With a big move scheduled within the year, and plans to decommission their existing domain server, Bernie Hughes of Sullivan Motor Products in Houston B.C. was tasked with finding the next IT solution that would see the 37-year-old General Motors dealership through to its next phase of business in the northern region of the province.
When Hughes began surveying IT options he heard about a solution adopted by another GM dealership, Central Motors of 100 Mile House, located in the Central Interior of B.C. They had just moved to a brand new facility and had adopted an IT and communications device that was reputed to be an all-in-one solution for small business. The staff of Sullivan Motors had just toured the new Central Motors facility and were struck by how easy the network was to use, and how quickly it was installed. Even more compelling was the price the dealership paid for the wide range of new voice, data, and networking features they could now use.
Hughes decided to see the new system for himself. “I was very impressed. The technology was all in one box and what it could do just blew me away,” he said. A seasoned technical administrator with an employment history that spans both private and public sectors, Hughes has worked with a wide range of IT solutions in many different environments. From his office at Sullivan Motors, he reported that nothing he has found to date compares with the Sutus product. “I thought I’d seen it all until I saw this box” said Hughes. “We priced out other phone solutions, network solutions and domain server solutions. But when you start looking at individual pieces the costs add up really fast. It didn’t take long to realize that the Sutus box was very attractively marketed and very attractively priced.”
Hughes estimated that the SUTUS solution came in a full 20 percentage points below that of other telephone companies and larger providers. What’s more, the box came without the usual problems associated with implementation. “We had a windows 2003 domain server and it’s very difficult to put another one on the same network without a whole bunch of technical problems” he said. “With SUTUS it was really straightforward. We love the fact that it’s a one-box set up. It does everything for you, and you don’t need a degree in computer sciences to set it up.”
Since the installation in April 2010, Hughes said the SUTUS Business Central has proven to be one of the most dealership-friendly networks he’s worked with. Designed to allow other office tools to plug-in and operate from the same device, the Business Central could support many of the other tools used by the dealership -- including a new dealership management system and CT wizard sales system. For the sales and service staff, connecting and using the network is, in Hughes’ own words, “like logging onto a work station. It’s just so easy to use.” The data features of the business central are used across accounting, sales, and service departments at the dealership where file-sharing is common practise. Staff may now access the latest reports on sales incentives and bonuses from a single source.
When the dealership moves to its new facility in December 2010, the SUTUS box is already configured for the planned addition of Polycom phones to their office. The new phone system will allow Sullivan Motors to reap the full service and cost benefits of Voice Over IP (VOIP) for their employees. Hughes explained that when the prices from larger phone companies and other major providers were explored, it was the SUTUS option, once again, that stood out as the most cost-effective solution.
Sullivan Motor Products Success
All-in-one server plus all the voice, data and networking came in 20 per cent below competing solutions
Fully compatible with existing Windows 2003 domain server
Already preconfigured for planned addition of Polycom phone system following expansion and move
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