We're Superfast! with rocket response times and flying high in the Cloud!

31/03/2015

Transformational benefits for NCI as they connect with Superfast Broadband for speeds over 10 times faster than before!

As a result the team have enhanced and developed their services, expanded their cloud computing facilities and created even more benefits for customers. 

Read the 'Superfast Cornwall' case study below for all the juicy details on how NCI have become superfast!

NCI was founded over 10 years ago by Directors Andy Trish, John Andrew and Chris Penrose, with a mission to deliver exceptional IT support services designed for the local community. Gaining Microsoft Partner status with Gold competencies within their first year, NCI has grown rapidly and now employs 28 staff. They now have clients throughout the UK and also as far afield as Canada and Australia.

The company is based at Waterside House in Penryn, which was the first multi-business unit to be connected to fibre broadband, as part of the Superfast Cornwall programme. This involved a revolutionary new process whereby BT Openreach ran fibre into the building and then internally so that any of the resident businesses could order an individual fibre broadband service over a dedicated fibre connection, each with speeds of up to 330Mbps download and 30 Mbps upload.

Sarah Hemming, Marketing Executive at NCI, says; “We were the first business at Waterside House to be connected to fibre and we now have multiple fibre connections, providing us with reliable speeds of up to 330 Mbps. In the past, we connected to the internet at a speed of around 20Mbps so fibre broadband has really been transformational for our business.”

Sarah continues: “With fibre broadband, we have experienced a huge number of benefits. The business has expanded to focus on new markets and service development - and our client base for cloud services has doubled in the last year!

“For example, we have created an improved backup and disaster recovery service and new cloud based solutions. Thanks to superfast broadband, we have now created an in-house cloud datacentre so backup provision in the cloud can be replicated in-house which means it costs less and it’s quicker to retrieve data. This results in less downtime for customers which offers peace-of-mind and cost benefits.  Plus, we have created a UK-based virtual data centre across two geographic locations, this enables us to provide a wide range of services to our customers.  This development of cloud technologies means we can also support our clients with their own growth plans and remote working capabilities. 

“Fibre broadband has also helped us improved our service to clients. Firstly, it has helped our speed of response to client requests and improved our ability to deal with a greater number of enquiries via our helpdesk at any one time, as the superfast connection means we can have more engineers online simultaneously.

 “As well as expanding the services we can offer, superfast broadband is also helping us all become more productive. Now it is so much easier to work effectively, wherever we are.  Our virtual private network is now far more robust and easier to use, so staff can access key line of business applications remotely.   This means that our IT engineers, who are often at client sites, and the sales team can work more flexibly and productively from remote locations.  In addition, the opportunity to work from home means employees can progress training and skills development online in evenings and weekends, with access to all the necessary systems and materials. So fibre broadband is helping everyone work more effectively, anywhere anytime.”

Sarah adds: “Fibre broadband is also making it easier to use videos for marketing, as we can now upload them to our website in seconds. As a result of this new opportunity, we have developed an NCI  YouTube channel and  launched two new videos recently online – one for business sector and one for schools. (http://www.ncitech.co.uk/business and http://www.ncitech.co.uk/schools). Now that we have fibre broadband, video will be a key element of our marketing going forward.

“Another area where fibre broadband is transforming the way we operate is through use of video-conferencing. With superfast speeds, Skype and Office 365 video-conferencing provides a great quality experience. As we have overseas clients and also speak regularly to members of the Microsoft team worldwide, it is fantastic to be able to have face to face conversations. This will also bring us significant cost savings over time.

“Video-conferencing presents other opportunities too. NCI are passionate about fundraising to build schools and provide ICT equipment in the Philippines and the Falkland Islands and we plan to set up a live video link between these projects and schools we support in Cornwall.”

Sarah says: “The benefits we are experiencing as a result of superfast broadband are incredibly far-reaching. Fibre has changed the way we operate and what we can offer our clients. It has opened up a huge range of opportunities and we are fully embracing these, looking to the future with confidence. Already, we have doubled our client base for cloud services in the last year and superfast broadband will help us continue to grow, most likely leading to new jobs in Cornwall.”

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