After an old PBX/phone system failed suddenly at one of its properties, hotel management company Buffalo Lodging Associates selected Think Simplicity, a cloud communication technology provider of all-inclusive voice and chat solutions for the hospitality industry, to provide cloud communication services at two properties in Florida and Connecticut.
“Losing phone service at one of our properties was problematic, to say the least,” said Daniel Hernandez, manager, property technology, Buffalo Lodging Associates. “We were thankful to learn that Think Simplicity could take care of a new installation in such a short period of time. Our property is back up and running.”
Joseph De Ciantis, cofounder, Think Simplicity, said that failing PBX equipment is becoming a bellwether event for many older properties. “Most hotels will hold on to their PBX systems for as long as possible, and this can lead to the system ultimately failing and leaving the hotel without any communications, internally and externally,” he told Hotel Business. “Unfortunately, these failures normally happen at an inopportune time. “It impacts the hotel staff’s ability to make or receive calls, the guest’s stay (unable to order room service, request fresh towels etc.), and also create potential safety concerns (a guest being unable to contact emergency services). In addition, when a PBX fails unexpectedly and unplanned, for many phone vendors, the turnaround time to get a new system installed could take weeks, if not months.”
De Ciantis said that one misconception that hoteliers have is that no one uses their room phone anymore. “Part of that is true, specifically when compared to phone usage from 15 years ago,” he said. “But that is normal, comparing products and services to how they were used many years ago will typically result in differences. Our data shows that guests still use guestroom telephones for internal communication, and the front desk and staff are still very active with phone usage. So, while the guest may not be using the room phones as they did in the past, there will always be some form of internal and external communication that will be needed in a hotel.”
