Channel partner connecTel has designed a comprehensive mix of Comcast Business Ethernet and Internet services across 58 office and branch locations for WesBanco Bank.
The deployment has allowed WesBanco’s extensive branch network across the states of West Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania to provide faster and reliable service to customers, and has resulted in overall savings of 95 percent in deployment time and overall data communications expenses.
Based in Wheeling, W.V., WesBanco Bank, the banking subsidiary of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ: WSBC), operates 141 financial locations across three states. When analyzing its network design as part of an acquisition in 2013, WesBanco enlisted the assistance of its technology partner, connecTel. connecTel managed the provisioning of the network in both new and existing locations to ensure that WesBanco could seamlessly connect to its existing communications network and maintain the same high level of service that patrons already expected from the organization.
“We have been working with WesBanco for almost five years, so we understood the issues they were facing when it came to provisioning and maintaining telecommunications services,” said Gerald Bush, owner at connecTel. “We researched a number of different technology options and ultimately selected Comcast Business for both Ethernet and Internet services. Over time, we were able to replace a very expensive legacy network of T1 lines with a faster and more flexible broadband service, which has not only increased WesBanco’s network capacity but has also given the organization peace of mind.”
WesBanco has a network solution from Comcast Business that includes a 1Gbps Ethernet private line extending from its headquarters in Wheeling to its disaster recovery site. Each of these two locations also has its own dedicated 200Mbps Ethernet dedicated Internet connection to assist with data transfer, and its Wheeling location has a third and separate 30Mbps Ethernet Private Line that connects directly to another processing center. An additional 55 branch locations have their own 50Mbps Business Internet lines to improve online access for employees while also increasing the speed of offsite customer transactions.
“We are doing something very unique for the financial industry – we are running a multi-site network with dual encryption methods – and this would not have been possible without the help of both connecTel and Comcast Business,” said Mark Krupinski, chief information officer for WesBanco Bank. “Our converged voice, video and data network allow our geographically-disperse employees to collaborate with each other as if they were all in the same office. Company-wide, this has translated to a significant savings in telecom expenses, which is truly remarkable for any organization.”
WesBanco is planning on piloting Comcast Business WiFi at several locations to allow employees and customers to access the Internet onsite. Plans to deploy additional video endpoints and incorporate enhanced mobility features are currently underway.
“Technology should be facilitative, not restrictive, which is why we’ve designed our Ethernet and Internet services to be fast, reliable and scalable while also being cost-effective,” said Paul Merritt, vice president of Comcast Business in the Keystone Region. “The breadth of our network and our local customer support teams make us an ideal provider for financial institutions like WesBanco, as we can easily help them bring new locations on board as they expand operations into different regions.”
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