City Inn Hotels lead the way in technology with Mitel IP Solution
| ABOUT CITY INN HOTELS Type: Private hotel group Location: Bristol, Glasgow, Birmingham, London and Manchester Configuration: Plan to connect all five sites and future sites to IP network Website: http://www.cityinn.com |
| CUSTOMER NEEDS |
City Inn Hotels is an award winning, privately owned hotel group and is fast
becoming one of the most exciting and innovative emerging brands in the
country. The group has five stylish properties in key city centre locations
including Bristol, Glasgow, Birmingham, London and Manchester.
At the heart of the City Inn brand are the principles of an uncompromising
approach to quality, a commitment to innovation and putting customers first.
To ensure this, processes, services and facilities are frequently changed and
adapted to ensure added value for guests. Offering a modern alternative to
the traditional large hotel, City Inn believes in creating new build hotels in
thriving city centre locations and providing guests with a cool, light and
contemporary environment in which to relax, work or entertain.
As a leading hotel group City Inn pushes the boundaries with pioneering
concepts in technology and design. In 2007 the City Inn hotel group received
the “Technology Award” at the European Hotel Design Awards for its
Manchester hotel, that set an industry benchmark with the introduction of
a multimedia iMac solution in every guestroom. In order to remain at the
forefront of the latest technology, it was essential that City Inn Hotels had
an advanced communications solution to enhance the guest experience,
improve customer service and optimise productivity and costs.
“We conducted a thorough assessment of all vendors and evaluated systems from Avaya, Alcatel and Mitel, and selected Mitel because of their strength in the hospitality industry. The aesthetic design of the phones is of paramount importance to us, whilst we were also impressed with the features of the solution. Mitel also has the greenest phones in the industry and at City Inn Hotels we do everything that we can to reduce our carbon footprint.” |
– Eoin O’Connell, IT Director, |
Prior to the Mitel® deployment, each of the five City Inn Hotels operated on a different phone system which proved difficult to manage and inefficient in the back office. The IT Director, Eoin O’Connell decided it was time to deploy an IP solution.
SOLUTION COMPONENTS |
RESULTS |
The City Inn Hotel selected the Mitel 3300 IP Communications Platform
(ICP), which was installed at the Manchester hotel in 2007 and now has
40 IP users in place. City Inn has plans to migrate the other hotels to a
similar platform over time. Using the 3300ICP, City Inn Hotels can continue
to use existing phone systems, therefore protecting their investment whilst
being able to seamlessly migrate each system to IP
at their own pace.
The long-term objective is to create an integrated IP network between the
existing hotels and the new hotels, planned to open in Leeds and Amsterdam
in 2010. With the IP solution in place the group will be able to make free
calls between the hotels.
“We have laid down a communications platform for the future. The
opportunities with our Mitel IP network are endless, and crucial to improving
business processes and customer service,”
Eoin O’Connell, IT Director,
City Inn Hotels.
In order to remain at the forefront of technology the City Inn Hotel group
have installed wireless access points throughout all properties for WiFi
internet. This allows City Inn to implement Mitel wireless IP phones that
enable staff to communicate on the move. The new found mobility will
increase customer service and productivity, while staff will not have to wait
until they get back to their desks to pick up messages or take calls.
They will
be contactable at any time, any place.
 |
Future additions to the Mitel IP solution may also include the deployment of the Mitel Mobile Extension which allows callers to dial a single phone number that simultaneously rings a desk phone and a mobile, so calls are never missed. Mobile phone bills can be reduced at the touch of a button, and mobile calls can be seamlessly transferred to the desk phone as the employee enters the office.
