DCMNR to use IP-based solution to link offices

04-05-2006

by Charlie Taylor

The Department of Communications is to implement an IP-based telephony solution, which will link its offices in Dublin with its new decentralised offices in Cork and Cavan.

A tender notice issued by the department on the Government's etenders website on Thursday has called for interested parties to help it to implement "an integrated communication platform" which will enable seamless and secure IP data transfer between the department's headquarters in Dublin and its new decentralised offices in Cavan Town and Clonakilty, Co Cork.

The notice states that the primary requirement for the solution is to allow it to reduce telephony costs.

"We're going to be moving from a situation in which we've got two buildings in Dublin that are using leased lines at the moment -- one for voice and one for data -- to a situation where we'll have parts of the department based in Cavan and Cork, so we need a system that can handle calls from all these locations which is why we're looking at VoIP," a spokesperson for the department told ElectricNews.Net.

"Within the department, we're often looking at innovative solutions. We have to keep on top of technology ourselves and we've been aware that VoIP has become increasingly popular and that it looks like it can handle a decentralised department with multiple locations," the spokesperson added.

The notice also states that the platform will need to integrate for voice traffic with the department's current telecommunications infrastructure, which is based on an Alcatel 4400 PBX and utilises a H.323 gateway.

In seeking to roll out a full VoIP solution, the department, which has responsibility for the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors, is following the lead of the Council of Europe, the main decision-making body of the European Union. In June 2005, the Council announced plans to switch to VoIP by routing all communications from the 4,000 seats in its offices in Strasbourg through IP.

Closer to home, a number of government agencies, most notably the Revenue Commissioners, have spearheaded the switch to converged networks in recent years.

In a speech delivered at the Telecommunications and Internet Federation (TIF) Annual Conference in October 2005, the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Noel Dempsey signalled his personal interest in VoIP when he told delegates, "I am particularly impressed with VoIP. Comreg research shows that 48 percent of corporates and 26 percent of SMEs plan to use a VoIP service in the next 12 months. I'm not at all surprised. It simply makes good sense, not just in cost terms but in security terms too."