Bristan Case Study

Added value is the main attraction for Bristan Group

Centralising services and restructuring its telephone contracts has resulted in significant cost savings for the Bristan Group, but it is the added value provided by business telecommunications specialist Wavenet that has enabled the company to manage its systems more effectively and achieve key operating efficiencies.

The Bristan Group is one of the UK's largest bathroom supply companies, with three main product groups within its portfolio: stylish and functional Bristan showers, taps and bathroom accessories; contemporary and traditional complete bathroom suites from Heritage Bathrooms and the Sirrus range of quality water controls for commercial washrooms.

In addition to providing a cost-effective package of reduced cost lines and calls to Bristan Group, Wavenet takes care of its mobile phones - assessing the four leading business mobile providers and determining the most appropriate networks, tariffs and handsets to meet the organisation's specific needs.

Bristan Group employs a series of non-geographical, fixed cost 0844 numbers to make it easy and inexpensive for customers throughout the UK to contact its order processing, sales, returns and customer service departments. These are also linked to Wavenet's flexible, intelligent network-based routing and recording service to ensure a professional response at all times.

Wavenet's Network Voice Recording is essential to the professional and efficient performance of Bristan Group's in-bound call centres in Tamworth and Bristol. While the capability to monitor and record calls acts as a valuable back up and helps Bristan Group identify training requirements as part of its ongoing customer service improvement and staff development programme, Network Voice Recording puts the company in complete control of where and when calls are received and routed on any day of the week.

Network Voice Recording is essential to Bristan Group's business recovery and disaster planning because, in event that Bristan Group's landline telephone numbers develop a fault, the Wavenet service can instantly be re-routed to an alternative number or a voicemail service delivering a special announcement to callers.

Westley Mason, Bristan Group's IT services manager, took over responsibility of Bristan's mobile and fixed telephony contracts 18 months ago and Wavenet has worked closely with him to develop reports which enable him to analyse cost and usage and to help drive down costs.

"Wavenet set up direct, centralised billing for all lines at our headquarters in Tamworth and the Heritage Bathrooms site in Bristol plus our mobile phone services, which has enabled us to make major cost savings and made it much easier for me to manage the telecommunications system," says Mr Mason.

"However, by far the main advantage of having Wavenet as our preferred telecoms partner is the excellent customer support we receive. If we encounter a disruption to our service or I have any query whatsoever all I have to do is contact our account manager at Wavenet and they find a quick and efficient resolution. If I had to liaise direct with, say, BT or Vodafone when issues arose, it would be extremely time-consuming, taking me away from my core responsibilities, but as it is I don't have to concern myself with line faults and the like because Wavenet takes away the hassle."

Services Provided

• Services supplied to Bristan Group: Lines & Calls, Mobile phones, 0844 numbers, Network Voice Recording
• Significant cost savings achieved by centralising services and restructuring telephone contracts
• Call monitoring/recording promotes professional and efficient call centre performance
• Added value enables Bristan Group to mange its systems more effectively
• Network Voice Recording supports customer service improvements and staff development
• Network Voice Recording is essential to Bristan Group's business recovery and disaster plans