Analog Telephone Lines, also called Plain old telephone service (POTS) is voice-grade telephone service employing analog signal transmission over copper loops. POTS was the standard service offering from telephone companies from 1876 until 1988 when the now-obsolete Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) Basic Rate Interface (BRI) was introduced, followed by cellular telephone systems, and Voice over IP (VoIP).

POTS remains the basic form of residential and small business service connection to the telephone network in many parts of the world. The term reflects the technology that has been available since the introduction of the public telephone system in the late 19th century, in a form mostly unchanged despite the introduction of Touch-Tone dialing, electronic telephone exchanges and fiber-optic communication into the public switched telephone network (PSTN).

The Primary Rate Interface (PRI) was first defined in 1988 and is still popular today with traditional service providers.

PRI used to be the standard for providing telecommunication services to offices. It is based on the T-carrier (T1) line in the US and Canada, and the E-carrier (E1) line in Europe. The T1 line consists of 24 channels, while an E1 has 32.

Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) trunking has been commercially available since the early 2000’s.

SIP trunking is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) standard by which Cloud service providers deliver telephone services and unified communications to customers equipped with SIP capable telephone systems. (IP-PBX)

The architecture of SIP trunking provides a partitioning of the Unified Communications network into two different domains of expertise:

Private Domain: a VoIP solution created on the customer’s network.

Public Domain: a VoIP access solution to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) in the Cloud

The interconnection between the two domains must occur through a SIP trunk.

ECS is an authorized Sales Agent for traditional carriers and Managed Service Providers (MSP) (Cloud) located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Proper installation of data cabling (network cabling) is imperative for successful businesses.

Businesses of all types have few stand alone devices, and data cabling is necessary to interconnect them.

There are two main types of network data cabling, copper and fiber optic.

Commercial Grade Network Cabling: Providing commercial grade network cabling throughout a business office involves the installation of a collection of connectors, connecting hardware and cables using unshielded twisted pair (UTP), screened (foil) unshielded twisted pair (F/UTP), shielded twisted pair (STP), or multi-mode or single-mode fiber optics

Unshielded Twisted Pair Wiring: UTP cables come in a variety of grades for different applications.

Screened (Foil) Unshielded Twisted Pair Wiring: Category 6A F/UTP cabling prevents alien crosstalk through a cable shield.  The cable design resists deformation and allows less restrictive installation practices.  The smaller cable diameter offers a greater pathway fill density.  Connectors in flat, angled and keystone versions are designed with simple grounding in mind.

Shielded with Foil Twisted Pair Wiring: S/FTP cables are copper cables well suited for network cabling in buildings that are exposed to high electrical interference or frequent radio transmissions.

Fiber Optic Wiring: Fiber optic network cabling is very common for data centers and back-b one cabling. Fiber optic cabling is available in single-mode and multi-mode forms.  A mode is the path a ray of light follows while traveling down a fiber cable.  Multi-mode fiber allows more than one mode of light. Common multimode core sizes are 50 µm and 62.5 µm.  Single-mode fiber allows for only one pathway, or mode, of light to travel within the fiber. The core size is typically 8.3-10 µm.

Copper Cabling: Standards are designated as Category 5e, Category 6, Augmented Category 6, Category 7, Class D, Class E and Class F and FA This numbering system refers to the specifications defined by committees of ISO, ATM, TIA, CSA, CENELEC and JSA/JSI. The ANSI / TIA / EIA-568 standard, for example, is a telecommunications cabling standard for commercial buildings covering Category 5e, 6 and 6A.

Data Transfer Speeds: As the categories grow from 5e to 7, the speeds of data transfer over network cabling increases as well as the headroom for advanced network applications. For instance, Category 5e network cabling is rated to 100 MHz, standards compliant Category 7 cables provide 600 MHz data transfer rates and Class FA go to 1000MHz.

ECS is an authorized Cabling Installer located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Collecting information is only as valuable as your ability to find and analyze it. 

Xima Software’s solution, Chronicall, is an all-purpose call history, call recording, and real-time reporting software suite.

Installed in just a few minutes, It’s an inexpensive, accurate, and easy-to-use call reporting and call recording software. 

You’ll see the details of every event that happened on a call instead of just a vague summary. 

Start making the most of your time and energy while improving the accuracy and efficiency of your call data, with Xima Chronicall.

ECS is an authorized agent for Xima and Chronicall located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Avaya IP Office 500 Version 2 (IP500 V2) Control Unit (not virtualized)

IP500 V2 is a modular communications solution that scales from 2 to 384 extensions and up to 1000 subscribers over 32 sites in a Small Community Network (SCN).

