Whitehelm - Managed Routers & VoIP

Managed Router Services

Whitehelm offers two types of Managed Router services to meet varying business needs - Internet Access and WAN/VPN. These can be optimally configured to complement in-house expertise.

Whitehelm Managed Internet Access offers a broad range of features in a turnkey solution.

Whitehelm Managed WAN/VPN offers a rich set of services for managing multi-site networks. With either solution, customers benefit from the same high-performance networks, service level guarantees, and 24x7 proactive monitoring and support.

Managed Internet Access

Whitehelm`s Managed Internet Access Service makes it easy for small to mid-sized businesses to be Internet enabled. By taking advantage of our network design expertise, 24 by 7 network management and proactive monitoring, you are ensured maximum service reliability, availability and performance

Managed WAN/VPN

Whitehelm`s Managed WAN/VPN services make it easy for businesses to interconnect central and remote facilities, regionally, nationally or internationally. These services include network design, provisioning, maintenance and on-going support, so customers can easily share applications, exchange information, transfer files and integrate new and legacy systems.

Organisations that have multiple interconnecting sites are able to take advantage of the Whitehelm Managed Router Service with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) feature. This feature provides connectivity between a customer's Private Branch Exchanges (PBXs) via their existing WAN/VPN.

What is MRS with VoIP?

The Whitehelm Managed Router Service with Voice over Internet Protocol feature (MRS with VoIP) enables the enterprise customer to provide an "Intra-Company Tie Line Service" between MRS connected sites and will offset expenditures by reducing PSTN or other traditional voice service costs. The MRS with VoIP feature will enable Whitehelm`s customers to have domestic and international managed "On-Net" voice service end to end. This service provides the enterprise customer with a standardised set of quality voice features within a fully managed, multi vendor, multi carrier, and multi language environment

Whitehelm`s Managed Router Service delivers the elements required to design, build, implement, manage and operate an enterprise wide area data network. The Voice over IP feature is an enhancement of MRS. It is designed to provide the enterprise customer the ability to be able to pick up the telephone connected to the site PBX and dial a call transparently to another enterprise customer site using their WAN/VPN. Calls are compressed into a data packet stream and can require as little as 10.5 kbps per voice channel by a voice gateway router to provide a set of voice features. Community of interest call volumes will determine network sizing for simultaneous calls. The feature will provide design, provisioning and management of the voice VPN.

Highlights of the Whitehelm MRS with VoIP feature include:

Transport of voice calls between customer site PBXs over the WAN/VPN.
Shared used of the customers MRS Virtual Private Network (VPN) for voice and data
Design and analysis for optimal network sizing
Interconnection at the customer's sites with either PBX or key systems
Efficient phone connection between customer locations
Flexible service extension to additional sites
Faxes can be sent and received over the VoIP connection
Potential overall cost savings by reducing PSTN charges
Network consolidation for voice and data applications
Positioning to take advantage of off-net calling and integrated IP applications.

What are the Customer Responsibilities?

The customer is responsible for the PBX equipment, software, configuration/programming, cabling to the managed gateway device, and dial plan definition. To facilitate enablement and service delivery, Whitehelm will liase where necessary between the customer and the customer's PBX vendor.

What are the Customer Requirements for Whitehelm`s MRS with VoIP?

Customer pre-selection criteria are as follows:

Customer enterprise specific information:

Is this an enterprise customer with traditional PBXs and key systems that need to be networked?
Does the customer currently have deployed a MRS service?

If No, does the customer wish to purchase MRS service with VoIP?
If MRS is deployed, does it reside on suitable routers?

Customer site-specific information:
Do at least 2 connecting sites match the following criteria:

Approximately how much is spent per month for intra-site voice minutes?
Does your PBX support either T1/E1 with CAS or analog FXO trunks?
Where are your international sites?
Do you have spare bandwidth capacity?

If no, would you be willing to upgrade your access link to accommodate a new separate connection for voice traffic?

If you have responded YES to numbers 1 and 2a in the Customer enterprise paragraph above and YES to numbers 2 and 4 or 4a in the Customer site paragraph above then you have met the MRS with VoIP feature prerequisites.

What are the Charges for the MRS with VoIP offer?

Charging for the Whitehelm MRS with Voice over IP feature is based on MRS pricing methodology. There is a one-time charge for this feature per site. There is a monthly recurring charge for this feature per site. The monthly recurring charge includes all necessary network monitoring and reporting. Customers may need to order a separate connection or additional bandwidth from their network provider for this voice traffic.

All necessary voice CPE equipment is purchased and owned by the customer

What if I don't have the required equipment?

MRS users who do not have suitable router hardwarel will require a router upgrade. In addition a separate connection for voice or increased access bandwidth may be required.

What is On-Net and Off-Net voice service?

On-Net Service voice service is voice calls between MRS connected sites. Off-net service is voice calls between a MRS connected site and a MRS non-connected site.

How does Whitehelm ensure the quality of Voice over IP calls?

Whitehelm has determined that the access link is the mostly likely area for IP packet congestion. Alleviating this potential for congestion is critical for VoIP. The access facility will have enabled QoS mechanisms, such as fair-weighted/low latency queuing, that will help ensure prioritisation for voice packets.

Whitehelm also monitors voice path quality to assure that the path is capable of carrying the call with high quality.

Please call 0870 421 4023 to find out how your company can benefit from our managed routers and VoIP services, or e-mail sales@whitehelm.com requesting more information.