WILLCOM Improves Quality Assurance Practices with HD Video

Leading telecommunications carrier shortens troubleshooting time, reduces man-hours with LifeSize

Organization

WILLCOM, INC., Tokyo, Japan

WILLCOM, INC. is a telecommunications company operating a Personal Handy-Phone System (PHS) network covering almost all of Japan. This technology is unique to Japan and WILLCOM currently has the largest share of the PHS market, offering flat-rate wireless network data transmission and flat-rate voice calls for its more than 4 million subscribers. Headquartered in Tokyo and with a subsidiary in Okinawa, WILLCOM reported 5 billion yen in capital for the fiscal year ended 2007. WILLCOM has built a firm position as the only PHS operation in the country with approximately 160,000 cell stations across Japan providing service and support for its unique solution.

Challenge

One of the key components of WILLCOM’s business is their mobile data communication service, AIR-EDGE. The maintenance behind this network infrastructure, the backbone of their communication quality, is vital. “It takes a lot of effort to keep steady quality control day and night,” said Yasuhiro Nagasawa, Chief of Technological Operations. “But when problems do arise, we must have immediate notification from both outside and inside the office of any emergency.”

Solution

Vanguard learned about LifeSize through a trusted IT consultant who researched the videoconferencing market and recommended LifeSize HD video. Vanguard then met with a local representative from GBH, an authorized LifeSize reseller. When Greg Baxter, Director of IT & Targeted Marketing, saw LifeSize in a demonstration, he immediately understood the value and planned a strategic implementation.

Result

“We did not have videoconferencing in our IT budget for the year,” Baxter said. “But the LifeSize system paid for itself almost immediately through travel savings.”
Baxter was particularly impressed with the video quality and bandwidth efficiency of the LifeSize systems.

“We planned our data network around IT needs and didn’t want to buy additional bandwidth for video if we didn’t have to,” said Baxter. “We found that the LifeSize system delivers a great DVD quality image with only 512Kbps of bandwidth; We didn’t have to change anything to implement video in all five of our locations.”

Vanguard used a LifeSize® Room™ system at their headquarters and LifeSize® Team™ systems in their offices in Texas and Arizona.

“I’m amazed at the quality and the ease of use. The LifeSize implementation did not impact our strategic IT budgeting or Vanguard’s network operations. While our initial goal was to eliminate monthly travel for two executives, we have found uses for the system that we never even considered but now find indispensible,” said Baxter