(Broomfield, CO) | Call Management Products Inc. (CMP) is proud to be celebrating its 20th year of designing and manufacturing telecommunication products. Founded in 1988 by a group of Bell Laboratory engineers, CMP Inc. has quickly become a leader in telecommunication products. Ten years later, this same group refined their product line by adding a low-cost, feature-rich telephone system for the hospitality industry.
In the last 20 years, CMP and its hospitality division, PhoneSuite® (which is celebrating its 10th year in business) has seen hotel telephone technology change dramatically. According to President Frank Melville (who joined the group in 1990), the largest change in the last 10 years has been the loss of the phone system as a significant revenue source. Hotels no longer profit from guest phone use, but the phone system is still a necessary piece of equipment – so it is now a cost center. As a result, hotels need to be more careful and cost conscious when selecting a phone system.
More recently, the migration from dedicated phone lines to the Internet and VoIP telephony to make phone calls has begun to pick up steam. He predicts that within the next 10 years, the guestroom telephone will integrate into a total guest experience, allowing one network to work with the property’s PMS and control the individual room’s High Speed Internet, TV on Demand, room temperature, lighting, alarm clock, and offer a concierge service of restaurants and activities in the area.
“The guestroom phone will become part of this overall guest room networked control center,” said Melville. “Pre-prescribed attributes will allow the front desk to know that when I check in, I like to watch sports programming, listen to NPR on the radio, have my room temperature at 70 degrees, and wake up at 6:30 am. All of this will be set in the guest room automatically as soon as I check in.”
When asked if this will only be available at luxury or high-end hotels, Melville said at first – yes, but eventually, no. “Look at flat screen televisions, High Speed Internet, and even Wi-Fi. All of these are now available at most mid-scale and even some budget hotel brands. As mass production increases, costs decrease and become more affordable for everyone. Once your guests have the technology in their homes, they will expect to find it in their travel accommodations.”
Growing quickly from a regional company to a national one, PhoneSuite has experienced triple-digit increases in sales every year, with a 1200 percent sales growth in a single year. Gaining approved vendor status from numerous hotel chains, PhoneSuite systems can now be found in major franchises throughout the country including Choice Hotels International, Americas Best Value Inn, and Wyndham Worldwide.
Melville credits PhoneSuite’s rapid success and growth to the company’s clients. “Many of our early customers took a chance with us,” he said. “We knew we could do everything, even more, at a much more affordable price than the big national brand. But PhoneSuite was a name very few people were familiar with 10 years ago and we had to prove ourselves.
“Our first installation was in October 1998 at the Boulder Mountain Lodge in Boulder, CO and they are still one of our best clients,” said Melville. “They are wonderful! Anytime we want to try a new product, they are happy to be our testing ground.”
Melville also credits the company’s re-sellers, who have been instrumental in reaching hotels throughout the country and Canada, as well as passing on customer suggestions to help refine the product into the feature rich, “perfect fit” product it is today.
Call Management Products has remained a private company, growing organically with no outside funding. Last year, the company was recognized by the Denver Business Journal as one of Denver’s Top 25 Fastest Growing Small Private Companies.
From beginning to end, all of Call Management Products are manufactured in the U.S.A., including all of the design, assembly, testing, quality control, and shipment; something that Melville is very proud of.
“Our growth has been very steady. We’ve added some wonderful talent to our team throughout the years and opened a second office in California,” said Melville. “Our offices have a family atmosphere and we like having complete control over our operations and profit to share at the end of the year.”
About PhoneSuite | PhoneSuite currently has over 2,000 systems operating throughout the United States and Canada in lodging establishments ranging from B&B’s to major franchises and resorts. The PhoneSuite 64, for up to 60 rooms; and the PhoneSuite 112e for up to 475 rooms can be found in nearly all major hotel chains in the economy, limited service and extended stay sectors. PhoneSuite is also an Allied Sponsor of AAHOA and a member of AH&LA and was recognized by the Denver Business Journal in 2007 as one of the Top 25 Fastest Growing Small Private Companies.
Michele McCreath
