Data: Wiggin LLP

Specialist law firm Wiggin LLP, who have offices in both Cheltenham and London, have earned an international reputation for their innovative approach, fresh thinking and cutting edge experience in media law; a sector which is constantly evolving. It is just this philosophy that has also meant they have remained focused on the needs of their clients by adopting telecommunications that offer exceptional continuity of client care.

The implementation by Total, in 2005, of a 2Mb leased line between their two sites, which was then replicated with an alternative supplier, was essential to the law firm, who are required to adhere closely to the legal industry’s disaster recovery regulations. Not only did this option offer increased bandwidth, but more importantly resilience. The two offices benefited from live data replication, by sharing the bandwidth between two suppliers via duplexing hardware. This gave a seamless 4Mb inter-office link which in turn offered assurance that if one link failed, the other link could take over.

According to Graham Ferrer, IT Manager at Wiggin: ‘Watertight disaster recovery plans are imperative to us, as we need fee earners and support staff to remain connected to each other and to our clients whatever the circumstances. When a major power outage lasting for several days occurred, our recovery systems were activated and worked flawlessly without interruption to communication.’

Technological advancements are a key concern for all companies and nowhere more so than within the legal sector, where investment in communications technology has proven dividends. Offering the best possible service to their customers has always been an important consideration for Wiggin, and as the firm continues to develop and grow further, so do their requirements.

With this in mind Wiggin continue to work closely with Total to identify new options together. Chief Operating Officer, John Banister explains: ‘Naturally, as we evolve as a company, systems and processes need to be redefined. At these times we work with Total to identify the options available to us.’

This was certainly the case, in 2007, when Wiggin began to outgrow their leased line, installed just two years earlier. The company became aware that as a result of their expansion, their customers were experiencing voice call and video conferencing quality issues. Following thorough consultation with Total, a 10Mb Ethernet circuit was installed with the capacity to work at ten times this speed due to the installation of a 100Mb bearer.

Graham adds: ‘The fast, powerful circuit supports our voice, data and video whilst utilising the Ethernet circuit for data storage and disaster recovery. The new network has been easy to manage and maintain as well as proving a cost effective solution, as there was no need for additional routers.’

Not only was the quality of voice and video conferencing restored at both sites, along with all the previous seamless data replication and failsafe advantages, the company also increased their telecoms scope and flexibility for the future, whilst making cost savings and increasing business productivity.