Find out more from residents  and businesses across West Yorkshire who have signed up to superfast broadband and are now enjoying all the benefits.

Steve and Lindsay Baumeister, Fountain Head Village

At first glance, the exclusive Fountain Head village in Halifax looks like the ideal setting to make a home. Steve and Lindsay Baumeister thought so too when they moved into the development, but their initial opinions began to change when they attempted to get online.

“Broadband is the fourth utility nowadays and in a new housing estate we would expect it to be a lot faster,” Lindsay told us, “I think we would have thought twice about buying the house if we’d known”.

A slow broadband connection can be frustrating, especially when you’re used to the benefits a fast connection provides. After Lindsay’s father moved to Bulgaria, she promised to play darts with him every Sunday over Skype. But with slow broadband, that became an impossibility.

The couple upgraded to superfast broadband shortly after they heard it was available in their area. Speaking about their new 60Mbps fibre broadband connection, Steve told us, “Before it was like having gas but just on one ring or a little camping stove; now we’re getting a six ring burner!”

Jenny and Stuart, Garforth, Leeds

Jenny and Stuart upgraded to superfast broadband after receiving a leaflet through their letter box telling them about the benefits.

Since having superfast installed the couple and their family have noticed a real difference.

Both Jenny and Stuart are able to work seamlessly from home as well as spend quality time with their children.

However it was a different story before they signed up to superfast broadband. Unable to work productively from home, and suffering from long periods of buffering and the internet dropping out, their previous internet connection very frustrating.

Jenny believes superfast broadband has changed their lives more than she thought it would “now we both work smarter and quicker and the kids have access to more entertainment and educational materials.”

Since installing superfast broadband, the family have more time to spend with each other, and have a faster more reliable service which allows them to all be online at once, and keep in touch with friends and family near and abroad.

Find out more about the benefits Jenny and Stuart are seeing from installing superfast broadband - http://youtu.be/RFm6oXyt0jI 

Businesses

Nigel Sikora, Managing Director at Icon

Icon’s distinctive design, attention to detail and high quality customer service has allowed the business to grow rapidly in a short period of time, exporting over 40% of its products across the globe. Today with a current portfolio of over 80 customers operating in different time zones around the world, it’s vital that Icon can communicate to its clients in an efficient, and timely manner; something that can only be done with superfast broadband. 

Icon connects with its clients via three main forms of communication: phone, email and sharing large files and data via the internet. It was issues the company had with transferring files across the world that led Managing Director, Nigel Sikora, to upgrade to superfast broadband.

As soon as the green cabinet went live, Nigel placed an order with BT, and had access to superfast internet within days. As he says, “It was seamless, and very easy to set up.”

The introduction of superfast internet has fundamentally changed the way that Icon operates and communicates with its clients. Since taking up fibre optic broadband, Icon’s designers can now share files with clients in seconds, streamlining the sign-off processes and allowing for a quicker turnaround.This level of customer service isn’t possible without superfast broadband, which makes the speed of the internet of paramount importance to Nigel and his team.

 The improvements to the system have also allowed Nigel to look at implementing a cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System, which would have never been a possibility before, on the company’s old internet connection.

Nigel has seen a big difference since Icon took up Superfast broadband, and expects the fast and efficient service Icon can now provide will to help the business to go from strength to strength. As he says, “For those who haven’t signed up yet, I would say sign up. Why wouldn’t you? It’s a no brainer.”

To find out more about how Icon are benefitting from superfast broadband take a look at this short video - http://youtu.be/s4e6qu76x08 

 

Jane Fowler Sales & Marketing Director at Crompton Controls

 Crompton Controls is a high quality electrical equipment manufacturer based in Wakefield, West Yorkshire.

It’s this commitment to pioneering engineering and its dedication to delivering a high quality service to its customers that makes the speed of the internet a pivotal part of Crompton Control’s business.   

Sales & Marketing Director Jane Fowler recognised the positive influence that upgrading to superfast broadband could have on the business. “Once we heard superfast broadband was coming to Wakefield, we contacted BT immediately; the whole process was seamless and very easy to set up.” 

The new rapid speed internet connection has allowed Crompton Controls to focus on digital marketing, promoting the business in a dynamic way. Since upgrading to superfast broadband, Crompton Controls now has a download speed of 65mb per second and an upload speed of 19mb per second.

The introduction of fibre optic broadband to the business means no more annoying lags or pauses when waiting for huge files to upload, allowing more time to for the team at Crompton Controls to focus on other tasks.

One of the applications that has been supported by the improvements to the system has been the digital distribution of Crompton Control’s catalogue.Today, it’s more important than ever before to send Crompton Control’s brochure digitally to its customers. Not only does this help reduce print costs, but it also highlights Crompton’s dedication to excellent customer service. 

To find out more about how Crompton Control is benefiting from superfast broadband take a look at this video - http://youtu.be/NzqurBr9yrA

Jamie Durham, Founder of Systemwork

Jamie Durham, founder of Systemwork, an independent IT support provide based in Leeds city centre is a real supporter of superfast broadband since installing it in his company and noticing a number of benefits.

The introduction of superfast internet has fundamentally changed the way that Jamie’s business operates. Since taking up fibre optic broadband, Systemwork can now share files with clients in seconds. This level of customer service isn’t possible without superfast broadband.

Jamie’s old slower internet connection was slowing his team down, lowering productivity as they would have to be out of the office visit clients on site to resolve problems. Now with superfast broadband, the guys at Systemwork can solve problems online and provide ‘real time’ services from a remote location.

Jamie said “our turnover has increased significantly now we have superfast internet. It was more affordable that we thought, and it is really the only sensible option for businesses nowadays.”

To find out more about how Systemwork are benefitting from superfast broadband take a look at this short video - http://youtu.be/XLlfopc4r1o

We are looking for more stories from across West Yorkshire from residents and businesses who have benefited from superfast broadband.  If you would like to share your experience and have it published here, then please get in-touch with us at enquiries.sfwy@leeds.gov.uk.  Similarly, if you have any other queries about the project contact us using the same email address.