Success Story Managed communication services bring Solvay 30% cost savings and greater freedoms for its workforce By committing to a managed services agreement with Unify chemical group Solvay has centralized its fixed voice infrastructure in Europe and reduced total cost of ownership (TCO) by 30%. The Task Lowering TCO was a major driver in Solvay s decision to upgrade to a centralized, unified communications (UC) network to replace an array of PBXs from different suppliers. And with more than 400 global locations, it actively sought further savings by outsourcing the network s management and services. The Solution Integration of multi-vendor PBX platforms, including OpenScape 4000, via a redundant, centralized OpenScape Voice solution 6,000-user global implementation: OpenScape Xpert trading solution OpenScape Voice OpenScape UC Application, including presence and One Number Service Centralized OpenScape Contact Center OpenScape Mobility, Web Collaboration, Unified Messaging. Call and Admission Control (CAC) for WAN bandwidth optimization, and Quality of Service. The Benefits A centrally managed UC infrastructure significantly lowers Solvay s operational costs: a single cabling infrastructure for data, voice and video; simplified processes for moving or adding phones; reduced roaming charges; and greatly lowered international charges. These all lead to significant cost savings TCO has dropped by 30% as a result. Additionally, the OpenScape UC Application streamlines business processes and increases the workforce s availability and productivity. It facilitates a flexible working environment (an appealing proposition for recruiting and retention) giving staff a sense of control and freedom.
Lower TCO a key driver in UC upgrade Old, mixed-vendor PBXs throughout the company s many sites resulted in staggering upkeep costs. Even with new LAN and WAN deployments, the UC switch brought major 30% cost savings. Solvay is an international chemical group committed to sustainable development, innovation and operational excellence. It employs about 30,000 in 55 countries and is headquartered in Brussels. 2011 combined sales are nearly 13 billion Euros. Innovation in voice communication As a global company, it needed a global solution: Solvay historically is a distributed organization with We chose Unify because they maintain our existing voice infrastructure based on the OpenScape 4000 and OpenScape UC Application platform. Ghislain Depretre, Telecom Site Manager activities throughout the world. We are always looking for systems that can support us on a global scale, and our voice communications needed to be more efficient and cost-friendly while offering a higher service quality to our staff, says Solvay s Global Telecom & Collaboration Manager, Luc Moentack. In determining the solution, Helmuth Manteuffel, the company s Global Fixed Voice Manager, comments: Our global network of multiple PBXs was impossible to manage. Up to then, our fixed voice area had been various PBXs linking 22,000 analog, digital and IP extensions in a heterogeneous numbering plan. It was expensive, with no unified management tools. An analysis clearly showed that voice was a business enabler. After a pilot phase to test the integration path for multiple vendor PBXs on a OpenScape OpenScape Voice solution, a voice services contract was signed with Unify. Mr. Manteuffel writes, We expected them to deliver full functionality including all equipment, software, and services in a centralized model over a single cabling infrastructure for voice, data and video. System management, licensing and applications had to be centrally available. A single cabling network allowing Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) We expected our partner to deliver full functionality including all equipment, software, and services in a centralized model over a single cabling infrastructure for voice, data and video. A single cabling network allowing Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) would reduce the cost of moving people around, and make PC and telephone connections substantially less time-consuming for IT support. Helmuth Manteuffel, Global Fixed Voice Manager would reduce the cost of moving people around, and make PC and telephone connections substantially less time-consuming for IT support. From a cost factor to performance driver The project was initially inspired by the staggering TCO of the mixedvendor PBX network; even with additional investments in LAN and WAN infrastructure, the cost savings still reached the 30% mark. We have saved this on our communications infrastructure and operational cost because hardware, maintenance, 2
We lose less than a half percent of our calls. The OpenScape centralized contact center solution is key to our success rate. Our current objective concerns geographic expansion. We can support this because UCC allows our teams in Brazil and Portugal to work as one. Tiago Pereira, Contact Center Manager internal trunk lines, cabling, network hardware, and the cost of deploying end-user infrastructure such as phones have been reduced. We also are able to leverage our integrated network for shared services throughout the group, such as voice mail, call accounting and other OpenScape Voice solutions. In a five-year globally-managed services contract, Unify has been rolling out an OpenScape Voice solution, connecting 5,000 ports in Belgium to a central OpenScape UC Server, gradually expanding UC to France and Italy, and the rest of the world. VoIP in a complex international network structure Helmuth Manteuffel recalls that in 2008, most VoIP vendors claimed the expertise to integrate a multivendor PBX environment on a single IP network for data, voice and video. But, as it turned out, most of them didn t really have it. In addition, implementing UC proved to be more complex. Working with Unify technicians, we were able to engage with VoIP experts familiar with Solvay and its infrastructure. We can count on a single global team to ensure our worldwide rollout