Atia Communications has announced the deployment of hosted voice services and infrastructure to U.K.’s Primary Care Trusts (PCTs). This infrastructure is being put in place to support the first U.K. health centers providing general-practice services from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., 365 days a year.

 

The services that will be delivered to PCTs through the U.K. include call recording, advanced call routing, IP Telephony and IVR services. The service is expected to support the government’s NHS initiative to provide faster care services to patients, and will support a network of regional walk-in health centers.

Sites in South Yorkshire and Cornwall are already live and receiving voice applications through a dedicated hosted platform based in The Midlands and managed by Atia. Another three health locations will be set to come on line in the next few months. The company has ongoing plans to increase the scope of the platform to cover several more PCTs in the latter part of 2009 and 2010.

Atia Communications will provide a managed service that comprises all elements of voice delivery. The solution includes IP telephony, connectivity (WAN and SIP), support and locally based IT services.

Atia Communications won the contract in July 2009, beating BT (News - Alert) and Cisco in the process. Users went live in under four weeks, demonstrating the ability of Atia Communications to deliver mission critical services in record time.

Hosted voice services are gaining momentum as small businesses are seeking ways to reduce telecommunications costs. With hosted voice services, companies can shave anywhere from 50 to 80 percent off the monthly phone bill. Industry research has shown that VoIP adoption rates continue to grow, despite the current recession.

Given the tighter budgets most companies are facing today and the likelihood of a slow recovery and tighter spending in the future, hosted voice is presenting a strong value proposition for companies of all sizes. This win for Atia Communications – the company reportedly beat out BT and Cisco (News - Alert) – demonstrates the company’s strength in its offerings.

Formed in 2005, Atia positions itself as an expert in the provision of IP Communications, Connectivity, System Hosting, Managed Services and Application Development to its customers. Atia Communications has been a Swyx Gold partner since 2006.