Advice needed...

[Rooi_Willie]

Hi all.

So here's the scenario :

3 locations within a 500m radius from eachother.
All locations with 4mb ADSL lines
Location 1 - 2 telkom lines - 4 extensions
Location 2 - 1 telkom line - 3 extensions
Location 3 - 1 telkom line - 2 extensions

So I'm lookikng for some sort of PABX type thing (not sure what or which). I'm not doing this to save money, as my telkom bill for the 3 is about R4000. I just want to streamline my businesses, have better communications between locations and preferably a unattended switchboard where the incoming caller select which location/extension to connect to.

I'll also be running 16ch DVR's at all 3 locations and would like to be able to view from any location (currently working 100%).

So what would you guys suggest : VOIP? Traditional PABX? WHAAAAAAAAAT????

Like anyone, I don't want to spend a fortune on this.

All replies will be greatly appreciated!

 

[paulcolmer]

This application is crying out for a hosted VoIP solution, as you already have the DSL's at each site. It is cheap and quick to install, just choose a provider, port you numbers, plug some IP phones into the LAN's and your away ! The savings on a R4,000 Telkom account will cover the monthly hosting charges. As you will be using the DSL's for the DVR's and maybe some other data make sure that the routers at each site support QoS and is set up correctly as this will give you the call quality you require.
Look at www.switchtel.co.za they have a quality hosted soluton @ R250 per/month for 10 extentions, just add VoIP trunks.
As the premises are so close together you may also want to look at creating a wireless LAN (wi-Fi) then you would not require DSL at each site but i would have to know more your data requirements and building structure / line of site ect. to advise you.

Paul

 

[InfinityMVS]

Hi Willie,

Instead of going hosted PBX, why don't you host your own PBX, two options are available;
1. deploy a small IP PBX appliance at each branch, connect "branches" via SIP, if they dial external they will dial via the local telkom line, if they dial internal they will dial via SIP. ( cost of IP PBX appliance per site approx R1500.00)

2. deploy one larger IP PBX appliance on the main site, move all telkom lines to the main site, the remote site would act as a remote SIP extension ( cost of larger PBX appliance approx R3000.00)

The PBX can do all you want and more, it can even record your conversations, recieve faxes convert to pdf and e-mail, voicmail to e-mail etc.

if you want firm pricing or more information you are welcome to contact me. 021 553 3465. ext 601 or 082 880 2666

Cheers

 

[georgegolding]

Rooi there is no doubt you should be using a VoiP Cloud (Hosted) PBX. Why would you want to install, maintain and configure equipment at each location. Take a look at www.euphoria.co.za

It quick and easy to setup and infinitely scalable. Your costs would be R50 per extension per month ex vat.

 

[paulcolmer]

Thankyou Geoge for confirming that this shoud be a hosted application, the previous post suggesting a PBX at each site and keeping Telkom is daft ! the only thing sugestion i agree with in the post is moving the Telkom lines but not to the main site, move them back to Telkom and leave them there, where they belong ! Port the numbers to your ITSP. As i have spent much time buiding embedded IP PBX's on SBC's, such as Alix, Gumstix, router boards and netboxes, i would like to ask InfinityMVS this question, what do you get in an IP PBX that supports FXO and retails for R1,500 ? i am dubious of its quality, let alone performance !

Paul

 

[gmza]

Hosted PBX is by far the best for multi-site installations, particularly small and medium installations where budgets aren't infinite. I agree with paul, this scenario screams for the numbers to be ported and a pure voip hosted pbx. A Switch Telecom solution for this particular installation (up to 10 extensions, up to 4 simultaneous calls, 3 numbers) would be R370 per month (including vat), R450 once off (to port 3x numbers) plus the once-off cost of handsets, varying from R684 each to R1197 each for desktop handsets (from entry level to reception class units). We'd be glad to assist - 087 550 0000 - www.switchtel.co.za.

An on-site pbx is a really crazy idea for three different sites. You'll either land up with three pbx devices (3x the $$$) or a situation where, if the primary site's connectivity is lost, all sites are down. If hosting yourself, host at a data centre. But for 9 extensions, hosting yourself is a massive waste of money. For >100 extensions, perhaps, but not for 9.

 

[[email protected]]

Our company has tried a few VoIP Providers including Vox etc.

We found a good solution with euphoria, it was very easy to implement and it just works.

We have 2 offices (PTA and Cape Town) and around 10 users, our internal calls are now free any our phone bill as dropped by about 30%

 

[NightShift]

i think there is alot of bias in the above posts. I suspect that some of you have associations with hosted voip providers - i.e. you work for them.

For the OP: There are a number of different things you can look at

1) If each of the buildings is connected to the other (networked) you could look at having an IP PBX at your main site with devices (handsets) registered to this from the local and remote sites.
- All calls between these sites are managed by your IP PBX, and travel over your network. If your network is more reliable that your ADSL provider then this is a good thing
- All calls between your sites are 'free'
- You dont require Telkom lines at each site, and you may not even require seperate DSL lines at each site.
- In terms of connecting to the outside world, you could either use Telkom lines for this (Analogue or BRI) or a VOIP provider like Switchtel - you will need to investigate the associated costs against your needs yourself and work out what the best solution for you is

2) Having a PBX at each site for a small setup doesnt make any sense at all, unless you have some kind of critical dependency on every site needing telecommunication services at all times, and you want 1 site to be able to take control of another site(s) if the main pbx fails (which again assumes all your sites are networked)

3) Hosted VOIP removes the need for you to invest alot of money into networks and pbx hardware. You have ADSL connectivity at each of your sites meaning this would be a fairly easy move for you to make. I think you will essentially 'rent' the handsets, which after a couple of years becomes expensive. You will also need to mainting your ADLS connectivity from each site for this to work effectively if you do not have your own network in place between the different sites.

Ultimately it comes down to your requirements, versus the pros and limitations of the options available to you.