The Pangasinan Star ONLINE

WITHOUT fanfare, the first call center in Pangasinan and the entire Ilocos region opened here last Sunday to add to the growing number of call centers now in business throughout the country.

Owned by the new company FarmOut Central formed by local investors led by Wilson L. Chua, president of the Dagupan-based Bitstops, Inc., which is into Internet and computers, the call center was put up with an initial 20 seats in its first module and 60 seats in its second module.

The investors are confident the call center will bring in new money to the province, enhance the local economy, open up new jobs and ancillary businesses, and boost money in circulation.

Board of Investment Governor Consuelo S. Perez, aided by Sister Remy Angela Junio of the St. Paul University in Tuguegarao City, one of the many clients of Bitstops, and Dr. and Mrs. Vivencio Villaflor did the honor in inaugurating the call center.

They were aided by Chua and Mark August Viegelmann, the men behind FarmOut, a new company registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) whose vision is to open new jobs and bring in additional investments into Pangasinan.

Perez said this is only among many investments approved by BOI from January 2000 to June 2005, thus confirming the growing confidence of local as well as foreign investors in the economy.

Now processing from 1,200 to 1,500 calls nightly, the call center is initially manned by 20 agents who successfully passed the rigid standard set by the company, especially in the delivery of the English language.

Chua, president of FarmOut, admitted this is the first call center in the region comprising the provinces of Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte although there was already one that opened ahead in Baguio.

He said the future of the local call center here however looks brighter because it is using the advanced fiber optics technology made available by the Philippine Long Distance Telephone that guarantees clearer, better signal than the ordinary copper wire.

Besides, he said, Pangasinan is the largest and most populous province in the Ilocos region. Its population of 2.2 million is more than the combined population of La Union, Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte combined.

Saying they have eight fiber optic courses, only one of which is being utilized yet, Chua said the technology will allow them to expand up to 1,000 seats and to also expand to other locations.

Chua, a certified public accountant, said at 1,000 seats per call center, the estimated money to be in circulation is P30 million, granting that each call center agent is paid from P10,000 to P15,000 a month.

The call center started its initial operations in February with only three agents right after the company’s incorporation by providing free service to a Catholic church in a small community in the United States.