IP500 V2 supports traditional analog and digital desk phones as well as IP and SIP based desk phones.

Because it supports various types of trunk options like Analog, BRI, PRI (T1/E1), and SIP, the IP500 V2 is the ideal solution that satisfies the needs of the small and medium business.

With IP Office Preferred Edition and Unified Communications Module (UCM) installed in IP500 V2 system, or with an external applications server, additional unified communications features can be enabled like one-X Portal, Avaya Communicator, and Collaboration.

IP500 V2 can be operated in a stand-alone model or deployed as a gateway for Branch deployment to Avaya Aura or as an expansion unit to IP Office Server Edition or Select.

ECS is an authorized AVAYA reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Summary

• • Basic Edition retained
• • IP Office R10, Basic user license no longer required for any IP Office R10 Editions
• • IPOSS will remain as it is today with 9.1 for all IP Office R10 Editions, per server, same price
• • Token may be used for R9.1 systems only

Stronger resiliency and security: Resiliency and security are strengthened by the resiliency features added to the one-X® portal and SIP end points, in addition to emergency services API’s, new voice quality monitoring functionality combined with H.323 TLS signaling security and LDAP synchronization for Server Edition These new capabilities are particularly important as IP Office expands its reach into the Midmarket and cloud segments while delivering higher levels of customer service and engagement.

Increased Scalability: Scalability is being increased to provide additional capacity to support solutions of up to 3,000 users and 150 nodes. A few examples include, increasing the number of hunt groups, soft consoles, music-on-hold sources, button modules and directory capacities.

Enhanced Collaboration: IP Office collaboration is made richer with the H175 video endpoint and web collaboration updates. Other new capabilities include the availability of a Web RTC Software Developers Kit, enabling 3rd parties to create voice and video applications, tighter integration with the Avaya Communicator for Web, along with an impressive list of one-X portal and one-X Mobile Preferred enhancements.

Simplified Installation, Administration and Support: IP Office R10.0 will contain features aimed at making installation both faster and simpler while also lowering the effort to support. Customers can look forward to UCM improvements, reduction in configuration changes requiring re-boots, and an expanded Web Manager, capable of being the administrative tool of choice for R10.0.

ECS is an authorized AVAYA reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc.

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Location Time Zone is a feature (as of R9.1) configured in the Location page in Manager to assign a time zone to a group of phones.

This is useful for remote ‘remote worker’ sites typical of Hosted IP Office deployments and it applies the correct local time to a user’s phone, voicemails, call logs, user rights, and more.

This primary setting can be applied to any extension type, not just H.323.

This feature is available on Essential Edition, Preferred Edition, Server Edition, and IP Office Select.

ECS is an authorized Avaya reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

ECS works hard to make sure all of your business technology equipment is installed, and running correctly for the long term. Our team of skilled technicians is ready for you!

Some of our services include:

Site Surveys

Rack & Stack of POS and back office equipment

Installation of Video Analytics and traffic solutions

Installation of Wireless Systems

Installation of Sound & Paging

Installation of Security & Surveillance

Voice, Data, Video, & Fiber Optic Cabling:

Multi-site Cabling Services

Structured Cable

Data Center Cabling

PON Solutions

Our low voltage technicians can install your cabling systems quickly and efficiently.

Telephony & Converged Systems:

From the site survey, design and configuration to installation and service, we provide you with superior solutions that will meet your current needs and help position you for future growth.

ECS is an authorized Avaya reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

ECS is your trusted source for structured voice & data cabling for any of your business communication needs.

Our voice & data cable installers provide structured network cabling solutions that will exceed your needs now and into the future.

We Provide:

• • Data Cabling (CAT5e, CAT6, & Fiber Optic Cable Installation)
• • Patch Panel Installation & Termination
• • Wire Management Installation & Termination
• • Voice & Data Cabling
• • Wifi/Wireless Network Cabling
• • Fiber Optic Installation
• • Business Phone System Cabling
• • Network Cabling Testing & Certification
• • Security & Surveillance Camera Systems
• • WiFi/Wireless Network Installation
• • WLAN Networking Setup
• • Access Point Installation
• • Security Camera Installation (CCTV, IP Security Cameras, Wireless Cameras

We provide a single source solution for all voice & data cabling needs. Our installers have the skills and experience to install voice & data cabling, and audio/video wiring & network cabling that will meet local codes and prepare you for the future.

