Local business launches new CCTV service for schools and businesses in the West Country A South West–based communications company is now offering a brand new CCTV service to local organisations looking to maximise their security and efficiency. Equations Voice and Data, with offices in Devon and Somerset, has been providing telephone systems and technology to businesses, schools, medical practices and…

There were more than 175,000 burglaries across the UK last year. That’s a staggering 19 every hour of the day and more than 400 every time the clock passes midnight. One of the key questions you should be asking as a school or business is: how would you cope if you were to fall victim of crime (particularly when Scotland…

A leading telephone systems provider is encouraging schools and other education institutions across the region to review their ability to communicate if their campus were to go into lockdown. Equations Voice and Data, based in Devon and Somerset, have been working with a number of schools from across the country in the wake of five incidents so far this year…

Last month, Exeter University when into lockdown when a student began threatening others with a handgun. The University’s strict emergency protocols were actioned, with the building put into immediate lockdown and firearms officers and a police dog called to the scene. Students, some of whom were in exams, had to be evacuated from the building as well as several other…

In this fast-moving digital age, we find ourselves upgrading our company mobiles and IT equipment on a fairly regular basis as technology become increasingly powerful and advanced. But when was the last time you thought about updating your telephone system? For large organisations spread across sites both domestically and globally, the need for a robust and effective phone system has…

Our healthcare and veterinary care systems are under increasing pressure as the UK population and the percentage of pet owners both continue to grow rapidly. At more than 66 million, the UK population is already at an all-time high, and is projected to grow to nearly 73 million by 2041. Theresa May has just pledged an extra 5,000 GPs to…

In this ‘always on’ digital age, our personal and business lives are becoming increasingly inextricable as the line between the two becomes more and more blurred. We can check work emails on our personal mobiles and manage our business’ social media through our personal accounts, whilst also remaining fully contactable by friends and family throughout the working day. The rise…

So exam season is in full swing and we’re racing towards the end of yet another school year already. Scary, isn’t it, how quickly time goes? Students and teachers will no doubt be looking forward to some well-earned rest over the Summer holidays; but for head teachers, the work doesn’t stop there. The school year-end and Summer holidays is a…

In today’s ‘always connected’ culture, your ability to remain in continuous contact with your clients, when and wherever, requires a communications system that provides an open, direct line to your business. Whether you’re in the accounting, legal, estate agency, advertising or consultancy business, your professional services firm needs to be easily available to your clients in order to stay ahead…

As a school, how does the idea of potentially saving money on your phone system as well as your daily calls and rental charges sound? How about actually getting a system that really works for your own unique set of circumstances and improving communication at the same time? Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? In reality, it’s really…

As the Easter bank holiday period approaches, you’ll hopefully be looking forward to putting your feet up for a well-earned rest (if only for a couple of days!). However, if you work for a veterinary or doctors surgery then you’ll likely have the headache of how best to communicate a wide range of information to your patients; updated opening hours…

How do you currently make and take your calls? If it’s through a standard phone line rather than an internet-based solution such as ‘VoIP’ then you need to be aware of a looming deadline! That’s because BT is planning to ‘hang up’ all ISDN and PSTN phone lines by 2025. ‘2025!’ we hear you say! No rush at all then?…

Last week, four schools in the South London (Croydon) area went into lockdown following reports and sightings of a man in the surrounding area armed with a gun.  They remained in lockdown during 10 hours of police negotiations. Whilst this is a situation we hope never happens again, how well equipped would you be to effectively communicate during a period…

Electricity – it’s something we all rely on day after day. But what would happen to your business, school or organisation if it were to be without power for a period of time? No phones, no calls, no communication. How would that affect your organisation? What would the impact be? If these are questions that you’ve never asked before then…

There are now 9.2 million people working in the UK with dependent children. Not sound like that many? That’s almost one in every four people of working age, so the chances are that no matter what line of business you’re in or how large or small your organisation may be, you’re highly likely to work with a parent. With parenting…

