Meriplex Communications

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I work for a private faith based school in the greater LA/Ventura county area. I am a Senior Systems Engineer with the school and I am responsible for the design and integration of new infrastructure into the many systems the school is already using.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire CPI Solutions?

We used CPI for design verification, hardware selection verification. On the deployment side we used CPI consultants to help speed up the deployment of 5 new IDF's as well as updating an entire building of network infrastructure. This project had to happen in a tight timeline of just 2 months. The project also included the deployment of over 60 new Cisco WAP's, and then tuning the wireless system to work in an area that was full of wireless interference. The end result was complete success thanks to a lot of hard work and collaboration from CPI.

What were your goals for this project?

The Goals were very simple, bring a 30,000SF Dorm online, bring a 10,00SF STEM building online, refresh an aging infrastructure while not disrupting summer school, and have everything good for students return in August.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

CPI has extensive knowledge of our organization and the infrastructure. The folks at CPI are some of the nicest people to work with and extremely knowledgeable in their fields of expertise. CPI also works to get projects in on time and at budget. CPI also worked with our other vendors to help manage our tight time frame for these projects.

Describe the project in detail.

We had a dorm project that was built out in two phases. I was responsible for designing a network that would integrate with the schools existing infrastructure but would also future proof the school for years to come. The school wanted to leverage the network for as much as they could including Phones, entertainment distribution, security, alarms, signage, and public address. I worked with CPI to finalize the design and hardware selection which equaled a very robust network capable of 10 and 40 gig in the future but didn't break the bank. The STEM building was unique in that we had some infrastructure that we reused, but added a lot of other features for future. The STEM project had some tight budget constraints so CPI was able to offer some value optimized solutions to help on both sides of the equation of WANT vs. BUDGET. On the network refresh we had a straight forward plan to rip and replace a Cisco chaise and replace with two stacks. All projects went off as planed and the end result was happy students and happy stake holders.

What was the team composition?

On the school side the Team consisted of myself and my equal on the senior systems side, and our director. On the CPI side we had the VP of sales and the VP of managed services. I worked with several high level CPI Consultants from routing and switching to Consultants for VMWare and Citrix.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

On the Dorm project we were able to move 45 students in on time with network and Wifi. On the STEM project we were able to have 5 staff and hundreds of student in that building working as scheduled. With our network refresh, they noticed a huge increase in network and Wifi through put. All around my COO was very impressed with how the projects came together and they way we were able to tackle problems and work together to resolve the problems in a timely fashion.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

I would say the work flow from my point of view worked very well. CPI was able to be onsite when we needed them, and even rescheduled some of their other clients when we had a couple of bigger problems pop up.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The thing I enjoy the most from CPI is the brand knowledge base they have, and the great attitude that all of their consultants posses. It is a true pleasure to work with consultants that feel like they are part of your team.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at a local mortgage company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with CPI Solutions?

We moved all of our IT support to CPI Solutions.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They worked on email management, cloud migration and computer/ tech setup. We’ve started to work on video conferencing and secure upload links.

Our line of business applications were migrated to an improved system to better meet our needs. The majority of the work is remote.

What is the team composition?

It’s in the neighborhood of five people that we’ve interacted with. There’s a much larger group on their side.

How did you come to work with CPI Solutions?

They’re a local company with a strong reputation. We’re in the same city and I’ve gotten to know some of their team over the few years. Recently, we brought them in full-time and switched over our IT support.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work started six months ago and is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve successfully completed several projects. Since we migrated the email platforms, we’ve been tracking to make sure everyone has been getting emails. That’s been successful.

How did CPI Solutions perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been very communicative and organized, especially in the context of remote work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a great balance of professionalism and deep support layers. They have so much knowledge. Their systems, workflow, and communication are very organized.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not at this time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just trust them to do what they’re good at.