Parallel Technologies’ Management of Silgan Container’s Communications Allows Company to Focus on Core Business
Over the past 15 years, Parallel Technologies has steadily expanded its support of Silgan Container’s business communications, allowing the company to focus on its core business of manufacturing food packaging products. Silgan Containers was officially formed in 1987, after the National Can Company purchased Carnation’s Can Division. The company’s long history of packaging expertise (the first Carnation canning operation was opened in 1899) has driven the organization to make several acquisitions throughout its history to become the largest provider of metal food packaging in the United States.
Before the IT department took over telecom responsibilities, each Silgan plant sourced and managed its own phone system, dial tone, cabling, paging, and video surveillance equipment. Each plant had a separate phone and voicemail system of varying models, and reaching another plant required a long distance call facilitated through an operator. A Parallel Technologies customer since 2002, Silgan originally signed a contract with Parallel for a pilot project of five plants networked together on one system. Since then, Parallel has installed phone systems in over 50 locations across the United States and Puerto Rico, and networked them together so employees simply need to dial a four-digit extension to reach another employee right at their desk. Parallel has served as a single point of contact for many of Silgan’s communications needs throughout its multiple acquisitions. For every new site, Parallel conducts a site survey to evaluate and inventory the onsite phone, data networking, and more recently camera equipment — freeing up Silgan’s IT department to manage other projects.
Over time, the Silgan and Parallel partnership has grown to include Parallel’s support of paging and cabling in the facilities. In 2012, Silgan enlisted Parallel to manage all of its carrier services. Parallel now manages everything from service issues to moves/adds/changes with multiple carriers, taking the burden off of Silgan’s IT department and providing significant cost savings to the company. In 2015, Parallel negotiated a contract with Silgan and MetTel to manage Silgan’s wireless phones — reducing wireless costs by eliminating data overages and providing the organization control over company-provided devices. Most recently, Parallel began to support Silgan with security cameras throughout its facilities, providing the cabling and mounting the camera equipment.
“Parallel Technologies has played a key role in the development of a standardized voice solution for Silgan Containers, among the management of several other communications projects,” said Will Cokeley, Director of Information Technologies of Silgan Containers. “I have worked directly Parallel Technologies and our Parallel Account Manager, Laurie Penland, for more than 15 years. To this day, both Laurie and Parallel’s level of professionalism and genuine concern and care for Silgan make them invaluable members of our team.”
“We’re excited to continue to support Silgan Containers so that it can focus on its core business,” said Joe Redman, Parallel Technologies president. “I personally feel that Parallel is an unofficial leg of Silgan’s IT department — its telecom and cabling infrastructure team. We’re proud that our experienced support and implementation teams, innovative solutions, and impeccable vendor management has impressed Silgan, and we look forward to a long-term partnership over the years to come.”
About Parallel Technologies, Inc.
Parallel Technologies, Inc. is a top provider of comprehensive communications solutions and the largest privately held provider of converged voice and data communications systems in the Midwest. Serving customers since 1983, the company has partnered with best-in-class providers to offer comprehensive voice, data, video and wireless communications solutions to more than 5,000 customers throughout Ohio and Kentucky, and many more throughout the United States. Parallel Technology’s commitment to customer satisfaction has consistently earned the company numerous industry awards, and its focus on employees has allowed Parallel to be named as a “Best Place to Work” for six consecutive years. The company is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, with regional offices in Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio. For more information, visit www.paralleltech.com.
About Silgan Containers
Silgan Containers manufactures and sells steel and aluminum containers and ends that are used primarily by processors and packagers for food products, such as soup, vegetables, fruit, meat, tomato based products, coffee, seafood, adult nutritional drinks, pet food and other miscellaneous food products. For more info visit: www.silgancontainers.com.
