KCom has joined forces with leading hardware provider Ricoh 海角视频 to help deliver its 拢17m copper to fibre phone network switchover, as it makes sure every customer stays connected.
The tech giant will deliver adaptors to homes and businesses as part of the major programme which began in April.
Ricoh has supported KCom in the hiring of new fixed term employees in the area, who will help pack and deliver the adapters, which enable customers to make phone calls over the internet instead of ageing copper wires.
Read more: Turnover tops 拢100m again as KCom enjoys record year for customer additions
Joanna Parker, business development director at Ricoh 海角视频, said: 鈥漅icoh is proud to be able to support KCom鈥檚 plan to keep all homes and businesses in the Hull and East Yorkshire area connected with their full fibre network.
鈥淲e鈥檝e collaborated with local charitable organisations including This-Ability who help young adults with disabilities get into work, Hull4Heroes, Hull City Council and Hull Job Centre to recruit and hire five members of the local community to fulfil these roles initially on a guaranteed 12-month contract, with a view to long-term employment.
鈥淕iving back to local communities that we operate in is important to Ricoh. Partnership with KCOM, the local charities and community organisations supports our wider ESG agenda around inclusive recruitment and fostering diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace.鈥
Ricoh is also part of the Fair Pay Initiative guaranteeing a fair, overmarket-value wage.
The two-year network upgrade is one of the biggest and most complicated infrastructure projects in KCom鈥檚 120-year history and involves migrating 170,000 consumer and business customers from the region鈥檚 ageing copper network, which in some places is 100-years old, to state-of-the-art fibre technology.
John Teasdale, head of networks and engineering at KCom, said: 鈥淲e鈥檙e always looking at ways we can deliver our business objectives, while also supporting the communities we work in. We鈥檙e pleased to have partnered with a like-minded organisation like Ricoh 海角视频 who will help deliver on our commitment to making sure all of our customers across Hull and East Yorkshire stay connected as we upgrade our legacy copper phone network to reliable full fibre.鈥
The partnership will run for 12 months.
