SINGAPORE - April 22, 2005 - Singapore's National Trade Union Congress (NTUC) has taken advantage of the move to its new headquarters at One Marina Boulevard to introduce the latest in intelligent networking systems - and improve communications with more than 440,000 union members.
The organisation has successfully installed a Cisco® end-to-end Internet Protocol (IP)-based network over 10 floors of the NTUC Centre, including almost 400 Cisco IP phones, an intelligent contact centre system and wireless technology.
The NTUC expects to reduce its overall communications costs by about 30 per cent over the next six years as well as reap the benefits of powerful new functions, streamlined management and greater flexibility.
According to Martin Tsang, NTUC chief information officer, the increased efficiency and added functionality of the new call centre system have encouraged more people to use it, doubling the number of calls to about 50,000 a month.
Said Mr Tsang, "We have a new generation of union members that include professionals and executives, and for us to communicate and serve them better, we need to evolve and embrace new-generation technologies. By implementing Cisco IP telephony and wireless technology throughout our office, we have not only rationalised the whole network and added important new features but also cut our running costs and our initial investment."
The end-to-end wired and wireless network supports about 450 users in the NTUC Centre, including 340 staff using new Cisco IP phones, plus 22 call centre agents, via wired and wireless connections. The infrastructure also includes a Layer 3 Core Switch which enables the NTUC to create Virtual LANs (VLANs) and provide improved security for different sections.
"Both large organisations and SMEs are implementing IP Communications on Intelligent Information Networks, as they are now looking for future-proof technology and feature-rich networks which will help them lower running cost, as well as improve productivity and customer service," said Craig Gledhill, Cisco Systems managing director for Singapore and Brunei. "The NTUC has carefully weighed up the financial and productivity factors in choosing its new infrastructure."
The new network was installed by Cisco's Certified Premier Partner, NEC Solutions Asia Pacific, which also developed the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system used by the new Contact Centre. NEC will also maintain the new network over the next six years.
The Cisco IP Contact Centre provides an integrated full-feature solution for managing customer voice calls, including routing calls to the appropriate agent, contact management and powerful reporting features. When members call the Centre, the agent can immediately access their personal details to improve efficiency and speed up the handling of enquiries.
The wireless network serves two purposes - making it easier for NTUC staff to use their notebook computers while they move around the office and providing mobile access to the Internet for staff and visitors.
As well as making it possible for staff to carry on working remotely during emergencies, the new IP network also enables NTUC Industrial Relations Officers (IROs) who are posted out to unions to "hot-desk" when they come back to the office. NTUC practises job rotation, so Cisco IP telephony solution makes it easy to move staff around. Staff members can take their Cisco IP phone with them wherever they go maintaining the same phone number and personalized services. Among the key features of the new IP phones are access to NTUC corporate directory, caller ID, unified messaging and voice messaging.
The equipment used in the new infrastructure includes Cisco Catalyst® Series Switches, Cisco Internet Routers, a Cisco Cache Engine, Cisco PIX® Firewalls, Cisco VPN Concentrators, Cisco Aironet® Access Points and Cisco IP Contact Center, as well Cisco IP phones.
About National Trade Union Congress
National Trade Union Congress (NTUC) is a national federation of trade unions of workers in the industrial, service and public sectors representing 450,000 workers in Singapore. It has 63 trade unions and four associations affiliated to it. NTUC's objectives are to help Singapore stay competitive and workers to remain employable for life; to enhance the social status and well-being of workers and to build a strong, responsible and caring labour movement.
