The Challenge

The project has not only been concerned with joining together Energiedienst Holding AGs various branches using Voice over IP (VoIP). In addition, it is intended to gradually move the its telephony connections to its telephone service provider from traditional primary rate interfaces over to VoIP. At the same time, the reliability and availability of the existing connections must be guaranteed. The communications infrastructure must be implemented so that it can be managed from one central location.

Solution
Avaya has bound the utilitys VoIP communication solution to the Deutsche Telekom SIP infrastructure by means of Session Border Controllers. Combined with SIP trunking, these produce a solution for linking a VoIP-compatible PBX to the public telephone network. On a step-bystep basis, all of the ISDN lines used for voice telephony will be converted to Voice over IP, thus realising significant cost benefits. To increase the resilience of the solution, Deutsche Telekom is providing redundant line feeds. The Avaya components operated by Energiedienst Holding AG also benefit from redundancy.
Rheinfelden is currently the location for a 380 million euro investment in a modern hydroelectric powerstation.

VoIP meets hydro power

Companies with a number of sites and remote offices in particular are able to reduce their telephony costs considerably by making consistent use of Voice over IP (VoIP). Energiedienst Holding AG is in the process of replacing its traditional telephone lines with VoIP services, giving it a more flexible and robust system at a lower cost. Additional advantages of the new technology include the ability to manage the infrastructure from one central point, as well as powerful new communications capabilities such as video telephony.

Result
Infrastructure that is compatible with Deutsche Telekoms SIP trunking Highly resilient solution Lower monthly costs Centrally managed telecommunications solution Unified Communications applications such as Unified Messaging, desktop integration, video conferencing and presence indication

CASE STUDY

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Energiedienst Holding AG (EDH) is a

Its important to us to be innovative in all areas. SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) trunking is an essential requirement for migrating from ISDN to IP telephony. Even though it uses VoIP technology, a connection of this type functions just like a regular ISDN connection. In other words, the telephone service offers the same connectivity and features as a conventional system, irrespective of VoIP.

We do not only want our own products to be innovative, we demand technical infrastructure of a similar standard. For that reason, VoIP is a good solution. The technology is future-proof, it offers us many options in terms of communications

regional Swiss electric utility company that supplies South Baden and Switzerland with power acquired from hydroelectric sources, along with other related services. With headquarters in Switzerland, two administrative bases in Germany and a range of remote offices, the Group relies on a powerful telecommunications infrastructure. Various sites require primary rate interfaces, along with the associated hardware, not to mention the costs and management requirements. Our business is experiencing a growth phase. To keep the costs of the communication infrastructure under control while maintaining our flexibility, we depend heavily on Voice over IP, says Friedhelm Bumer, IT manager at EDH. Its not only for our 2000 internal extensions that we use this technology. Thanks to SIP trunking, we are also linked to our telecommunication provider by VoIP.

Availability is key
Among all the advantages of SIP trunking in terms of simplified infrastructure, the key benefit for EDH is the availability of its telephone lines. Stability and reachability must not fall below the acceptable levels to which customers and staff alike are used from traditional ISDN telephony. In the case of Energiedienst Holding, Deutsche Telekom as the SIP trunking provider offers

reduces cost and complexity.

Friedhelm Bumer, Head of IT, Energiedienst Holding AG

The Ryburg-Schwrstadt hydroelectric plant

capabilities and it even

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A large proportion of the electricity sold by the company is generated in its own power stations, which use exclusively renewable energy sources. In its main NaturEnergie brand, it supplies electricity that is certified as being generated solely from hydroelectric power.

something that is so far unique: making the VoIP connection redundant. There is one feed coming from Frankfurt and another from Munich. This means a lower risk of failure compared with a primary rate interface, which makes the solution highly available, explains Markus Bayer, who is responsible for IT at Avaya. So far we have converted 10 of the 30channels at one site to VoIP. The stability of the combination of Deutsche Telekoms SIP trunking and the Avaya communication solution is so impressive that we have decided to gradually replace the rest of the ISDN channels with VoIP too, says Bumer. If it all proceeds as planned, within a period of 24 months all of the sites will be linked to each other and to Deutsche Telekom by VoIP. This soft upgrade to modern, IP-based communications is being managed in cooperation with the German telecommunications operator. It is responsible for converting individual blocks of numbers to Voice over IP on a gradual basis. In order to further increase the resilience of the solution, Energiedienst is also operating a distributed data centre.

