Time Telekom's Network Inventory System: AM/FM/GIS in the big Durian

Time Telekom's Network Inventory System: AM/FM/GIS in the big Durian

Chin Choon Moy
Project Manager, TIME Quantum Technology
Floor 6, Menara Maxisegar, Jalan Pandan Indah 4/2
Pandan Indah 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Dr. Robert F. Austin
President, Mercator Corporation
El Monte Mall, Tercer Piso, 652 Avenida Munoz Rivera
Hato Rey, San Juan, PR 00918-4149, USA

Abstract
TIME Telecommunications, a new communications company in Malaysia, designed and implemented a completed Operations Support System (0SS) in tandem with fiber network engineering and construction. An AM/FM/GIS was incorporated within the 0SS. Completion of the first phase (outside plant) required six months. The second phase, in which inside plant was incorporated, required an additional five months. A program of enhancementsand incremental adjustments was defined for the subsequent eighteen months.

Deregulation in the telecommunications industry
Twenty years ago, AM/FM International conducted its first major professional conference. The conference was dedicated to geographic information systems and to applications of computer mapping technology to the information system needs of public utilities and communications companies. At the time, monopoly was the rule in these sectors of the economy, although the first signs of competition were visible in a few countries.

In the present day, competition has become commonplace in the global telecommunications industry. Indeed, the theme for the 1995 AM/FM International conference was “Thriving in an Age of Competition.” Deregulation, privatization and destateization are just a few of the terms associated with the trend to remove the cumbersome machinery of monopoly and replace it with the price and service advantages of competition.

The Federation of Malaysia is no exception to the rule of dynamic change in the communications industry. Privatization was authorized in 1987. Seven years later there were seven new companies providing telephone, radio paging, cellular and satellite services. With one of the world’s most dynamic and coherent economies, and one of the most technically sophisticated work forces, Malaysia understands the importance of high quality telecommunications systems. The government has encouraged investment and nurtured the growth of communications infrastructure for several years. These efforts are bearing fruit with the rapid evolution of a thriving industry that provides services throughout the nation.

Time Telecommunications SDN BHD (Time Telekom)
“TIME Telekom will be the leading private telecommunications company in the region in terms of profitability and revenue, providing customers with the highest quality telecommunication services and customer supporl at competitive prices, and using leading-edge technology to continuously improve it’s range of products and services.”

TIME Telekom Mission Statement In 1988, the government of the Federation of Malaysia announced that a modern superhighway would be built on the Malay Peninsula. The highway would unite the country by linking the border with Thailand in the North with the Singapore causeway in the South. In addition to the obvious benefits for long distance travel, the highway would constitute an arterial route for local development along its entire length. The construction and project management of this massive project, known as the l%ojek Lebuhraya Utara Se/atan, or PLUS, was awarded to United Engineers Malaysia (UEM). Responsibility for operation and maintenance of the toll highway also was assigned to UEM. UEM is part of the Renong group of companies, Malaysia’s foremost infrastructure conglomerate, as is TIME Engineering Berhad. The group decided to make an additional investment in the future of the nation: they decided to construct a high capacity, state-of-the-art fiber optic communications system during highway construction.

Construction of that fiber optic cable was the basis for TIME Telecommunications Sdn Bhd (TIME Telekom). TIME Telekom quickly moved to design and build the necessary enhancements to transform that backbone cable into a fully functioning communications network:. The company engineered the network using an architecture called Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH).

An SDH network is, by design and definition, a resilient network. The system is designed to route traffic throughout the network in pairs of counter-rotating rings, much like a Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) local area network. Referring to Figure 1, the normal flow of traffic on dual counter-rotating rings is shown in the first illustration (A). If a ring is broken (B), traffic is rerouted automatically (C),

Figure 1. Synchronous Digital Hierarchy: Self-healing Architecture.
At the national level, physical resiliency is provided by a submarine cable laid off-shore along the east and west coasts of the peninsular. At regional and local levels, physical resiliency is provided by a set of nested rings. At all levels, logical resiliency is provided by the switching and multiplexing technology used by the company. Figure 2 presents a schematic view of the network architecture.

