Out with the New in with the good Old Bell approach

Jan. 13, 2012 - PRLog -- Mobex - the missing link bringing offices to life for an increasingly mobile and remote workforce - Technology correspondent Charlie Matias reports

Businesses can use plain old mobile phones to automate their workplace and control activities from wherever they are in the world. The shock is that the functionality is not based on Android, not ios and not even Symbian - it works on 100 year old Graham Bell technology - plain old telephony functionality - 'DTMF',  more frequently referred to as tones...

Users can dial into their offices (or swanky homes) and control a vast array of features from any old mobile phone using simple to remember codes.

The functionality revolves around a technology called “Mobex” or mobile extension It links mobile phones seamlessly to landline networks, which in turn can be interfaced to a wide array of office and home equipment.

The Changing Office in 2012

Many external political and socioeconomic pressures such as greener awareness, ever escalating travel costs and disruption, plus the deepening recession, have caused a permanent shake up in the workplace; with more part time working and specifically home working being implemented by large and small businesses alike.

We asked Smartinfo the leading phone system integrator of this technology based in the City of London how it works for clients.

“We have found in the last 3 years working environments have become far more flexible with the advent of IP telephony and Cloud based working” commented Zak Coogan, CEO of Smartinfo.

“Some years ago a client asked if we could open an electric car park gate from his mobile phone and if his trusted business partners could also have access with out having to issue everyone, especially very occasional users, with fobs and remotes.”

“We had then just finished beta testing of Mobex, a technology which joins any mobile phone to a fixed line business phone system.

Its main purpose was to enable business users to twin their mobile with their desk phone for mobile workforces, such as sales staff, engineers or consultants in the field. The change we have noted since is most businesses have an ever stronger mobile element to their workforce now”.

Zak continued “The inital functionality was for say an MD to take a call on his mobile - even though his desk phone was rung, and have the ability to transfer the call back to a colleague in the office to handle. As this transfer was a simple ‘**’ command we found a vast array of unusual feature in the phone system could be accessed.”

For instance a call on the mobile could be recorded with a short code - or even transferred to another field operative on their mobile all via the integration of the mobiles with the businesses phone system!

“This particular client wanted to be able to open a car park gate from his mobile to allow contractors to access to the car park, and then office door building.

Because it works by authenticating on a mobile phone number users can easily be added and subtracted by the client very quickly and easily even from a remote Laptop.

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Smartinfo are a full service ICT (information Communication Technology) provider based in the City of London but offering nationwide coverage for Telephone systems, IT equipment and all associated services. We were founded in 2003.