I'm going to be installing a 200ICP w/ 2 ASUs in a hotel. This will be my first install in a hotel. Just wondering what to expect, or of a template to follow when gathering info. Thanks

Expect HELL - Just kidding

Grab a room phone or guest book for your dialing instructions. If room phones have speed dial buttons get a digit grabber to find out how they are currently programmed

Contact the PMS vender (if they have one ) to see if they can integrate with PBX- if they are not using PMS make sure you read up on lodging and run your tests with the console before cut over- check in/out, room restrictions,maid status ETC.

Spend time on the ARS and make sure it is tight ( not alot of wild cards ) this will prevent service calls with toll fraud or Call accounting issues.

Set up direct to ARS for Credit card machines,fax's

Ring down circuits for lobby phones

Keep looking here I am sure you will get some more good suggestions here.

Good Luck

Do NOT cut corners on classes of service! Rooms in 1, trunks in 2, admin in another, console in another, ring downs in another, VM in another, etc etc. You've got what? 30. USE EM. You can copy and rename if you have one that is close. IE the rooms and the admins will be pretty much the same, as an example. Be sure to name each COS, indicating what it's for. Suggest you fill out PRF for this one, keep a copy and modify as you learn. You will find that all hotels have pretty much identical COS's. John C. (Not Garand)

If you're interfacing to the PMS, you need to know serial communications backwards and forwards 'cause most of the PMS installers won't have a clue.

I agree with Alex, keep the ARS tight. Keeping hotel guests from doing something screwy is like keeping squirrels out of the bird feeder. If you leave any holes, they'll find 'em.

Good luck,

Couple of other things. If this is a limited service hotel (and it appears to be) then suggest to the client that they have a cordless phone at the front desk and use it as night 2 answering position which will allow the FD attendant (if there is only one - probably at night) to be able to leave the front desk if necessary.

With ARS would also suggest that you send * (with no digits to follow) in digit strings whcih will stop people from using service codes to dial around LD restrictions.

Make sure that you put trunks in separate class of service (COS) with only camp on enable (if you need that) and if this is a branded hotel who may want to be able to transfer incoming calls to a central reservations number during busy times then make sure that you have "external call forwarding" enabled in the trunk COS. You will actually need some other things in other forms to make this work but we can discuss that later if you need to use it.

Also not a bad idea to have a SS4025 at Front desk set up as a sub attendant in case someone coffees or sodas out the console. Even if you do not use 4025 good idea to have a SS4000 series or IP phone set up at FD and set up as Night 1 answering position. If you do this make sure that this phone COS has night switching ability.

Many more things but if you have questions I am sure people here can answer them all. Good luck.

Sorry, above I didn't finish thought - send * in digit strings to an unused route like 99 or 200 for reason stated above. If for some other reason you need to utilize * at the beginning of digit string just make sure you send service codes like *82, etc to unused route.

If you already have an interface from the existing system to PMS, you may be Okay. Especially if it's Mitel. Same for call accounting; if it accepted the old digit strings from a Mitel 100/50/20/super10 whatever, you'll be fine. Just match the baud and parity, and away you go. Parity's almost always 7-space-1, which is identical to 8-N-1. Either of those will work.

For PMS, you will need IPockets. They're easy to set up. I know that Genesis has a great cheat sheet for them. Last I heard, Greybar doesn't carry IPockets (??) but they might have started.

You'll also need an IPocket to check in/out rooms for the embedded express messenger. A small hub or switch (5-port Linksys or Netgear?) is a must, as well.

If Serial (PMS or Call-Acct'g, etc.) does need tweaking -- or to work with the IPockets -- you'll need a laptop. Some folks like Hyperterminal, but I use ProComm. Either way, it's important to have around, even if you're one of those guys who programs everything from the console.

All in all, don't sweat it. My worst Murphy's-Law-on-overdrive Mitel ICP install was head-and-shoulders easier than my Best NEC 2000IPS install. No offense to the NEC guys out there (I R 1).

Oh, and what all the other guys said.

One last thing, Sorry: If there's an 800 number, either give it its own LDN, named "800 # ," or point it to a single-line beside the FD, so that unsuspecting clerks won't transfer the 800 # to rooms.

And I strongly second using N2 for a cordless. But check company policy on N1 and N2 answer points. Some places say no Auto Attend, ever.

I came across this thread as I was looking for another answer, so I thought I would throw in my $0.02:

1. If you're interfacing with InnQuest Software's roomMaster 2000, you DO NOT need an iPocket or similar adapter. The interface can be done directly through IP. Check out www.innquest.com.

2. InnQuest's PMS trainers/installers are shown how to interface with Mitel FIRST, since that is found in at least half of the hotels where InnQuest's PMS is installed.

To expand on what telephoneguy said above I have installed a multitude of hotels where they want 800 nymbers to ring on the console and be transferable to some admin exts but not other and not rooms. Unfortunately when it gets busy clerks will transfer without looking so the fix is pretty easy to make it so it "cannot" be done. In my early days it took a long time to figure out but nothing could be simpler.

Sorry didn't finish post above. All phones and trunks in hotel will be tenant 1 usually. If this is the case make the phones (including console) that need to receive 800 calls tenant 2 and make the 800 trunk(s) tenant 3. Then go to tenant interconnect form and make sure that tenants 1 and 3 cannot connect. also make sure that you go to call rerouting table (form 19) and make sure you do the appropriate routing for tenants 2 and 3.

Something that drove me nuts was the pinout for the printer port on the ICP. It's send on 2 and ground on 5, as opposed to 3&7 on the old system.

Also, remember that the analog extensions on the analog option card will not support message wait lamps. Another timesaver is to enable class of service option 277 for extensions, which will create mailboxes automatically when you create extensions in form 9. Then go to form 50 to make them EXTENSION type instead of GUEST.

One more thing, your ASU's are programmed slots 14&15 on the controller.

Yah, didn't think about that but if you are counting on using ASUs to run room phones you will not be able to use lamp option for message waiting - could be a bummer.

Dane, I believe the ASU's themselves will support lamps. I meant the analog option card that mounts inside the controller(2 ons and 6 ls trunks) the 2 ons on the controller as well as the add-on card won't support mw lamps.

Gotcha - thanks. I was reading your post with the Polish half of my brain.

Please send the Polish half, I could use it

Thanks guys this will help alot.