Manufacturer makes concrete communication gains

In large-scale construction, connecting and coordinating with suppliers and customers is critical to success. The Unistress Corporation, an East Coast company specializing in design, production and construction of large-scale precast and prestressed concrete structures, was beginning to understand just how important a reliable phone system could be in enabling those connections and staying ready.

Unistress structural products are a part of bridges, buildings, manufacturing plants, stadiums and more throughout the Northeast, but the company’s aging phone system made it a challenge to coordinate sales and delivery of all these products. Unistress needed a modern phone system that could help it collaborate internally and externally to deliver a superior customer experience. With One Talk℠ from Verizon, it not only got a high-quality phone system, it also got features to boost team productivity whether employees were at their desks or on the road. 

Dated phones damaged productivity

When Unistress first purchased it, the company’s legacy phone system was a state-of-the-art Voice over IP (VoIP) solution. As the years passed, though, it became outdated and contributed to issues such as frequent dropped calls. According to IT Manager David Serafini, “We’d be on a call and the other party would be quiet for a second and you would ask, ‘Are you still there?’ because you would be expecting the call to drop all the time. For two years, we experienced dropped calls twice a day for nearly everyone in the company.”

If that wasn’t bad enough, the IT team also struggled to manage the legacy phone system’s directory. The directory had grown more complex and disorganized over time, to more than 125 lines. It was difficult to sort out extensions, create new lines and remove old lines when employees changed departments or joined the company. This made it hard for customers and employees to reach the right people. Clearly, it was time for a better phone system.

Customer: Unistress Corporation

Location: Massachusetts

Business: Manufacture of precast and prestressed concrete structures

Year founded: 1968

Number of phone lines: 125

A solution for old challenges and new capabilities

A conversation with a Verizon Wireless business specialist introduced Unistress to an enticing possibility: a VoIP phone solution that not only solved the company’s current challenges, but also offered new mobile capabilities.

One Talk from Verizon is a business-grade, mobile-first phone system loaded with features to help today’s businesses connect with customers and improve team collaboration. The One Talk solution provides each user with a single phone number, line ID and voicemail that work seamlessly with their desk phone and smart devices.

Having one business number makes it easier for employees to take calls in the office or on the road. Having a single phone number also resulted in more outbound calls being answered, since customers were more likely to recognize the business numbers. And having the same voicemail accessible from both desk phones and smart devices made it easier to always get messages. One Talk also gives employees features such as Hunt Group, 6-way Conference Calling, Auto Receptionist and more.

"One Talk saved me." 

        — David Serafini, IT Manager

Simple-to-manage features to boost productivity

From the start, both Serafini and the phone system administrator were impressed by how easy One Talk was to set up and use. The intuitive design of the administrative console particularly pleased them when compared to their previous system. It allowed them to easily set up new devices— even employee-owned devices running various operating systems or using various carriers.

Because the console was so much more user friendly, they were able to create a well-organized phone system and set up the appropriate access and controls—and keep that system up to date. “If you need to make personnel changes, you can go behind the scenes [into the portal] and easily swap out the extension,” Serafini said.

Fast deployment so you can focus on your business

The process of deploying One Talk at Unistress took just two days. The rapid setup amazed the Unistress team. The planning, system configuration, installation of new desk phones and deployment of the One Talk app to smart devices were all done in that two-day window. Best of all, the IT team didn’t need to do any complicated network reconfiguration to get One Talk up and running.

Easier communication with one phone number and calls that move from desk to mobile

The One Talk mobile app gave each Unistress employee a single phone number for both his or her desk phone and smartphone. The sales force and other mobile employees could now easily move calls from their desks to their mobile phones. Employees could access their business phone system and voicemail on either their desk phones or smart devices, saving time and increasing productivity.

“A lot of times our sales people are out on the road,” said Serafini. “After talking with our sales team on the road for 20 minutes, they'll just walk into the office and seamlessly transfer the call to their desk phones and start working on their computer. It’s really nice.”

Sales-team members weren’t the only employees that benefited. The IT team frequently needs to leave their desks to troubleshoot issues in remote parts of the office. With the mobile app, the Unistress IT department could quickly respond to tech-support needs. “I can start a tech call on my phone at my desk and need to check on the server.” Serafini said. “I transfer the call from my desk to my [smart device], then check on the server and then shift back to my desk.” 

An auto receptionist for improved customer service

Unistress is also making good use of the Auto Receptionist feature and how easy it is to modify. “The Auto Receptionist is really nimble and easy to understand,” Serafini said. During normal operation, the feature routes calls directly to the correct department. It helps ensure that customers can always reach the right people at Unistress, even with a changing workforce.

When the company experienced a regional storm, though, Unistress saw an additional benefit. The company found it easy to access the portal and change the Auto Receptionist message to communicate with customers.

Customer benefits:

• Cutting-edge technology for a mobile workforce
• Easy-to-use console and end-user experience
• Fast deployment 
• High-quality voice calling

Connecting Unistress to better results

Unistress was in search of high-quality voice calling to keep the business running smoothly. With One Talk, the company got that and much more. The intuitive admin console and easy-tounderstand experience provided a quick boost to productivity. The whole system was up and running in just two days, and it has introduced Unistress to seamless one-number calling for desk and smart devices, providing new benefits that help the company focus on its customers and drive its business forward.

Why Verizon

A better business-phone solution combined with a better network will make your mobile and customer experiences work better together. Verizon 4G LTE is available in 500+ markets and covers 98 percent of the U.S. population. With one bill, one service provider and one customer support organization, One Talk customers get a truly unified solution that runs over the nation’s largest and most reliable 4G LTE network.

Learn more

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Contact your Verizon Wireless business specialist to learn more about how One Talk can help you grow your business.  For more information about One Talk, click here or visit a Verizon Wireless store near you.