Investments in Modernizing Telecom Services for Federal Organizations

OTTAWA, Oct. 5, 2017 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is committed to building a modern, secure, and reliable information technology infrastructure for its day-to-day operations and the delivery of programs and services to Canadians.

Today, Steven MacKinnon, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Minister responsible for Shared Services Canada (SSC), announced the award of a seven-year, $176 million contract to TELUS to provide modern, network-based workplace communication services, including Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone, instant messaging, and desktop videoconferencing. This contract will improve the reliability of the government's telecommunications systems and reduce the costs of supporting legacy infrastructure.

SSC is providing federal departments and agencies with better, more cost-effective tools and enhancing employees' productivity, mobility and collaboration. These technologies will allow employees to stay connected and collaborate in real-time, while reducing the costs and environmental impact of travel and commuting.

Through this contract, TELUS will support hundreds of jobs across Canada.

Quotes

"Upgrading our communication services will equip employees with the modern tools they need to enhance productivity to deliver the programs and services Canadians deserve."

Steven MacKinnon
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Minister responsible for Shared Services Canada

"Whether in a corporate boardroom, an entrepreneur's office, or the work stations of our federal Public Service employees, TELUS' goal is always to place our industry-leading expertise and collaborative solutions at the service of our customers, so they can better achieve their objectives. This is why we are delighted to be able to support Shared Services Canada in ensuring that each and every one of our citizens, regardless of location, can access and receive the services they need to make their lives easier."

François Gratton
Executive Vice-President, TELUS and Partner Solutions & President, Business Solutions East and TELUS Québec

Quick Facts

• SSC will replace over 80,000 legacy landlines with modern, cost-effective Voice over Internet Protocol telephone services, adding to the more than 100,000 Voice over Internet Protocol lines already in use.
  
  
• Federal departments and agencies will have access to optional, real-time communications services that increase productivity, such as instant messaging and desktop videoconferencing.
  
  
• This contract will support the convergence of voice, video and data services onto the government's enterprise network to reduce costs and ensure service continuity for SSC's customers.
  
  
• SSC executed an open, fair and transparent procurement process for the provision of workplace communication services for the Government of Canada.

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Backgrounder

BACKGROUNDER
Investments in Modernizing Telecom Services for Federal Organizations

Following a collaborative and competitive procurement process, Shared Services Canada has awarded a seven-year, $176M contract to TELUS to provide the Government of Canada with modern, network-based communications services.

This contract is an important part of Shared Services Canada's efforts to consolidate and modernize the Government's telecommunications infrastructure.

Currently, Shared Services Canada's voice services are delivered via a mix of traditional landline telephones, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology and mobile services, such as cellular and smartphones. Approximately 130 of the traditional landline systems are at end of life, some using technology that will be retired by the suppliers in 2018. This situation is costly to support and unsustainable in the long term. Service outages related to this legacy equipment can have a significant impact on the ability of departments to deliver programs and services to Canadians. The modernization of our communication systems will enable a modern work environment through new technologies that improve networking, productivity, mobility and collaboration.

Through this contract, Shared Services Canada will replace over 80,000 legacy landlines with modern, cost-effective and fully managed VoIP telephone services that will ensure service continuity for departments. This is in addition to the more than 100,000 VoIP lines already in use.

Departments using these services will be able to select the products and features that meet their business needs, including purchasing optional features such as voicemail-to-email integration, conference calling, instant messaging, desktop videoconferencing, and more.

SOURCE Shared Services Canada

Anthony Laporte, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Public Services and Procurement, 819-997-5421; Media Relations, Shared Services Canada, 613-670-1626, [email protected]