ECS is an authorized voice & data cabling contractor located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Washington: 3702 West Valley Highway North, Suite 302, Auburn, WA 98001 (253) 886-5400

Oregon: 15800 SE Piazza Avenue, Suite 102, Clackamas, OR 97015 (503) 658-8500

Intermedia and Avaya IP Office Provide Seamless 5-Office SIP Trunking Solution

Background

Intermedia partner Efficient Communication Solutions, Inc. (ECS) was presented with a unique challenge. Their client, a local Drug/Alcohol Rehab company, was looking to further grow their business, but management of a mishmash of voice carriers and telephone systems had become a nightmare, and was holding them back.

Spread across 5 offices and geographic locations, the customer knew they had to get things centralized if they were going to continue scaling operations.

Challenge

When the customer turned to ECS, its offices had analog lines. Each office required a separate telephone system for dial tone services, resulting in a multitude of hardware configuration and management complexities.

Further, this expensive hodgepodge of voice systems lacked the centralized administration, scalability, and feature consistency that ECS’ client so desperately needed.

The customer wanted an internet-based phone system from a single carrier with a proven track record that would simplify management, reduce costs, and deliver a unified experience for their employees…all without introducing business disruption.

Solution

ECS presented the customer with an Intermedia SIP Trunking solution supporting Avaya’s IP Office platform. Intermedia met the customer’s wish list and then some.

Following a series of compliance tests performed by DevConnect to verify Avaya IP Office 9.1 system compatibility, ECS conducted the migration, tackling one office location at a time.

The Intermedia/Avaya IP Office solution allowed the customer to:

• • attain centralized system administration
• • get rid of analog gateways required for local service
• • control outbound Caller ID, enabling employees to take their DIDs when moving offices
• • give all employees access to the same service features

Final Results

The customer has dramatically reduced its number of phone lines and related costs. No more paying for an inflated quantity of lines to handle peak levels of business across every office. By dynamically sharing SIP Trunks, the customer is achieving a 40 percent savings on its phone bill with Intermedia.

As a result of the cost savings provided by Intermedia, the customer’s hardware investment will be recouped in just over 18 months.

Now that the customer’s phone system is easily managed from one central location and from one provider with one monthly statement, the Drug/Alcohol Rehab company is enjoying the benefits as the company continues with its growth & expansion.

ECS is an authorized Avaya reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.

Structured cabling is building or campus telecommunications cabling infrastructure that is used for low voltage voice and/or data transmissions.

Overview

Structured cabling design and installation is governed by a set of standards that specify wiring data centers and offices for data or voice communications using various kinds of cable, most commonly category 5e (CAT5e), category 6 (CAT6), and fiber optic cabling and modular connectors.

These standards define how to lay the cabling in various topologies in order to meet the needs of the customer, typically using a central patch panel (which is normally 19 inch rack-mounted), from where each modular connection can be used as needed.

Each outlet is then patched into a network switch (normally also rack-mounted) for network use or into an IP or PBX (private branch exchange) telephone system patch panel.

Structured cabling is the design and installation of cabling systems that will support multiple hardware systems and be suitable for today’s needs and those of the future.

It is common to color code patch panel cables to identify the type of connection, though structured cabling standards do not require it except in the demarcation wall field.

Cabling standards demand that all eight conductors in Cat5e/6/6A cable are connected, resisting the temptation to ‘double-up’ or use one cable for both voice and data. IP phone systems, however, can run the telephone and the computer on the same wires.

Regardless of copper cable type (Cat5e/Cat6/Cat6A) the maximum distance is 90m for the permanent link installation and an allowance for 10m of patch cords at the ends combined.

Cat5e and Cat6 can both effectively run PoE applications up to 90m. However, due to power dissipation there is better performance and power efficiently with Cat6A cabling running POE devices if being incorporated into a new design.

Structured cabling falls into six subsystems

Entrance facilities; is the point where the telephone company network ends and connects with the on-premises wiring

Equipment rooms; house equipment and wiring consolidation points that serve the users inside the building or campus

Backbone cabling; connects between the equipment/telecom rooms, called backbone because the rooms are typically on different floors

Horizontal cabling; wiring can be IW (inside wiring) or plenum cabling and connects telecom rooms to individual outlets or work areas on the floor, usually through the wire-ways, conduits or ceiling spaces of each floor

Telecom rooms; connects between the backbone cabling and horizontal cabling

Work-area components; connect end-user equipment to outlets of the horizontal cabling system.

ECS is an authorized Avaya reseller located in Seattle, WA & Portland, OR.

ECS provides local technicians for on-site work installing and servicing a variety of voice/data equipment, ie; Avaya Aura Servers, Gateways, Messaging, Telephones, Firewalls, Ethernet Switches, Low Voltage Cabling, WiFi, CCTV, POS, Paging, etc. 

ECS provides services in the states of Washington & Oregon, primarily in the greater Seattle & Portland areas.