Microsoft Teams Calling & Modern Meetings Transformation for UK’s Busiest Rail Operator
Who is Govia Thameslink Railway?
Govia Thameslink Railway is the UK’s largest rail operator. Formed in 2014, the company combined two train operators with four brands – Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern, and Thameslink – to create a super franchise, employing more than 7,500 people across the UK.
Why Cisilion..?
Aidan Shanahan, Head of IT
"We chose Cisilion as a proven Microsoft Gold partner to deliver. They worked well with the internal team giving us clear guidance on hardware and configuration options, then rapidly implemented the solution.”
Snapshot:
Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) Run services over 800 miles of track across the country from Brighton to Peterborough, Cambridge to Horsham, the organisation brought two train operating companies together, with GTR now operating with four brands – Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern, and Thameslink.
The franchise was created to carry out the country’s biggest rail transformation in decades and create a modern railway that meets the needs of passengers today, against a backdrop of growing demand.
CHALLENGES:
Govia Thameslink Railway had the following challenges,
- Legacy phone systems in three major offices were approaching end-of-life and were no longer fit for purpose.
- Complex migration required number porting and the deployment of handsets across the business.
- Cumbersome meeting room experience with very little video calling available.
Through exploratory workshops and our Microsoft Gold Partner status, Cisilion proposed a complex migration from the existing legacy infrastructure to Microsoft Teams Voice.
The Solution
Microsoft Teams Voice Migration
Cisilion leveraged its Microsoft Gold Partner status to scope, manage and migrate Govia Thameslink Railway’s three office phone systems to Microsoft Teams with Phone System, including number porting, handset deployment and Teams Rooms Systems.
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Microsoft Teams Voice
Un-reliable PBX / VOIP solutions decommissioned and migrated to Microsoft Teams Voice, transforming the way its users can communicate across the rail network.
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Microsoft Teams Rooms Systems
Deployed showcase Teams Rooms Systems at its major offices in preparation for a wider deployment across its locations to enable one-touch and no-touch proximity join.
BENEFITS:
Govia Thameslink Railway has achieved the following impressive ROI and benefits:
- Fast, anytime, anywhere cloud calling access for users in the offices, or remotely from home or via their mobile phones.
- Highly Reliable Voice, and integrated phone and meeting room systems.
- Ease of support consolidating three separate systems to two.
- Cost savings – circa £100,000 per annum.
Why Microsoft Teams Voice..?
Aidan Shanahan, Head of IT
“GTR needed a reliable, fully supported and secure solution for our major office locations alongside replacing two end of life systems with minimal disruption. We selected Microsoft Teams Cloud Voice to provide a reliable, secure integrated system."
