Unsupported Nortel PBX Replaced with 3CX in Belgian Hotel
Castelnou Aparthotel needed a hotel PBX that could bring down their monthly telephone expenditure. With 3CX Phone System and the 3CX Hotel Module, the costs of deployment and TCO were significantly reduced. What's more, 3CX Phone System equipped the hotel with a vast array of desired features, all included in the price.
The Challenge
Up until July 2011, Castelnou had been using a Matra Nortel®* PBX for their telephony requirements. It had outdated, limited features as well as an expensive maintenance contract. As Avaya®* announced that they would drop Nortel® PBX support, they left Castelnou in a tricky situation as no support meant it was difficult to expand or modify their set-up. With high communication costs, as well as the expenses of leasing phone lines, Castelnou Aparthotel decided it was time for a change.
Having already been down the route of being tied in to a vendor with expensive maintenance, using a phone system that provided the same costly model was out of the question. The new system would need to be cheaper to maintain and scale, whilst also including modern UC features and SIP trunking for lower call costs. Furthermore, it would need to fully integrate with the Protel Property Management Software (PMS) that Castelnou were using.
Other requirements included flexibility – the planned set-up would be quite complicated and many traditional PBXs wouldn’t be able to handle it. And, not wanting to negatively affect the guests, the new phone system needed to be installed and set-up extremely quickly, as well as be user-friendly so that Castelnou employees could start using the system right away.
3CX Offers a Solution
3CX was the perfect choice. Competitive pricing and support for the open SIP standard meant Castelnou would not be locked in with one vendor, as they were previously. There would be no need for expensive maintenance contracts or leasing of costly phone lines.
Castelnou wanted to take advantage of the integrated hotel features to further streamline their check-in and check-out process. This included guest check-out which would automatically delete remaining voicemails and block the extension to avoid unauthorized use. Guests would also be able to set their own wake-up calls via their room phones. All calls would then be automatically billed to the guest, in Castelnou’s case, with the Protel PMS integration.
The installation by 3CX Partner, Fly by Wire, was fast and efficient. In just over a day, all the phones were up and running.
Day One – 3CX Configuration
Day one of the 3CX deployment was dedicated to network, routers and 3CX Phone System configuration. 70 extensions were imported in one go and, alongside 10 office phones, were set up with personalized templates. FXS (Foreign Exchange Subscriber) and other gateways were also set up, including temporary ISDN gateways until the phone numbers switch to SIP.
All phones were easily provisioned via the management console, while IVR and Call Group setup was also completed. In fact, phone provisioning with 3CX Phone System is so easy that Castelnou’s own staff were able to carry out this task themselves without prior experience.
Day Two – 3CX Integration with Protel PMS
By day two, Castelnou had a working phone system. Refinements were made to the ring groups and queues, and testing was carried out regarding integration between 3CX and their Protel PMS, as well as testing of the VPN connection between the Main Hotel and the Apartment Building. It was decided to install a new VDSL line into the second building. Finally, connection of a PSTN line for dialing emergency numbers was carried out.
Day Three – 3CX Analysis and Testing
The third day consisted of analysis and testing as well as some final configuration. Castelnou and Astrid Park are now linked together by fiber and also linked to Gent Zuid with the 3CX tunnel. Therefore, the phones in Gent Zuid are now linked to the PMS; a substantial improvement.
“The speed at which the installation was carried out really surprised me! With our complicated set up, I was concerned that the work would drag on and potentially disturb the guests. That, however, was not the case – 3CX was installed in no time at all and the benefits of using 3CX Phone System and the 3CX Hotel Module were immediate. 3CX Phone System with the 3CX Hotel Module integrates seamlessly with Castelnou’s Protel PMS. This project is a perfect example of how 3CX delivered a solution that dove-tailed perfectly with customer requirements and delivery schedule. 3CX Phone System was a breath of fresh air – not only was it competitively priced but installation was a breeze! The flexibility for easy, low cost future expansion, and the feeling of being free from expensive maintenance contracts and no longer being tied in to a particular vendor is second to none.”
Luc Daneels, Managing Director, Castelnou Aparthotel
The Results
Almost immediately after the installation of 3CX Phone System, Castelnou’s telephony costs plummeted by a huge 75%! With no need to lease phone lines, or pay extravagant fees for maintenance contracts, and being software based running over existing networks, there’s no phone wiring required and call costs are significantly reduced. Combined with the fact that 3CX Phone System uses the open SIP standard, users are not tied down to any particular vendor. It works with any open standard IP handset.
Within two years, the money saved on maintaining the Nortel PBX as well as leasing the phone lines, will pay for all the new IP phones. A lot of hotels reuse their analog phones using gateways, but Castelnou installed new IP phones, as they added SIP features such as displaying the guests name on the phone, messaging via the screen, phone book provisioning, and being able to set up multiple extensions to one handset easily.
The 3CX Hotel Module was developed specifically with hotels in mind, and increased the feature set to include the ability to display guest names on reception and management phones, and to set the status of an apartment via the phone.
Making use of these features, especially Queue Strategies and the Digital Receptionist, employees of Castelnou Aparthotel have seen a great rise in their productivity. Tasks have been made easier thanks to the user-friendly, web based interface, 3CX MyPhone, that can be accessed from anywhere in the network. 3CX Phone System also integrates with the Property Management System to maintain guest call logs and costs, saving valuable time during check-out.
Leading VoIP providers can be easily provisioned within the 3CX Management Console, which has allowed Castelnou to route its calls via SIP trunks. The use of SIP trunks has turned Castelnou’s phone system into a profit center as guests are offered competitive rates when using their room phones.
The Customer
Centrally located in Ghent, Belgium, The Castelnou Aparthotel forms a perfect base in which to explore the historical city up close, with all its cultural treasures, allowing visitors to discover what makes the city so special. Ghent is also the ideal starting point to explore other Flemish cities of art; Bruges, Antwerp, and Brussels can all be reached in less than half an hour. Castelnou Aparthotel uniquely combines daily hotel services, with the provision of the guest’s own stylish apartment. When in Ghent for business, or for a longer period, their Gent-Zuid and Astrid Park Business Flats provide the solution. A fully furnished apartment with bedroom, bathroom, a comfortable living room with working space, and a fully fitted kitchenette await visitors.
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