Figure 2. Time Telekom SDH Network
The TIME Telekom SDH network was built using a combination of transmission technologies, including fiber optic cables, microwave systems, and very small aperture terminal systems (VSATS) combined with earth stations. The physical network is flexible by design. To provide the broadest clean-signal bandwidth and greatest possible physical security, fiber optic cables are the primary transmission medium, These cables are placed below ground at a depth of approximately one meter. The cables are afforded physical protection by the cable’s outer sheath and by the duct and subduct construction method used for placement. While these measures provide reasonable security, they also make the act of locating the cables for maintenance and repair problematic. This difficulty serves as one of the justifications for the construction of a GIS for a telecommunications company.

The Master Plan
In the rush to build physical infrastructure, some telecommunications system operators in other countries have entered their local markets without developing a master plan for their internal information systems. This is unfortunate and can be extremely expensive in the long term. The Information System Plans (ISPS) of the older, monopoly carriers were developed through trial and error to satisfy real needs. The same real needs are shared, or will be shared soon, by the newly emerging operating common carriers. In the case of TIME Telekom, care was taken to define an ISP to minimize expenditures 685?and maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of all information technology expenditures. TIME Telekom realized that, to achieve its Vision and Mission, it would have to provide innovative products and world-class customer service. TIME Telekom will only be able to achieve this if the systems that it developed supported the stated Vision, Mission and the Critical Success Factors.

Quoting from the TIME Telekom ISP: “The ISP is a strategic business tool for TIME Telekom. It translates the key corporate goals of the company to the IT systems required. It ensures that the business strategies developed are enabled by the use of IT. As TIME Telekom moves into value added and enhanced services, the systems will often determine the packaging and presentation to customers.”

The task of implementing information technology was assigned to TIME Quantum Technology (TQT), another member of the TIME Engineering group of companies, With support from Andersen Consulting, TQT embarked on an analysis of requirements. These studies were formalized in a draft ISP that was submitted for review in stages through late 1994 and early 1995. The final draft of the ISP provided a blueprint for the TIME Telekom 0SS. This blueprint, which matched TIME Telekom six-year strategic plan, served not only as the template for system design, but also as the basis for system integration.

The Network Inventory System
Geographic information systems offer numerous benefits for telecommunications company decision making. - The benefits of TIME Telekom’s Network Inventory System (NIS) maybe categorized in as follows:

graphic product generation, modification and maintenance
report generation
system engineering
interfaces to other data bases created or used by TIME Telekom

Graphic Products
The system is capable of producing, storing and reproducing plant location records produced at any scale. To simplify the plotting process, the system offers the option of plotting at predefine scales, with predefine sheet sizes. Users have the option to select variable scale output as well. The system supports production, storage and reproduction of aerial plant, buried plant and underground plant (conduit) records and miscellaneous detail drawings (for example, manhole details, floor plans and rack face diagrams).

The system suppotts rapid modification of maps and drawings. Construction plans can be produced in digital form, saving time in revision. After construction is complete, these plans can be converted into final as-built plant location records more rapidly than in the past. The system supports maintenance of a consistent set of graphic elements and text.

The system incorporates a coherent, network-wide geographic reference system. The system supports graphical searches by operating region or for the company as a whole. Examples of such searches include locating individual customer sites using a system of site codes and locating items of plant using work order numbers. In future, it is planned to incorporate field location notes and access to reference location maps. The company is evaluating the potential benefits of satellite imagery of the areas in which construction is taking place. The system has been designed to incorporate such data if the evaluation is favorable.

