JEPCO is a family-run business set in South Lincolnshire. Established in 1946 by Major John E Piccaver, JEPCO’s mission is to deliver exciting, vibrant, and innovative products to an eager nation. By 1988, JEPCO had become an established pioneer in the production of salad leaves. The family business has been passed down two generations and is now ran by the Major’s grandson Stuart. Innovation, stewardship, and the desire to deliver fantastic produce remain firmly at the heart of JEPCO.

The Challenge

For JEPCO, daily interruptions to their IT services would mean unnecessary disruption for the business and wasted hours spent having to call their IT supplier out.

Initially, staff were used to physical visits, which happened once a week. We wanted to get them into the habit of contacting our support desk when they had a problem rather than waiting for a weekly visit. We set up a support desk they could contact 24/7 instead of waiting for a weekly visit.

The Goals

As JEPCO were an existing customer of UK IT Networks but for a different product, we wanted to combine our services under one umbrella. As UK IT Networks, we strived to be their primary contact for connectivity and IT Services. Our goal for JEPCO was to provide them with a proactive support desk rather than reactive support that would only deal with problems after they are raised. At UK IT Networks, we monitor our clients IT 24/7 and any issues we see we raise immediately – usually before the customer is aware.

The Solution

We migrated JEPCO from a previous supplier onto a new IT Support contract. The package is fully customised to their needs and meets their requirements for IT Support and connectivity.

“There was no real visual change to the IT Services but combining services under one umbrella makes our communication more efficient.” – Simon Goddard, Finance Director at JEPCO 

The addition of onsite visits has strengthened the relationship between JEPCO and UK IT Networks. The increased comfort that comes from a specialist visiting site periodically is invaluable. UK IT Networks can test and review hardware and give advice if necessary. As well as these visits, emergency IT support has been a valuable add on. “We have never had to use the emergency out of hours support but we have always found that everyone will go the extra mile to resolve urgent issues.” For a business that operates 24/7/365, having an emergency backup in place to support you if something goes wrong is key. It provides peace of mind that if something goes wrong, a resolution can be found, and your business can get back to normal operations quickly.

The Impact

Why was it important for UK IT Networks to be the main supplier of IT Support?
JEPCO stayed with us throughout our acquisition of SeaBro IT and are now receiving IT Support from a bigger UK IT Networks team. The satisfaction of our customers is at the heart of what we do. The ongoing support and communication between JEPCO and UK IT Networks have encouraged strong relationships to form. These relationships have allowed us to work closely with JEPCO and supply other products and services, including:

• Server and Email Hosting
• Reliable Remote Working Functionality
• IT Hardware
• Leased Lines
• Point to Point Connectivity
• Horizon Hosted Phone System
• Development Projects

“It’s a pleasure to work with JEPCO. We actually feel like part of their team, our team has good relationships with their staff and if they have any issues, we quickly resolve them.” – Richard Tracey, Head of IT at UK IT Networks 

The Impact of the Pandemic on JEPCO

Prior to the pandemic, Jepco was developing remote working solutions for as many staff as possible due to the requirement to operate 24/7. This has enabled a number of staff to maintain work efficiency whilst improving their time management as it cut down on travel to and from work.

This home working solution really came to the fore as the pandemic took hold, where JEPCO could rely on accessing core systems that can be accessed from anywhere. It is essential for Fresh Produce with its short shelf life to be harvested and sold as soon as it is ready, so the teams across JEPCO’s sites needed to continue their operations at full capacity while maintaining a safe working environment. UK IT Networks worked alongside JEPCO to ensure this transition to home working was as seamless as possible. We continue to fulfil their requirements with the customised product packages we offer and the continued collaboration that allows us to update their product solutions according to their changing needs.

At UK IT Networks, our IT Support packages offer solutions for businesses of all sizes. Migrating to one of our support solutions is simple and onboarding is easily done through our website. To find out more information about how IT support can benefit your business, contact our sales team on 0344 326 2150 or email enquiries@ukitnetworks.com