CRC Welcomes Washington Electric Cooperative to its Membership
Cooperative Response Center, Inc. (CRC) is pleased to announce Washington Electric Cooperative (WEC) in East Montpelier, Vermont, recently joined its membership. WEC is a member-owned distribution cooperative serving over 10,500 members in four counties in north-central Vermont.
CRC offers utilities across the country seamless contact center and alarm monitoring solutions, including call handling, line crew dispatch, AMI/CIS/OMS integration, CRCLink® outage communication software, and alarm monitoring. CRC also offers outage texting services and video monitoring of substations to its membership. From outage calls to billing calls, disconnects to emergency locates and more, CRC is there for its membership 24/7/365. By partnering with CRC, members find peace of mind as well as a cost-effective solution to their call handling needs.
Patty Richards, general manager of WEC, said the organization is excited to partner with CRC to answer calls after normal business hours and during periods of high call volume. “Under normal circumstances, WEC doesn’t need the help. But ‘normal circumstances’ aren’t when most people are calling,” Richards said. “That comes during snowstorms, windstorms, ice storms, floods, and similar events that can cause widespread power outages.
“When this happens, hundreds of WEC members may attempt to reach the co-op by phone, but our phone-line resources and too few people to answer the phone have been a source of member frustration,” she added. “We simply do not have enough people to take calls during outages and we certainly need talented staff when our doors are closed in the evening and weekends. WEC sees CRC as an extension of its own member service department. We are very excited to have a utility-centric business partner rather than a call service that answers the phone for doctors or other non-utility businesses. We look forward to working with CRC and managing our calls in a professional and utility-minded way.”
Chris Holt, CRC’s president and CEO, is pleased CRC can meet WEC’s call-handling needs. “Our expertise is working with utilities and serving as an extension of their office,” said Holt. “We’re happy to fulfill this critical role for WEC and will continually strive to exceed their expectations.”
About CRC
CRC is a nationwide, cooperatively owned, 24/7 contact center and central station. Founded in 1992, CRC has steadily increased the size and scope of its operation with offices in Austin, Minn., Dunlap, Tenn., and Abilene, Texas. CRC serves nearly 350 members and associate members in 42 states, representing over 5 million consumers. Visit CRC on the web at www.crc.coop.
For more information about CRC’s services, contact Dan Otteson, senior regional business manager, at 800-892-1578, ext. 2137, or danotteson@crc.coop.
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