This guarantees the redundancy of the components that form the intelligent Avaya Aura communications solution.

The stability of the combination of the Deutsche Telekom SIP trunking and Avayas

Fantastic flexibility
High availability is vital for the electric utility, as customers have to be able to reach call-centre agents at all times. If the EDH power distribution network experiences a failure, then the utilitys VoIP infrastructure can expect to receive hundreds or even thousands of calls within just a few minutes. By increasing the available network bandwidth in such situations, it is easy to improve reachability. Such flexibility would be inconceivable with ISDN lines. Outbound calls are immensely important, too, as Energiedienst is active in the electricity trading business and therefore needs to be able to make its own outgoing calls at all times. Even in the VoIP age, confirmations of successful trades are still received by ISDN fax. And to ensure resilience here, too, the Avaya Unified Communications system that functions as a fax server is also operated with sufficient back-up in a cluster solution.

communication solution is so impressive that we have decided to gradually

ISDN channels with VoIP too.

Friedhelm Bumer, Head of IT, Energiedienst Holding AG

replace the rest of the

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Laufenburg hydroelectric plant in the utilitys network.

Central management reduces complexity

Voice over IP, and the use of traditional data connections, provide the IT and telecommunications specialists at Energiedienst with a further advantage. They are able to manage the entire infrastructure from one central site. All of the components can be monitored and configured from the head office in Rheinfelden. This is assured by dedicated data connections (MPLS, Multiprotocol Label Switching) that have been established between the sites. These were already present, due to the companys participation in the electricity trading

business, and the organisation also possessed the experience in working with networked IP infrastructures. In addition, in a kind of managed-service implementation, one of our technicians is permanently on-site at EDH. He works with the local technical experts to carry out everyday configuration and maintenance tasks, explains Markus Bayer from Avaya. Before switching to IP-based communication we had a very complex network made up of very different technologies and access types. SIP trunking and VoIP have dramatically reduced this complexity and therefore the administration costs. At the same time we have a lower risk of failure, because a

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simpler solution is generally more stable than a complex one, says head of IT, Bumer.

is a matter of priority to us as a green energy provider. From now on, EDHs senior executives will

Naturally Secure
Equally, the two Session Border Controllers (SBCs) are also managed centrally. These form the redundant interface between the Avaya communications infrastructure and Deutsche Telekoms SIP systems. One of the reasons for needing an SBC is that the SIP protocol that is being used permits a range of possible implementations for certain telephony features such as call forwarding or toggling. Once it has been correctly configured, the controller acts as a translator between the different implementations of the standards, ensuring communications pass seamlessly from one to the other. To further reduce this complexity in the future, Avaya intends to integrate the SBC functionality into Avaya Aura. In addition, the Session Border Controller also protects the VoIP network itself. With similar functionality to a firewall, it inspects all of the data packets flowing into the Avaya infrastructure, and only allows through those that are actually carrying voice traffic. This protects the VoIP system against attack from malicious hackers. The new Avaya HD 1000 video telephony solution installed in the conference rooms is demonstrating its flexibility. The SIPbased solution has been integrated in the new Avaya Aura communication infrastructure with the help of Avaya technology. Regular, high-resolution video conferences save our senior executives a lot of travel time, says Bumer. It also reduces our environmental impact, which

communicate by means of Avayas state-ofthe-art Desktop Video Device. The touch screen-operated end device runs Avaya Flare Experience and provides fast, easy access to real-time communication and collaboration tools. These include standard applications, such as a web browser and instant messaging, as well as desktop video, social media, audio/video/web conferencing, a wide choice of folders, presence information and context-sensitive history. Tools like these remove the need for different interfaces and directories for communicating through a host of different channels. Avaya Flare Experience also uses the SIPbased communication platform Avaya Aura, which provides all channels of communication at EDH. This includes the connection to the companys Microsoft Exchange server, so the scope also encompasses UC functions and e-mail.

