• Case Studies from Amberworks of Cheshire

Here is a small selection of case studies from some of our existing customers. Hopefully they will give you a feel for how we do business and how successful we are.

Peter Gilding & Co Case Study

In the summer of 2005 Amberworks were asked for advice relating to the client’s purchase of the adjacent land for the purpose of additional offices and cold-storage facilities in two separate buildings. Both sites required connection to the main office IT and telephone infrastructures, within sight but around 300m away.

The Solution

Considering all the factors and taking into account distance, speed and cost, we recommended the installation of a fibre optic link for the computer systems and a "multi-core" cable for the telephone extensions into the ducting being introduced with the redevelopment of their car park. These ducts were already being installed for both the electric circuit extension and the CCTV security systems.

Fibre was decided upon due to the length between the main office and the two remote buildings because of its easy integration into the Category-5 network infrastructure already installed. The existing cabling could not be extended due to the 100m length restriction, and the project required over 300m.

Because of the volume of traffic running over the car park, we were concerned about the potential for breaks in the cable so we arranged for additional fibre links to be installed to introduce redundancy.

As always, little or no down-time is desired by any businesses, therefore the introduction of redundancy at implementation reduces this to a minimum. It takes the same amount of time for a technician to lay two cables as it does one, so the only additional cost is the fibre and its termination (which is relatively low). The potential cost savings in the future could be enormous.

Benefits

The new infrastructure has been a great success. The additional new offices and cold store are able to work as if they were part of the main office; the speed of the fibre link means that there is no bottleneck and because of this, all server-based applications, including Microsoft Exchange, are available over this distance, and the phones appear as mere extension numbers! This created huge savings against alternative slower links and the need for multiple servers.

What else did we do?

In early 2006 further requirements were introduced with the addition of a second floor above the main office to re-house the "Sales" department.

With builders working around our own technicians, the installation of seventy network points to transport computer data, direct line fax and telephone extensions from the main system ensured that the introduction of a digital phone system or central server equipment in the near future will not require any further modification to these new offices.

Amberworks continues to work alongside Peter Gilding & Co. to develop systems which meet their growing needs. The system now supports thirty concurrent users and is based around a single file server running Microsoft's Small Business Server 2003, protected broadband access, Anti-virus protection and a reliable tape backup unit.

What do they have to say about us?

"Amberworks, the professionals with a personal approach…"
Penny Gilding - Peter Gilding & Co
Well we won’t argue with that!

If you would like to know how we can help you then call us now on 0870 247 3650 or use our Contact Us form.

Andy Spinoza (Home User) Case Study

The Problem

Andy Spinoza decided to upgrade his home computer system when he moved to his new home. He wanted to provide himself and his family with an IT solution which would fit in with their lifestyle. 

The solution

Amberworks recommended that Andy installed wireless technology making use of his existing system but purchase a new system purely for use by the children together with a printer that would be networked between the two.   The following equipment was agreed upon:

• Flat panel Monitors – Space saving monitors which are less intrusive and use less power

• New Keyboard and Mouse – The original keyboard and mouse were getting old and besides, the new keyboard and mouse matched the monitor and computer. It’s your home after all so let’s try to make it look decent!

• One new computer system – So that his children would be able to do their school work and take the pressure off Andy’s existing computer which he uses for business. It also reduced the chance of Andy losing important work through viruses etc. Unfortunately children aren’t so cautious!

• Laser Printing – Through a home network Andy and his children would be able to make top quality prints of school work and photographs from any location in the home.

• Wireless Networking – Wireless networking allowing connection between the two computers, laser printer and the broadband internet in Andy’s home without the need drill holes in walls or run cables around the house.

Benefits

Andy and his children can now use the internet at the same time which means he is able to work as necessary on his own machine.  The wireless network means that no damage to any interior walls or unsightly cabling was necessary. 

By sharing the same internet link there was no need to install a second line thus saving on double monthly line rental costs.

Internet connection and printer being installed within lockable room, access to both could be controlled if required.

By enabling the MAC Address Filtering and 'WPA2' (techie speak for security technology!) it ensures that all data is safe from 'sniffers' and 'hackers' and that only the computers in Mr. Spinoza's house have the ability to access the network.

What else did we do?

The Amberworks engineers cleaned up Andy’s existing computer to get maximum speed and efficiency out of the unit. The new keyboard, mouse and flat panel were installed. The machine was then made ready to connect to the wireless network.

The brand new computer was unpacked and installed into the children’s bedroom, then configured to connect to the wireless network. The set up of this machine included firewall and anti-virus solution to allow protection from intruders and viruses.

The wireless modem/router was connected to both machines to create the network between the two computers. ADSL Internet access was then enabled on the modem/router allowing both computers to connect to the internet.

The colour laser printer was unpackaged outside and assembled. The printer was then also connected to the network. Connecting the Laser Printer to the network allowed both computers to be able to print to the same printer at the same time with no problems.

The engineers tested all aspects of the new system and made sure they were up the expectations of the client. The job took around 3 hours in total.

If you would like to know how we can help you then call us now on 0870 247 3650 or use our Contact Us form.

What does he have to say about us?

"Amberworks provided a professional, efficient and friendly service. I would recommend them to anyone"

Andy Spinoza