THE north’s largest independent provider of telecom services, Rainbow Communications, is marking two decades at the forefront of innovation and growth.
Founded in April 1998 by Eric Carson and Martin Hamill as TSI Ireland, operating with five people in a modest office, it rebranded three years later as Rainbow Telecom to reflect the broad spectrum of products and services offered.
Today it has more than 10,000 customers in Northern Ireland alone, and counts almost half of the region's top 200 companies as key clients.
Rainbow also operates from a 20,000 sq ft office complex in east Belfast (as well as satellite offices in Dublin and Glasgow), employs more than 100 people and has an annual turnover north of £13 million.
And all of that growth and development has been funded with the company's own assets, which managing director Eric Carson says "makes us extremely proud".
Following an announcement last year of a £1 million investment across customer service and engineering teams, Rainbow continues to expand and develop its product and service offering to its loyal customer base throughout Ireland and the UK.
Says Carson (who 18 months ago marked 50 years in the telecoms business): “We are continually spearheading the latest technological advancements and incorporating them into our clients’ systems.
"These include IP voice, unified communications, multi-platform mobile applications and cloud-based software. We are dedicated to ensuring businesses of all sizes have the best choice of product to stay connected, safely and securely.”
Rainbow specialises in the delivery, implementation, maintenance and service provision of mobiles, broadband systems, cloud telephony, IT and network security services, vehicle tracking and more.
It is Rainbow’s affinity and deep connection to everything ‘local’ that has served the wider community well through the company’s numerous corporate social responsibility activities.
A major local employer, it has also grown its team of engineers, technicians and customer service representatives in line with demand as the industry continues to evolve beyond all recognition from when the company was founded in 1998.
Martin Hamill, co-founder and director, said: “The evolution of communications technology has seen mobile phones no longer weigh two kilogrammes and resemble a small suitcase. They can now fit easily in the palm of your hand and control everything from your work email to the interior lighting of your home, regardless of where you are in the world.
“This is in large part thanks to the internet as it has evolved through the nineties and early 21st century. With the development of technology, PCs, laptops and server rooms turned into devices the size of your hand. The introduction and widespread use of ‘The Cloud’ has added to our service and product offer.”
Martin and Eric continue to share an office at the company’s headquarters on the outskirts of Belfast,and Rainbow’s growth is bolstered by ongoing recruitment across departments and to support its growing markets across Scotland and the Republic.
Last year Rainbow was named Avaya’s “Irish Mid-Market Partner of the Year”, one of only eight companies honoured at Westcon-Comstor’s Partner of the Year Industry event.
Rainbow continues to maintains a focus outside of the business environment having inherited thousands of residential customers from UTV.
Remaining firmly family-owned and based entirely in Northern Ireland, Rainbow says it is committed to continued growth through the expansion of its service provision with new technologies and supplier offerings.
Eric adds: “The next 20 years will be very exciting for the communications industry and we look forward to maintaining our position as the vanguard and building our brand so that it is even more recognisable.”
