Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile And Boston Edison Team Up To Improve Customer Service Using New Wireless Data Technology

Boston, MA — Boston Edison Company customers will be the first in New England to enjoy improved customer service thanks to advanced wireless data technology from Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile. Beginning today, Boston Edison's electrical service business unit will use pen-based computers to send and receive real-time information on customer orders over Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's AirBridge® cellular digital packet data (CDPD) network, improving their efficiency and effectiveness.

The new automated system allows field personnel to directly receive real-time information on customer requests, maintenance orders, collection orders and customer billing history. Once a job is completed, details are entered into a pen-based, portable computer and sent back, real-time via CDPD, to the appropriate databases.

The wireless connection to Boston Edison's field service specialists will improve overall response time to customers, reduce order processing time, improve accuracy, increase productivity, and lower the number of recurring orders -- all adding up to improved customer satisfaction and significant cost savings as well.

"In a changing marketplace for utilities, Boston Edison has taken a step forward by investing in technologically-advanced systems that will help us enhance the productivity of our work force and quality of work for our customers. Wireless data systems will help us improve customer service for the large community that Boston Edison serves," said Gerald Mata, Boston Edison Company's Field Service project manager. "Boston Edison chose Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's CDPD technology over a number of wireless services tested. CDPD was found to be the best fit for Boston Edison's high throughput requirements," added Mata.

"Wireless CDPD technology represents a new way for utilities to become more competitive, especially as deregulation approaches and more players enter the market," said Jack Plating, president, Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's Northeast region. "CDPD has proven itself in a range of applications, such as telemetry and field sales automation, providing organizations in both the public and private sectors with a solution for re-engineering the way they work," added Plating.

CDPD provides efficient and secure transmission of short bursts, or "packets" of data over the existing cellular infrastructure. The Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile/Boston Edison alliance represents the growing acceptance of CDPD as a new technology for field automation. Several other companies across the East Coast have already selected Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's CDPD technology to improve the way they conduct business, including the Medford Police Department.

Note to Editors:

Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile is the largest wireless service provider on the East Coast and the second largest in the United States. The company owns and operates the most extensive network in the East, covering 111,000 square miles, and the largest chain of wireless retail outlets offering a full range of wireless personal communications services, including voice, data and paging. Based in Bedminster, NJ, Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile has 4.9 million customers and 6,500 employees in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, Southeast, and, through a separate subsidiary, in the Southwest. The company was formed in July, 1995, by combining the cellular operations of Bell Atlantic Mobile and NYNEX Mobile.

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