Today’s telecom networks are becoming more complex. The convergence of voice, audio, video and data, together with the pressure to reduce operating costs, make today’s networks increasingly difficult to manage. In result, network operators require new tools to gain network-wide visibility, ensure operation, maintenance and control.

Existing legacy monitoring systems, however, no longer provide the flexibility and scalability to give operators a complete view of the network. These systems only provide basic alarms and don’t have the intelligent features that enable operators to respond quickly to emergencies, control and manage functions remotely and generate data and reports. 

Available monitoring systems for base transceiver systems (BTS), meanwhile, tend to overlook the environment and other infrastructure systems such as cooling units, power supply, batteries, and generators.

With the ongoing inadequacy, this has created a strong demand for a system that is capable of monitoring across all various technologies incorporated in increasingly complex communication networks.  

When you lose sight, you lose…

As more elements get integrated unto the network, the challenge to monitor all these become increasingly difficult, and without proper and appropriate monitoring, your unprotected network can be exposed to these vulnerabilities:

• Theft & vandalism – theft and vandalism of assets such as generators, fuel, batteries, and copper cables pose a significant challenge for most network operators around the world. These result in expensive repairs and replacement costs, as well as lower the network reliability from undetected downtime.

• High Repair & Maintenance Expenses – routine maintenance are oftentimes inadequate and ineffective in detecting failures/ possible hazards. As a result, equipment life can decrease which can lead to expensive maintenance or repair.

• Security issues – unauthorized access to network services can cause damage to the whole network; Illegitimate users can access confidential data which compromises data integrity

• Battery failure – inadequate monitoring of battery levels can cause unplanned downtime. If power from the grid fails, and batteries don’t provide required backup, it becomes a great hassle for network operators to send a maintenance person to that site

• High energy bills – a great deal of energy costs is spent on cooling; without a monitoring system to detect temperature and humidity levels within the environment, cooling units such as air conditioners and DC fans can be left unoptimized.