BT IRELAND has won a €9 million contract to provide a national IT network for the Department of Social Protection.

BT said the five-year contract represented “a significant saving” on the current cost of running the department’s network, adding that it had won the tender because of its “multi-million euro” investment in extending the bandwidth of its network. The British telecoms company, which employs 3,000 people in Ireland, is improving the efficiency of its network in 208 locations.

Wide-area connectivity is especially important for this Government department because almost half of its existing 5,200 staff are based in local offices. The department is also integrating into its organisation the Community Welfare Service from the Health Service Executive as well as community employment services from Fás. Some 2,000 staff are joining the department as a result.

Under the contract, BT will provide network support and training to the department’s information services team.

Niall Barry, chief information officer at the department, said the BT network would allow it to save money, as it would be able to move its telephone services onto the data network. “This will ensure greatly reduced telephone line rental and call charges across the organisation,” he said.

BT’s social protection contract follows the company’s securing of the contract for the Emergency Call Answering Service, which was launched last year.