Waiting in the wings

Among
the second-tier network integrators, Comptel has shown much
faster growth than others have. 70 percent of its business came
from the West. This partner of Wipro Infotech, however, has not
been able to grow as dramatically as Network Solutions–also a
second-tier NI till a few years ago.

It implemented over 20 NI
projects in 1999-00. Specializing in structured cabling systems
and LAN integration, the company earned a revenue of Rs 15 crore
from NI projects last fiscal and is currently implementing eight
projects.

Operating from its five
offices spread across the country,  Comptel has
collaborations and tie-ups with leading vendors and suppliers
which include Lucent Technologies, 3Com, Cisco, and Nortel
Networks. The company also undertakes technology-training
programmes for corporate end users on demand. This includes
training modules on network management, product maintenance, and
troubleshooting.

If Comptel wants to break into the big
league, it needs to develop newer skill-sets and implement
larger LAN/WAN projects. It also needs to be more active in
other regions, especially in the East where its presence at
present is virtually non-existent.