SCOTLAND’s largest independent telecoms firm has won a £30 million contract that will transform Glasgow into a “globally renowned” digital city.
Commsworld will become a key provider in the seven-year information and communication technology (ICT) agreement with Glasgow City Council.
Under the contract it will deliver a greatly enhanced wide area network (WAN) of ultrafast, fibre connectivity – triggering a digital revolution the city’s schools, libraries and other council buildings.
The upgraded fibre infrastructure will connect all the council’s sites, providing bandwidth speeds around 100 times the UK average.
There will also be improvements to resilience to minimise costly and inconvenient downtime.
The end result will be a transformation of the city’s digital infrastructure that will bring vast improvements across many council services – and will provide the backbone for pure fibre connections to the businesses and homes across Glasgow.
Commsworld will also roll out an internet protocol (IP) telephony solution to enable more than 16,000 council users to talk over the internet, and a 180-seat contact centre.
The company said these key aspects of the ICT contract will deliver significant benefits to residents, while also creating a number of new jobs in the Scottish IT market.
Councillor Angus Millar, Glasgow’s digital champion, said: “Glasgow’s rapid development as a digital, connected city gives us the chance to completely rethink how we use technology to improve lives and communities.
“From world-class digital learning in our schools, to better connected businesses, access to top-quality infrastructure will transform Glasgow into one of the best-connected cities anywhere in Europe.
“Having one of Scotland’s big tech SME success stories at the very heart of that transformation is testament to their innovation and will help deliver huge benefits to the whole city.”
The all-encompassing ICT contract is the biggest public-sector deal agreed in the UK in the past year and Commsworld’s confirmed role has resulted in the biggest contract in its 23-year history. It will be a gamechanger for the company, which employs more than 80 staff, and which posted £13.2m in revenues in its last tax year. The company is likely to record a 17 per cent growth on that in its most recent figures, which will be confirmed in the coming weeks – for the period that precedes this contract.
Founded in 1994, the firm has offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen. More than half of its team are based in Glasgow, with that number set to rise in the coming years. It supports thousands of Scotland’s leading organisations, in the public and private sectors, with their internet, data and voice communications.
Commsworld is also Scotland’s largest indigenous “next generation network” operator and internet service provider (ISP).
Company chief executive, Ricky Nicol, said: “This contract has effectively given the green light for Glasgow to become a truly digital city capable of attracting the most exciting businesses in the world. It’s vital that our Scottish cities and their people are at the cutting edge of technology – so it is fantastic that so many will now benefit thanks to this council’s ambition and foresight.”
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