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Economy and Industry via the Network of Innovation Managers of Galicia (XIGA) was fundamental in the path to success as recognised by the Manager of Conexiona Telecom, José Antonio Losas. The incorporation of a Manager of Innovation into the team of ten workers facilitated the elaboration of an R&D&I plan and a commitment to the necessity to “improve the processes and to create new products.”

The company just put a product on the market that is called “a complete revolution” applied to IP telephone environments. It is the ‘Exiacore´ program, a solution that permits ‘Asterisk’ telephone centres management –based on free software and without a license fee– in a manner that is integrated with all of the data bases and management systems of the company and without the need for technological knowledge.

This product designed by Conexiona Telecom that improves the communications systems of any business offers numerous advantages. Among them is the freedom provided to the user as it permits that person to decide which tools to incorporate to the interface of the communications centre and where to put them. In order to achieve the level of development that the project requires, the company took advantage of collaboration with the Computer Department of the University of Vigo (Ourense Campus) that is responsible for product intelligence.

In addition, the programming of the telephone central that until now had to be managed by an expert, is substituted by an interface network which any individual can control in a very intuitive manner and without the intervention of a specialised technician. The project was co-financed with 54,000 Euros contributed by the Regional Government of Galicia, with a total cost of 134,000 Euros.

‘Exiacore’ also permits integrating voice communication into any other conventional telephone system, fixed or mobile, as it is the software itself installed in the product that decides the channel to be used in order to take advantage of the best fees: fixed telephone, mobile, or voice connection computer programs as a function of the type of communication that one wants to establish, such as national or international calls.

The innovation introduced by ‘Exiacore’ does not only concern the product itself but also the complete marketing program. Losas explained that they have decided that the client pays for the service as a function of the use of it, “without the necessity to make a large initial investment". Conexiona Telecom affirm that they have wanted to be especially sensitive in this difficult moment that the sector is experiencing with respect to what they manage, fundamentally external installers and programmers.

Its creators claim that the numerous advantages of ‘Exiacore’ include the attractive feature that it is the user who manages the program from any point and platform by the simple means of access to a Web page. Company technicians continue product development. To that end, they are now working on a specific application to be used with Apple and Android technologies as a way to continue to achieve universality.

The need for differentiation led the Conexiona team to establish alliances with other entities that, in some cases, are sectors completely apart from theirs. That was the case in a project led by the Meat Technology Centre (CTC) in which they were able to function as technology providers and in which the Technological Centre of the Sea (CETMAR) and the Marine and Food Technological Centre (AZTI-­Tecnalia) also participated. Along the way, the company have been able to achieve the ISO 9001 certification of quality and de 27001 for information security, other ways to fortify the value of its innovation.

BUDDING PROJECTS

The new vision of the market centred in innovation permitted Conexiona Telecom to initiate a round of collaborations with businesses larger than those planned such as new technological solution projects for hospitals, among others. “Incorporating the Innovation Manager was the key to the company moving forward,” explained Losas in reference to the decisive role that this Manager is playing in the establishment of these alliances.

The company have assumed that challenge involves “changing the idea that we have of working: now we answer more quickly and we work on very different projects.” Until two years ago, the company focused on product marketing but now the plan of R&D&I management has opened up new possibilities in a way that the market offer will substantially increase during the next year.

“The idea is to grow and to act as a large business although we are small,” the Manager stated. In March 2012, they will be in a position to present a new product co-created with a State-level Galician company that will contribute the technological aspect as well as its fabrication in exchange for know how. An expansion plan will require the incorporation of more personnel and they expect the staff to increase during 2012. The part of the budget dedicated to R&D&I will also experience a significant evolution, moving from 7% of the billing in 2010 to 500,000 Euros or 25% in 2012.

Future plans also contemplate a commercial mission to Brazil in the next months as an opportunity to align with local partners that will distribute the product. This supposes a new step: the entry of the company into the international market.