Consistent GUI
In principle, all EDH employees have access to the Avaya one-X Communicator, the unified communications software solution that combines a myriad of communication channels such as voice telephony, video conferencing and web conferencing in a single user interface. Users can also see at a glance their colleagues presence information. At the moment were using the software in certain areas. If it performs as well as we think it will, it could end up replacing the current Microsoft Office Communicator, Bumer explains.

SIP trunking and VoIP have dramatically reduced this complexity and therefore the administration costs. At the same time we have a lower risk of failure,

is generally more stable than a complex one.

Friedhelm Bumer, Head of IT, Energiedienst Holding AG

because a simpler solution

Also firmly on the agenda is a plan to switch the EDH contact centre to Internet telephony. The team, currently comprising more than 100 agents, will then be able to access the Avaya Aura Contact Center.

For example, Energiedienst will be able to link its CRM system with its communications solution, and allow its call-centre staff to view all of the relevant customer information on their PC monitors while they are on a call. The open interfaces of the Avaya solution establish the framework for this interoperation. With its consistent implementation of Voice over IP, Energiedienst Holding AG has already chosen the right course for the future.

SOLUTION & PRODUCTS

Avaya Aura communications solution One-X Communicator UC client Avaya C3000 UMS solution Avaya Aura Conferencing Avaya Aura Session Border Controller (SBC) Avaya IP Telephone 9641G Avaya HD video solution 1000 Avaya Desktop Video Solution with Avaya Flare Experience Avaya Aura Presence Service

One of the key benefits of switching to VoIP is that the process of creating virtual teams spanning various sites will simply be a matter of a few mouse clicks. This will allow the utility to deal more efficiently with peak loads, such as those that occur regularly after it has sent out bills to its customers. Energiedienst Holding AG continues to use third parties to help it cope with the excess workload when the amount of incoming calls escalates. If the call centre is switched over to the new technology, further innovations will be feasible.

Contacts
With intelligent communication solutions from Avaya, you can put your company on the right foot. More information can be found at www.avaya.com. Or just give us a callfree on 0 800 - GOAVAYA (0 800 - 46 28 29 2). Our customer advisors are looking forward to the opportunity of telling you about the many different options offered by our solutions.

ABOUT ENERGIEDIENST HOLDING AG

The core activities of Energiedienst Holding AG (EDH) are focused on electricity and various power services. Through the companies in its group, EDH covers all of the stages of the electricity value chain, from generation to portfolio management, distribution networks and retail. The groups head office is in Laufenburg, in Switzerland. It also operates other major sites in Germany (administrative centres in Rheinfelden and Donaueschingen) and its own hydroelectric power stations at Rheinfelden, Laufenburg and Grenzach-Wyhlen. In 2009 the group sold 7,370 million kilowatt hours of power and generated turnover of 766 million. More than 750,000 inhabitants in its operating territories rely on EDH to supply their electricity. For a number of years, Energiedienst has focused on ecological matters. A large proportion of the electricity sold by the company is generated in its own power stations, which use exclusively renewable energy sources. In its main NaturEnergie brand, it supplies electricity that is certified as being generated solely from hydroelectric power.

About Avaya
Avaya is a global leader in business communications systems. The company provides unified communications, contact centers, data solutions and related services directly and through its channel partners to leading businesses and organizations around the world. Enterprises of all sizes depend on Avaya for state-of-the-art communications that improve efficiency, collaboration, customer service and competitiveness. For more information please visit www.avaya.com.
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