BT Business helps charity cut costs and save money

Historically, this involved a lot of travel. Ken Lavender, Cartrefi Cymru’s ICT Manager, wanted to rationalise the expense. Too much time was spent on travel, and money wasted on overnight accommodation. Not to mention the environmental impact!

Lavender knew videoconferencing was the answer. But which supplier could help them, particualry since they needed a big screen solution covering its three main regional offices and to provide coverage across rural areas

BT Business was the encumbent comms service provider and was invited to make a proposal. It organised a demo of its videoconferencing solution and offered the best functionality for Cartrefi Cymru’s needs - making the solution robust and easy to use for nontechnical staff. BT's offering also built in specialist helpdesk support to help resolve any set-up or configuration issues.

Staff have taken to it enthusiastically. The facilities are in regular daily use, helping to cut operating costs and turn Cartrefi Cymru into a more efficient and sustainable business. Early calculations suggest the management team will save over 100,000 miles of travelling each year, returning around 400 days of ineffective travel time. If every SME in the UK made a commitment to cut their employee car travel by the equivalent of two working days of car travel in a year, small businesses could collectively save more than 1 million tonnes of CO2.

For Cartrefi Cymru alone, increased videoconferencing could save the business around £50,000 in direct travel and hotel costs. The company has since invested to enhance its service and, with BT Business’ help, upgraded its network and provided a desktop video conferencing option for senior managers.