than any other vendor. We feel the benefits of this decision
everyday, and we couldn't be more pleased."</p>
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