WA Government Chooses Macquarie Telecom as One of its Mandatory Voice and Data Services Providers

Strategic Win Opens up WA Government Market for Macquarie Telecom
 

Sydney, Australia – 9 March 2006 – Following a highly competitive tender process, the Government of Western Australia today announced it has selected Macquarie Telecom as one of its mandatory providers of voice and data services.

Under the Common Use Arrangement (CUA) all WA Government Agencies and approved users can purchase Macquarie Telecom services from four, of a total of eight, categories:

Voice services:

• STD and IDD – Long Distance Calls
• Inbound calling - 1800, 1300, 13 services

Data services:

• IP Solutions – Broadband and packet switched data services
• Dedicated data services

The tender was awarded for an initial three year term with options for two extensions of one year each.

Strategic win opens up WA market for Macquarie Telecom

The WA Government has estimated that, in 2004, it had an annual expenditure of $32 million for IP solutions alone.

Paul Cresp, Macquarie Telecom's State Manager, WA, said, “Macquarie Telecom has experienced strong growth in WA over the past 18 months, with major customer wins in the business sector. The CUA opens up significant opportunities for the company in the State Government market.”

The ‘Pick and Buy Arrangement' means government agencies can purchase Macquarie Telecom services without having to undergo their own tendering process.

“With the due diligence already carried out by the Department of Treasury and Finance, the hard work has already been done for agencies,” said Cresp.

“The real value that Macquarie Telecom brings is its multi-carrier offering. This means we can customise voice and data services to best meet the needs of the individual agency – giving them greater flexibility around solutions such as billing systems and increased cost control.”

In the IP Solutions category, Macquarie Telecom was successful ahead of incumbent providers which included major telco carriers.

"The CUA will facilitate greater competition in the WA telecommunications market," added Cresp.

CUA assists Government cost-savings

The CUA is a key part of the Government of Western Australia's procurement reform process which aims to achieve substantial savings through the aggregation of purchasing, simplification of buying processes and establishment of mandatory contracts for all Agencies.

The Arrangement is also designed to help Government realise reduced call rates. In 2004, the WA Government spent an annual total of $35 million for voice services – this includes access services, local and long distance calls, inbound services and managed voice services.

According to the WA Department of Treasury and Finance successful tenderers were chosen based on their ability to demonstrate a range of criteria including:

• Value for money
• Buy local policy – maximising supply opportunities for competitive, local WA businesses
• Open and effective competition
• Support for local industry
• Priority access policy – creation of a strong training culture/commitment to training

A maximum of three providers were selected in each of the eight categories (four voice and four data) of the Arrangement.

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For more information:
Mandy Galmes
N2N Communications
02 9213 2302
agalmes@n2n.com.au

About Macquarie Telecom
Macquarie Telecom is a leading supplier of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions – including voice, data, mobile and hosting – specialising in the business and government markets. The world class Intellicentre facility offers state-of-the-art hosting and security solutions. The Intellicentre is certified to BS 7799 and DSD Gateway security standards.

Macquarie Telecom provides services to more than 2,500 of the top companies in Australia and Asia, supporting more than one million business users at work every day. Founded in July 1992, it is one of Australasia's first deregulated telecommunications companies. It expanded its operation into Asia in 2000, and holds carrier licences in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.