The Problem
K4 Architects Ltd was established in 2010, offering core services of Architecture, Urban Design, Landscape and Project Management along with additional services, including specialist project communications and branding.
Based in the heart of Birmingham the practice’s work is recognised across the West Midlands for its imagination and innovation with a commercial edge.
K4 Architects had decided to change their IT supplier as they had experienced a combination of issues; such as poor customer service, change in account manager and a system failure which resulted with IT downtime for nearly ten days.
It was fundamental that K4 had a robust and resilient IT infrastructure with a good support network in place. It was also imperative that the IT evolved with the growing demands of the business.
In Summary
The solution implemented by HBT Communications has provided the firm with peace of mind and removed the headache of IT. K4 are now working on implementing the next generation of IT support which has a more proactive focus, fixing issues before they become problems.
The Solution
K4 Architects approached the market and obtained three quotes for their IT support. They decided to proceed with HBT Communications as they felt reassured by their knowledge and expertise.
The price proposed was reasonable and there were no upfront contract costs – HBT Communications were able to spread the costs over the 3-year contract, this was ideal for K4 and their business cashflow.
K4’s experience with HBT has been positive and they have experienced 100% uptime through the duration of the relationship.
The solution implemented by HBT has the following key elements:
- WatchGuard total security solution – this sits on the edge of the network and provides services not only to improve efficiency, but it also provides world-class security protecting users and businesses from hacking and IT security risks.
- Microsoft Surface devices have been the main device of choice across the business due to its versatility and superior quality.
- Office 365 – this service consists of several products and services such as:
- OneDrive stores all your files online ensuring they are backed up at all times
- Microsoft Teams which helps to facilitate collaboration within groups and companies
- SharePoint is a tool which can be used to communicate internal messages like a company intranet with HR documentation, important pension information. It can also be used to broadcast important messages with alerts.
The key benefit of Office 365 is that there is no hardware or network requirement, therefore users can access the suite securely with just an internet connection.
Jayne, Business Development Manager at K4 Architects has been impressed by the service, “we really like the professional service desk where we can log a ticket for issues or faults – it makes the process both accountable and structured.
“Although there were some initial teething issues with legacy equipment, this was rectified very quickly. Overall, we find HBT to be responsive and their engineers go above and beyond to help and rectify any issues we may have.
“As a leading architectural practice, we need to ensure our IT systems are reliable and fit for purpose. We had previously discussed employing an in-house IT person, now working with HBT we have the day-to-day support we need and the long-term strategic direction we as a company require.”
Testimonial
The IT support provided by HBT Communications has been very good, we have been impressed by their response times and troubleshooting skills to fix the issues at hand. We look forward to building on our relationship and utilising technology to take our business into the future