goes smoothly. Our decision was made based on the OpenScape 4000 and OpenScape UC Application platform, confirms Ghislain Depretre, Solvay s Telecom Site Manager, responsible for project rollout in Brussels. The managed services agreement also ensures service levels that guarantee the performance quality Solvay expects its staff to enjoy. It includes OpenScape Voice serving centralized functions such as Contact Center, Auto-Attendant, Voice Mail, Conferencing, Mobility, PC-Fax and Unified Communications tools. Many of these make a considerable difference to our users, explains Mr. Manteuffel. Seamless integration of Brazilian/ Portuguese contact centers OpenScape Voice is deployed from Solvay s Brussels data center, and is complemented by contact centers in Carnaxide, Portugal and Curitiba, Brazil. Curitiba services the US, Latin America and parts of Asia, while Carnaxide covers Europe and the remaining Asian regions. The combined contact centers allow Solvay to service the customers and employees around the clock in areas such as human resources and finance. With twenty-three employees in Portugal and Brazil, the contact center manages roughly 72,000 requests per year, answering 99.7% within four seconds. We lose less than a half percent of our calls, says Contact Center Manager Tiago Pereira. The OpenScape Contact Center solution is key to our success rate. Our current objective concerns geographic expansion. We can support this because UCC allows our teams in Brazil and Portugal to work as one. Now, the contact center is integrating the VoIP infrastructure with its ERP solution. Julio Esteves has been working with Unify s technical teams for twenty years. Collaboration with these technicians was important for our business continuity and disaster recovery. As both our teams work seamlessly together, our agents can function from different sites in case of a disaster. The collaboration between Unify and our IT team was vital in supporting our business continuity and disaster recovery needs. Julio Esteves, 3S IT Director 3
We have saved 30% on our communications infrastructure and operational cost because hardware, maintenance, internal trunk lines, cabling, network hardware, and the cost of deploying enduser infrastructure such as phones have been reduced. We also are able to leverage our integrated network for shared services throughout the group, such as voice mail, call accounting and other OpenScape Voice solutions that improve our organization s communication. Helmuth Manteuffel, Global Fixed Voice Manager OpenScape is freedom with privacy OpenScape s most important benefits are the One Number and Preferred Device features. I can be permanently contacted using a single number, wherever I am. I do this from my smart phone. I also manage my telephony options through the OpenScape web interface on my portable. Mathieu Hardy, SIS Collaboration Officer I appreciate the OpenScape solution as my contacts just need to know my office number, which is the only one they see wherever I am and regardless of the device used. It completely shields my private life. As a management assistant, I strongly rely on my Call Journal to find out who contacted me during my absence. As I have the OpenScape interface on my iphone, I can indicate how best to reach me while on the road or away from the office. When I set my mobile as the preferred device, it remains invisible to the caller. Hélène Dahlem, SIS IT Collaboration Member & Management Assistant to the CIO 4
Solvay staff to gollaborate In the meantime, Solvay has moved its white-collar workers to a full Google office environment. In a campaign called Gollaborate, Google-based collaboration tools are available to all 5,000 staff members to enable gollaboration. In the future, Solvay plans to integrate the OpenScape UC Application with this cloud-based platform. I am convinced that our younger employees appreciate the new communication tools as they gain the freedom to work wherever they want, says Luc Moentack. They also find mobile communication, with features like OpenScape s One Number, to be a perfect tool to shape their work-life balance. I am convinced that our younger employees appreciate the new communication tools as they gain the freedom to work wherever they want. They also find mobile communication, with features like OpenScape s One Number, to be a perfect tool to protect their family life and shape their work-life balance. Luc Moentack, Global Telecom & Collaboration Manager 5
About Unify Unify formerly known as Siemens Enterprise Communications is one of the world s leading communications software and services firms. Our solutions unify multiple networks, devices and applications into one easy-to-use platform that allows teams to engage in rich and meaningful conversations. The result is a transformation of how the enterprise communicates and collaborates that amplifies collective effort, energizes the business, and enhances business performance. Born out of the engineering DNA of Siemens AG, Unify builds on this heritage of product reliability, innovation, open standards and security to provide integrated communications solutions for approximately 75 percent of the Global 500. Unify is a joint venture of The Gores Group and Siemens AG. unify.com Copyright Unify GmbH & Co. KG, 2013 Hofmannstr. 51, D-81379 Munich, Germany All rights reserved. Reference No.: A31002-P3010-D101-2-7629 The information provided in this document contains merely general descriptions or characteristics of performance which in case of actual use do not always apply as described or which may change as a result of further development of the products. An obligation to provide the respective characteristics shall only exist if expressly agreed in the terms of contract. Availability and technical specifications are subject to change without notice. Unify, OpenScape, OpenStage and HiPath are registered trademarks of Unify GmbH & Co. KG. All other company, brand, product and service names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.