Strong networking ties between Martin Crooke from Kilby Fox Accountants and Shivani Mistry from ACS made it an easy decision for the practice when it came to upgrading its telephony system.
Communication Sales Consultant Shivani was able to liaise with Martin and his colleagues and deliver a bespoke solution, backed up by ACS’s position as CityFibre City Champions, aimed at delivering full-fibre gigabit connectivity to businesses across Northamptonshire.
Shivani said:
“I’d known Martin through networking, and when I moved to ACS and Kilby Fox needed to move to a futureproof and reliable solution, the relationship was already in place.
“I met with him and the partners and came up with the solution that worked for them, passing it on to our coordinating team, who had installation complete within six weeks. That’s an excellent turnaround time from our point of view, but even more so when you consider the project finished just before lockdown started in March 2020, so Kilby Fox were in a good place to begin rolling out remote working with the technology and connectivity they required.”
Kilby Fox turned to ACS when it became apparent that their existing system could not provide the speeds needed for a busy, modern office. One of Northampton’s longest established accountancy firms, Kilby Fox can trace its history back to when Fred Kilby qualified as an accountant in 1899 and started his practice
shortly after. Today, operating from offices in Pavilion Court on Northampton Business Park, the team combines its long history with a dedication to making everything as easy as possible for its accountancy or business consultancy clients.
Martin Crooke added:
“It was clear we needed to upgrade from our standard telephone line to something more usable in a modern office, and we were also aware that we needed to do that with the least possible disruption to the team and their work.
“Shivani was involved from the start, she came in to discuss the possibilities with the partners and put the case as to how a more modern line system would be of benefit.
“From there, she was a constant support, not just responding to issues, but covering all aspects of the project so it became and easy and enjoyable process for us.
“Once the system was ready to go, Shivani organised for everyone to be trained and any early issues were dealt with and because of that, we got buy-in from everyone in the team. It also meant we were more than ready for everyone working from home, with a system that delivered the speeds and connectivity we needed.
“We are really happy with the outcome and certainly hope to work with ACS again on future projects.”
As a CityFibre City Champion since January 2020, ACS works with the UK’s largest independent full fibre platform to deliver the benefits of a full fibre gigabit network to businesses in Northampton. Since CityFibre was founded in 2011, hundreds of thousands of premises have been provided with full-fibre connections across the UK, including Northampton, and the revolutionary network is now being rolled out to other areas of Northamptonshire including Wellingborough, Rushden and Kettering, as well as some of the larger villages.
With existing networks in 60 towns and cities, including more than £40m of investment in the Northampton area, CityFibre provides wholesale connectivity to businesses and consumer service providers, local authorities and mobile operators. The organisation has network rollouts under way to provide up to eight million homes and businesses across the UK with open-access full fibre infrastructure.
Full fibre connections direct to businesses provide access to symmetrical, gigabit-capable upload and download speeds, increasing efficiency and productivity. Full fibre means there is no copper to restrict the speeds networks can support, meaning practically limitless capacity. Fully diverse and completely independent from the existing infrastructure, CityFibre’s networks provide the assurance and quality of service businesses increasingly demand and expect.
James Cushing, City Manager at CityFibre, said:
“The reason the full-fibre gigabit network is important is that, working with the likes of ACS, we are bringing a step change in connectivity to residents and businesses in Northampton. When we started work in the town, Northampton was quite a long way behind the national average for connectivity, speed and fibre availability. Since then,
it has not only caught up, but it has overtaken the national average to become one of the best-connected places in the country.“This makes it attractive to new businesses coming into the area, and to those already here who are expanding.
“The full-fibre network will be essential in the recovery from the pandemic and for businesses going forward.”
To find out more, contact ACS on 01604 704000, email info@acs365.co.uk or visit www.acs365.co.uk
