Innovaro Technology Completes Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise Clearing Project at Northumbria University
Client Overview
Northumbria University, one of the UK’s largest and most forward-thinking higher education institutions, serves over 30,000 students and operates a globally recognised academic network.
Every summer, the university’s Clearing process is a mission critical operation requiring absolute reliability across its telephony and IT infrastructure to manage thousands of student enquiries efficiently.
To ensure flawless performance during the 2025 Clearing campaign, Northumbria partnered with Innovaro Technology, a trusted provider of Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, telephony, and managed IT services.
Project Background
The Clearing operation involves intense call and data traffic over several days, with zero tolerance for downtime. Building on previous years’ experience, the university identified the need for an enhanced support model combining technical readiness, live operational coverage, and post-event analysis.
Innovaro Technology was selected to lead this programme managing all Alcatel Lucent, Sonus, and Gamma telephony elements, as well as providing end-to-end project management and service continuity before, during, and after the Clearing window
Objectives
- Deliver a zero-downtime telephony experience throughout Clearing 2025.
- Provide pre-event infrastructure testing, including call routing, capacity, and redundancy validation.
- Ensure on-site and remote engineering coverage across all Clearing venues.
- Maintain strict SLA adherence for incident response and resolution.
- Conduct post-event reporting and performance analysis to enhance future operations.
Solution
Innovaro implemented a multi-phase Clearing Support Framework ensuring resilience, capacity, and operational transparency across all communication layers.
1. Systems Readiness & Testing
Pre-event testing validated core Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise and Sonus infrastructure, call centre design, and Horizon contingency routing. Load testing was conducted under controlled conditions to confirm end to end performance and redundancy.
2. On-Site Engineering & Monitoring
During the live Clearing days, Innovaro deployed both on-site and remote engineers to provide 24-hour coverage. Real time monitoring and rapid incident escalation ensured that no service degradation occurred.
3. Post-Clearing Review
After completion, Innovaro generated full operational reports, performance analytics, and ticket extracts to measure service quality, uptime, and resolution metrics providing data driven recommendations for the 2026 cycle
Engineering & Execution
Innovaro’ s engineering team followed a structured and meticulous approach:
The full project was completed across an estimated 32 engineering and management days, spanning the design, testing, live event, and review phases.
Main Contact Centre Changes & Design
Design and configuration of main call centre workflows, menus, and call queues.
- 1 day – Alcatel Contact Centre Engineer (remote)
Main Call Centre Call Routing
Configuration and validation of call routing logic, SIP paths, and failover behaviour.
- 2 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (remote)
- 1 day – Project Management
Main Call Centre Handsets & Softphones
Testing and deployment of handsets and softphones across the Clearing environment.
- 1 day – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (remote)
- 1 day – Project Management
Main Venue Contingency ‘Horizon’ (Gamma)
Setup of backup telephony routing via Gamma Horizon to ensure full redundancy.
- 2 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 1 day – Project Management
Load Test 1
Controlled load simulation to verify SIP trunk capacity and concurrent call limits.
- 1 day – Alcatel Contact Centre Engineer (remote)
- 3 hours – Sonus Engineer (out-of-hours work)
- 1 day – Project Management
Main Call Centre Setup
Installation and setup of physical call centre infrastructure and routing logic.
- 4 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 2 days – Project Management
Contingency Venue Setup
Configuration of backup venue infrastructure for continuity support.
- 1 day – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 1 day – Project Management
Pre-Clearing Checks
On-site verification of telephony systems, call handling, and contact centre readiness.
- 3 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 1 day – Project Management
Clearing Thursday
Full operational support, incident response, and after-hours monitoring.
- 2 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 1 day – Sonus Telecoms Engineer (remote, including out-of-hours)
- 1 day – Alcatel Contact Centre Engineer (remote, including out-of-hours)
- 1.5 days – Project Management
Clearing Friday
Continued on-site coverage and post-event validation.
- 2 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
- 1 day – Alcatel Contact Centre Engineer (remote)
- 1 day – Sonus Telecoms Engineer (remote)
Out-of-Hours (OOH) Support – Saturday
Extended aftercare support for residual activity and escalation readiness.
- 6.5 hours – Alcatel Lucent Telephony Engineer (remote)
- 6.5 hours – Sonus Engineer (out-of-hours work)
Documentation & Project Meetings
Preparation of documentation, meeting coordination, and closeout reports.
- 2 days – Project Management
ARDANS Reporting
Compilation of call records, system metrics, and service logs for reporting.
- 1.5 days – Ticket Extractor (Excel data analysis)
- 0.5 days – Project Management
Additional Extensions for the Additional Groups
Deployment of extra extensions and configuration for additional call groups.
- 2 days – Alcatel Telecoms Engineer (on-site)
Project Management Approach
Innovaro delivered end-to-end project governance, ensuring on-time delivery, full resource coordination, and proactive risk management.
The project followed a controlled methodology, including:
- Planning & Design: Coordination of engineering schedules, pre-testing, and venue readiness.
- Execution: Remote and on-site resource deployment aligned to SLA priorities.
- Monitoring: Real-time incident escalation and status tracking through Innovaro’s NOC.
- Closure: Documentation, debrief sessions, and post-event reporting to the university’s IT management team.
Results
Operational Outcomes
- Zero downtime achieved during the Clearing 2025 period.
- All SLA targets met or exceeded, including rapid responses to minor service requests.
- 100% telephony uptime across both main and contingency sites.
- Seamless call handling, managing over 4,000 student enquiries during the Clearing window.
Efficiency Gains
- Reduction in manual intervention through proactive monitoring and remote diagnostics.
- Improved response coordination between Innovaro engineers and the university’s internal IT team.
- Optimised telephony routing for both Alcatel OXE and Gamma Horizon platforms.
Strategic Benefits
- A proven, repeatable Clearing delivery model established for 2026 and beyond.
- Enhanced system resilience and monitoring visibility across all communication layers.
- Strengthened partnership between Innovaro and Northumbria University’s IT leadership
Project Delivery
The Contact Centre setup and onsite testing were completed smoothly and on schedule.
During the three live Clearing days, operations ran exceptionally well, with only minor occurrences of silent calls, which Innovaro engineers investigated and attributed potentially to external carrier routing issues rather than internal system faults.
Lessons Learnt for 2026
To further enhance operational efficiency and agent support for the 2026 Clearing campaign, the following improvements were identified:
- Implementing real-time alerts for calls exceeding 10 minutes to enable supervisors to proactively assist agents managing complex enquiries.
- Resizing agent tiles within the live interface to prevent text overlapping as calls progress through different stages.
These lessons will be incorporated into next year’s preparation phase to enhance user visibility and improve overall call management oversight.
Testimonial
“Innovaro Technology’s structured approach and on-site presence during our 2025 Clearing period ensured flawless delivery. Their engineers worked seamlessly with our team to provide stability, responsiveness, and confidence during one of our busiest times of year.”
Jerry Mertz-Wright, DTT Business Relationship Manager, Northumbria University
Conclusion
By combining expert engineering, proactive project management, and continuous monitoring, Innovaro Technology successfully delivered Northumbria University’s 2025 Clearing Project on schedule and without disruption.
The comprehensive 32-day programme ensured that every aspect — from system design and testing to live operation and post-event review — was managed to the highest standard, solidifying Innovaro’ s role as a trusted technology partner for future Clearing operations.
