The Baton Issue 3 | Jan – Jun 2023

CUSTOMER SUCCESS

A TC, which owns extensive network tower infrastructure across Africa, selected NEC XON after an 18-month proof of concept (POC) as a technology partner to supply and install hardware and software to monitor and report on the company’s tower sites in Uganda. ATC services major carriers like MTN and wanted remote and full visibility of newly acquired tower sites. Maintaining tower uptimes, having real time visibility and improved MTTR (mean time to respond) and MTTR (mean time to repair/resolve) ensure that customer SLAs are attained. Tower companies incur high operating costs in fuelling diesel generators at tower sites and maintaining a large labour force to ensure service level agreements with carriers are

“A total of 330 sites were fully installed and are reporting to the management platform, and we are looking forward to further growth in 2023.”

31

met. Understanding the nature of the failure of equipment using smart metres and sensors and IOT technology with effective bidirectional site communication is vital. NEC XON provides remote monitoring services for power assets at ATC’s tower sites, including the capture of raw site data, data analytics and a reporting tool to enable fault fixing and support preventative maintenance. Its RTU and sensors collect vital data on aspects like generator fuel, temperature, power and power sources. “Phase 1 was awarded in June 2021 with rollout starting in December 2021,” said Tracey Townshend, Key Accounts Executive at NEC XON. “A total of 330 sites were fully installed and are reporting to the management platform, and we are looking forward to further growth in 2023.” “We provide smart monitoring, not just reactive monitoring, and our aim is to extend this into ATC,” said Townshend.

“At each site, a lightweight onsite processor collects telemetry from a variety of devices over a variety

of protocols. This data is uploaded, stored and processed into detailed reports by cloud software specifically configured for IoT data. These are displayed as operational, technical and management reports for company use.”

American Tower Company signs supply agreement with NEC XON to monitor sites

Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator