SCOTTISH PUBLIC SECTOR to MAKE SAVINGS of £1.6 MILLION by SELECTING ORANGE

Orange announces that it has been selected by the Scottish Government to provide voice, data and mobile broadband services to 10 bodies within the Scottish public sector.
The bodies benefiting from the deal also include several universities and is estimated to save the Government £1.6 million over the next four years. As a result of the selection, Orange has created a dedicated public sector team to be based in its Greenock call centre. In addition to being responsible for customer service, the team will be responsible for the management of the implementation, as well as monitoring network performance on an on-going basis.
Orange was selected following a two stage procurement process which included an invitation to tender and a competitive e-Auction.  The Scottish Government’s selection process was extremely rigorous to ensure they chose the mobility organisation that would deliver the greatest value and service.  This is in the context of an environment where cost transparency alongside excellent local services are also critical. Vodafone was the incumbent mobile provider for the majority of the bodies.
Kate Jack, Head of Public Sector and Health, Orange, said, “We are delighted to be working with the Scottish Government. Our main focus is to ensure that all users will benefit from a wide range of mobility products and services, supported by both a high quality of service and network coverage regardless of their location. By being able to utilise both the Orange and T-Mobile networks, we can promise all users that they will be able to access the biggest mobile network in the UK. In addition, we understand that creating efficiency savings in the public sector will continue to be under tough scrutiny over the next few years. However, what is clear is that there is the opportunity for the Scottish Government to make these changes through shifting the IT which the organisation uses.”
The procurement process started on the 1st September 2011 and the winner of the e-Auction was decided on 28th September 2011. 50 per cent of users will start using the service shortly. The remaining users will switch over to Orange as legacy contracts end. This is expected to be completed by mid 2013.