The system supports storage and display of multiple layers of information. These layers are independent, permitting production of maps using any combination of information. This organization of data permits production of custom purpose maps and reports for a variety of end users, In other words, the system supports production of hard copy maps, with user-definable content, on an as-needed basis.

The only theoretical limit to the number and variety of reports (statistical summaries of information) in the system is the number of variables stored in the computer data base. The TIME Telekom data base framework defines types of objects and activities, termed entities, that serve as organization guides. An example of an entity is the item of plant category “duct.” Each entity has characteristics, called attributes. An example of an attribute for a section of duct is “diameter.” The system should generate reports based on the entity and attribute structure defined in the system’s data base structure.

The system supports the generation of reports, in summary form by operating district and for the company as a whole. For example, TIME Telekom is subject to a variety of accounting requirements. The system supports reporting of the depreciation and amortization status of all facilities. The system supports analysis of placement and maintenance costs and of ownership records. The system constitutes a basis of a continuing property record for accounting.

The system supports cost and capital expenditure analyses and generates reports of those analyses. The reports may contain information on the costs of placement, cost of materials and types of facility. Such reports typically would be tabulated or cross-- referenced by project, year of placement, or other variable(s). Although terrain and physical environment are major factors in the total cost of a project, the methods used by a particular contractor or engineer may be more cost-effective than other methods. Such efficiencies may be identified and incorporated in standard procedures. The system generates summary reports of the attributes of facilities. These attributes include, for example, engineering contractor, location, account code, a unique identification number, cross-references to detail drawings, date of placement, and ownership codes.

To a limited, but growing extent, the system can identify internal data errors and inconsistencies. Although some anomalies between numbers are appropriate, many other types of discrepancies can be adjusted automatically or flagged for human decision. The system incorporates methods of automatically converting data values between measurement systems. This is a functionality that may be enhanced as new mensuration issues arise.

The system supports tracking of “state” changes and the status of all items of plant in each project. An example of this capability is the ability to distinguish between planned, pre-posted facilities (“as-designed”) and constructed, final-posted facilities (“as-built”) Other states might include future expansion designs and “what-if” scenarios. An audit trail of the state changes would permit maintenance of more accurate continuing property records,

Predefine reports satisfy approximately 80% of all current queries. During the next stage of development, direct ad hoc queries will be supped with a suite of customized reporting tools. Implementation of these direct data base queries will expand the utility of the system while minimizing capital expenditures for relatively more expensive graphics workstations.

Engineering
The system supports fiber optic and copper cable connectivity checking. The TIME Telekom network does not employ copper cables in its main trunk systems at present. In future, however, the system may be adapted to suppotl such fundamental copper system engineering activities as cable throws and loop make-ups. The system generates a bill of materials and a summary of work units to support construction bidding.

The system supports route tracing and reporting. Among the functions scheduled for future implementation is a “trace” capability that will include tests for attenuation, by fiber, for fiber systems. The system is being integrated with another TIME Telekom system that is responsible for fiber circuit construction and management, which will facilitate complete end-to-end circuit identification and monitoring. The system supports on-going testing of outside plant facilities, as well as maintenance and restoration activities.

The system is being integrated with various software tools and related sub-systems to allow TIME Telekom engineers to set-up and monitor project schedules. Depending on the as-built submission schedules, the system could report weekly or monthly construction progress and costs incurred. Ultimately, this could be accomplished by direct data transmission from field staff supplied with portable computers, a technology currently under investigation at TIME Quantum Technology.

Among the functions currently being designed and added is the ability to provide TIME Telekom engineering personnel with access to historical cost information to support cost estimating. For example, an application is being designed now to calculate and update a broadgauge cost-estimating tool for different work operations (work units). The broadgauge is being assembled by geographic area, providing the engineer with current, area-specific information to estimate the costs of new projects. This application will assist the engineering and construction staff in analyzing potential cost overruns and generating variance reports.

