WM Housing Group has appointed Pinacl Solutions to implement and manage a new MPLS network in a three-year deal worth £480,000.
The new network is being created in order to deal with the effects of new housing associations joining the group’s federal structure, each with their own legacy systems; at present, 900 users now access the existing network from 40 locations.
Ian Tinsley, director of ICT, WM Housing Group, said, “As we’ve grown, we’ve created a mix-and-match network, but our existing legacy data management systems don’t give us the flexibility and cost-effectiveness needed to work in an increasingly large and complex environment, with growing demand for capacity as we move towards mobile working, video conferencing and much greater use of multi-media.
“The capacity of the new network will increase 10 fold, meaning end users can expect to see a huge improvement in the systems’ performance. Our internet access will be scalable and if another association joins the group, we can literally plug them in.”
WM Housing reported that it expects Pinacl’s new MPLS network to save them around £25,000 per year once it goes live in July 2015.
Angus Groom, executive director of corporate services, WM Housing Group, said, “We were looking for a strategic IT partner to help us grow. Pinacl has promised a fully managed and monitored service that will be available around the clock, 365 days of the year.”
