Case Study - PBE - Pitney Bowes

CASE study KRONE (Australia) Holdings Pty Limited 2 Hereford Street Berkeley Vale NSW 2261 PO Box 335 Wyong NSW 2259 Phone: 02 4389 5000 Fax: 02 4388 4499 Help Desk: 1800 801 298 Email: kronehlp@krone.com.au Web: www.krone.com.au 6066 05/03 Pitney Bowes has the 'Mail' on Patch-by-Exception Pitney Bowes selected KRONE Australia's Premis NET  Cat 5e Solution for its new headquarters and communications network. More than one hundred years ago, on December 9, 1901, inventor Arthur Pitney filed a patent application for the first postage meter. Today, Pitney Bowes Inc. holds more than 3,400 patents worldwide in mail and document management that cover a range of technologies including shipping, printing, encryption, funds management and security. From the postage meter to Postage by Phone, digital metering technology to Internet Postage; every major invention in the mailing industry has originated at Pitney Bowes. A consistent focus on inventing and applying technology to enhance the value, reduce the cost and increase the efficiency of mail and document management helps Pitney Bowes deliver maximum value to its customers, partners and shareholders. That same philosophy is being applied to the new communications network the company is putting in place in Australia. While Pitney Bowes also manufactures facsimile machines, its core business is built on the efficient delivery of critical metering information between its customers and its postal partner. In Australia, the company acts as intermediary or agent between Australia Post and Pitney Bowes' customers, accounting for the receipts and payments of postal funds that pass through its franking machines and metering devices or facilities. It is in the process of consolidating its two Sydney offices into one national headquarters and is also relocating its Melbourne premises. Stuart Low, IT Team Leader, Pitney Bowes Australia Pty Limited, is charged with managing the imminent moves. " To increase our productivity and more effectively manage our critical partner and customer service capabilities, we are amalgamating our two Sydney offices. Construction has commenced on the refurbishment and expansion of our existing premises at 95a St Hillier's Road, Auburn and we anticipate the move will be completed by mid September; the Melbourne office re-location is occurring simultaneously," said Mr Low. " It is imperative that the infrastructure for the communications network we install enables us to manage our business as efficiently as possible. " Over a five-year period, our current cabling infrastructure has deteriorated. Lack of network schematics has resulted in a messy system of cables. It takes far too long for our IT team to locate the correct cables and implement even the simplest moves, adds and changes," said Mr Low. " Fault finding among the maze of wires is a major challenge, to say the least. Terry Buckridge, NSW Sales Manager KRONE Australia and Stuart Low, IT Team Leader Pitney Bowes Australia at Pitney Bowes Auburn Office CASE study KRONE (Australia) Holdings Pty Limited 2 Hereford Street Berkeley Vale NSW 2261 PO Box 335 Wyong NSW 2259 Phone: 02 4389 5000 Fax: 02 4388 4499 Help Desk: 1800 801 298 Email: kronehlp@krone.com.au Web: www.krone.com.au 6066 05/03 " For more than 200 Pitney Bowes employees across all states of Australia, we manage communications encompassing voicemail, e-mail, the Internet, and file and print server access. A national call centre will also be based at the new Auburn complex with operators handling customer meter enquiries, problem resolution and technical queries. " While cost was a driving factor in our selection of a new system, product reputation, reliability and the efficient use of the IT team's time were major factors in our decision process. " After researching the market, we selected KRONE Australia's Premis NET Category 5e solution based on the company's HIGHBAND  Ultim8 Disconnection Module and Patch-by-Exception methodology," said Mr Low. " Stowe Australia, will be installing the system for us," he added. Patch-by-Exception (PBE) is not new. KRONE Australia developed it as a product feature of its HIGHBAND  modules and has been installing it in sites in the Asia Pacific, Europe and the United States since the mid-1990s. Candidates for the PBE methodology are enterprises with a high density of RJ45 outlets where cabling, unless managed correctly, can become a jungle of patch cords. This, in turn, causes problems for the network administrators and slows down network moves, adds and changes. To redirect services, all the IT manager needs to use is a short, one-metre-long patch cable. In a simple plug-and-play motion they can override the hardwired side of the HIGHBAND  module and re-connect to the required office area. Periodically, the customer's installer visits to remove patch cords on permanent circuits and replace them with jumper wire. Another development that further contributes to the acceptance of the Patch-by-Exception solution is the virtual network hub. This means that a network manager can control each individual PC on the network and make any moves or changes via software - without the need to leave his or her desk. Nowadays, phone services are almost always provided at every workstation and in every room. When a person moves offices, their telephone extension number can be easily reallocated using the software on the PABX. Pitney Bowes Australia is currently in the process of selecting a new phone system in conjunction with new wide area network infrastructure to provide national access for users to the new customer relationship management software, corporate financials and administration systems PBA will be adding to its communications network. " We will be factoring the KRONE PBE methodology into our specifications as we look to procure the right solutions," said Mr Low. KRONE PRODUCTS USED BY PITNEY BOWES AUSTRALIA FMK Outlets Premis NET Cat5e UTP Cable and patch cords HIGHBAND  Ultim8 Disconnect Modules ABOUT PITNEY BOWES Pitney Bowes Inc is a $4.1 billion global provider of integrated mail and document management solutions headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, USA. The company serves over 2 million businesses of all sizes in more than 130 countries through dealer and direct operations. For more than 100 years Pitney Bowes has taken an instrumental role in providing solutions for both incoming and outgoing mail. Their experience combine with a diverse product range has placed them at the forefront in facilitating the varying needs of businesses spanning from SOHO, to large mail production environments. . kronehlp@krone.com.au Web: www.krone.com.au 6066 05/03 Pitney Bowes has the 'Mail' on Patch-by-Exception Pitney Bowes selected KRONE Australia's Premis. KRONE Australia and Stuart Low, IT Team Leader Pitney Bowes Australia at Pitney Bowes Auburn Office CASE study KRONE (Australia) Holdings Pty Limited 2