Different levels of access have been established to maintain data security. The access defines not only who can access files, but also what portions of those files are accessible. Furthermore, the system defines the nature of the access. 688?For example, a member of the marketing staff can view the entire network, but cannot perform any changes to the network. An outside plant (OSP) engineer can design a system addition. However, the OSP supervisor’s approval is required before the design can be posted to the master data base. Outside plant engineers do not have access to marketing department prospect lists.

Outside plant engineers can see portions of the inside plant and transmission equipment, but cannot modify these features. Similarly, inside plant equipment engineers can read and modify inside plant, but their access to the outside plant is “read-only.”. This level of security is defined for classes of users defined by a system design committee,

Interfaces to Other Svstems
Mirroring the communication network’s SDH technology architecture, the information system’s technology architecture is distributed and resilient. The system incorporates the concept of distributed access and both Wide Area Networks (WANS) and Local Area Networks (LANs) that use both standard communications lines and the company’s high bandwidth fiber circuits. The system is built around a server and workstation configuration that distributes data and processing loads to a hierarchy of servers.

Enterprise Servers -- support corporate-wide customer, network and business applications and databases that are managed centrally (excluding certain applications interfaces with selected SDH network elements)

Regional Servers -- support customer, network and business applications and databases that are operated and managed most appropriately at regional headquarters and other remote offices

Network Operations Servers -- support real-time network applications and databases with interfaces to the network elements

Development and Staging Servers -- support software development and staging environments, respectively; located in proximity to development teams

Business Operations Workstations -- standard microcomputers for users of customer, business and non-real-time network systems

Network Operations Workstation -- high performance, high display resolution workstations used to support network applications.

Developer and Staging Workstations -- workstations configured with appropriate development tools

This arrangement permits connection of remote terminal sites at multiple operating region offices. Engineers at these offices have access to the system in real time for engineering design and data review. The same terminals used for the GIS can be used for access to other systems, either through direct log-in or terminal emulation. In the near future, the system will interact with an automated trouble ticket system developed independently. Toward that end, the NIS already has been linked to an alarm management system. An extension of this concept -- real-time cable monitoring -- is under evaluation. For this functionality, we anticipate incorporating third party fiber monitoring software.

There are many other external data bases and external data sources whose integration is of interest to TIME Telekom. The system has been designed to support access to such data. Through time, as user sophistication increases, we anticipate requests for enhancements primarily in the area of multi-system interaction.

For example, through the technique of polygon processing, specific corporate markets may be identified and serviced more effectively using a GIS. This process could include, for example, identification of service availability by geographic area, in conjunction with demographic data from the marketing department. The system should interface with a standard choroplethic or thematic mapping software package to support marketing efforts. To support these functions, the NIS has been designed to interact with marketing prospect data bases and to provide certain functions related to planning network extensions.

Outside plant information for cable television companies, power companies, and foreign telephone company also can be tracked. In the case of direct pole attachment, for example, this information is stored in TIME Telekom’s data bases. This information will be used to ensure accurate billing for pole and structure rentals. In other cases, the information could be stored in other data bases for analysis, resale, or maintenance for a foreign utility, as appropriate.

Conclusion and Recommendations
The benefits of GIS for the decision making process are substantial. The process of implementation at TIME Telekom is taking place in several stages. The first stage -- definition of hardware and software requirements -- was completed during the second quarter of 1995. The second stage -- definition and acquisition of land base information -- also was completed during the second quarter of 1995. The third stage -- customization of software to provide TIME Telekom-specific applications -- took place over a period of seven months. The first group of applications was released during the third quarter of 1995, while the second group of applications was released in the first quarter of 1996. Other applications will be developed over the life of the project.

The fourth stage -- conversion of existing records to digital form -- began during the second quarter of 1995. This stage will continue until such time as all existing documents are converted and all engineering design work is performed using the system. We estimate that the first part of this task will require approximately two years, while design work using the system already is underway. The benefits of automated record management being realized at Time Telekom are substantial and growing.