As a country we love to talk about the weather but there’s one thing that sends a shiver down the spine of any commuter across the UK and that’s signs of snow! Just a couple of inches is enough to leave some parts of the country inaccessible and decimate any chance of making it to work until temperatures warm and…

Does your business or organisation have employees across multiple sites? Perhaps you have people working from home or salespeople that are frequently on the road or away from their desks? If this sounds familiar to your working life, then you’ll likely be met by and familiar with some of the common problems faced when people aren’t in the same place…

If you don’t know how your phone system or employees are performing, how can you make improvements to your current service levels or identify any issues and quickly address them? Ultimately great decisions are based on good information. You need it to understand what’s currently happening in order to improve it in the future. This is exactly what our NEC…

We live in a world where we’re always connected. If we’re not at the desk we’re available on our mobile. But in a modern world shouldn’t the two be seamlessly connected? Doesn’t it seem a little out of date to have a desktop number and a mobile number? In reality this situation can also pose a couple of very common…

If you own a hotel have you ever found it frustrating that your phone system can’t be seamlessly integrated with your room and property management system? Found it troublesome dealing with multiple technology suppliers; one for your phone, one for the hotel management system? If either of these sound like you then you’re going to love our specialist solution for…

It now seems a while since the furore of GDPR swept the nation back in May of this year, but the consequences of the updates made to the way businesses hold and manage data were far-reaching and compliance is now compulsory. So what exactly is GDPR? In case you missed it, GDPR stands for the ‘General Data Protection Regulation’ and…

Have you heard of the term ‘toll fraud’? If not then you’re certainly not alone, but what if we told you that 84% of businesses in the UK are vulnerable to an attack and that the average cost for the victims can be as much as £10,000 with nobody to claim against? Now that we have your attention, let’s explain…

Over the past 25 years we’ve worked with pretty much every type of professional services provider you can think of; insurance brokers, lawyers, accountants and independent financial suppliers to name just a few! We not only understand their needs when it comes to their phone system and communicating with their clients, but also their regulatory obligations in areas such as…

Every business is different; they face different challenges, serve different customers and deliver different products and services. That’ll come as no surprise to you as a business owner. However, there are some common challenges that many businesses face when it comes to communicating with their customers or suppliers. Whilst often hundreds or even thousands of emails will be sent each…

No matter whether you’re a dentist, a doctor or a vet, your phone system will be at the heart of how your surgery communicates with its patients. It should make it easy for them to get the information they want, to contact you in an emergency or to speak with the person they need as quickly and efficiently as possible.…

When it comes to phone systems for schools and education providers we really do know our onions; we’ve worked with hundreds across the South West and beyond for more than twenty-five years. Small campuses, large campuses, multi-site providers, you name it, we’ve helped them! With over two decades of specialism comes a lot of experience; we know what works and…

Whilst we hope it will never happen, have you thought about how you’d communicate with staff and pupils across your school if you needed to commence a lockdown protocol as the result of a terror or lone attack? Mass school shootings and acts of terrorism can often be things that you see on the television and think of as being…

Do you have people working remotely or on their own? If so then you’re certainly no longer in the minority – many organisations and businesses now embrace remote working as advances in technology and internet speeds make it an increasingly cost effective and attractive way of working. But if those employees were to become injured or embroiled in a dangerous…

VoIP telephony is becoming increasingly popular with many of the organisations with whom we work. No matter if you’re a school, a doctor’s surgery or any other form of organisation, this technology potentially offers a host of benefits including cost savings and increased flexibility and functionality. It is however a big decision to move away from a traditional system toward…

Does your organisation take high volumes of calls or have a lot of people on the phone at any given time? Could you benefit from better understanding when those calls are made, who’s taking them and from having that information at the fingertips at every point during the day? If the answer to those questions is a ‘yes’, then NEC’s…