ZTE’s O&M Support Service Solutions

ZTE is able to provide customized technical support satisfying requirements of operators for high-level and comprehensive network maintenance. The solutions are intended to provide customers with comprehensive and professional services to ensure the maintenance of networks after the preliminary inspection, keep network equipment working stably and efficiently, and allow the customers to focus their resources on researching new marketing and operation approaches and meeting end user requirements.

The technical support covers all fields evolved in network operation and maintenance, to comprehensively satisfy the need for assuring on-line equipment operation and eliminate concerns of customers.

Technical support provides a complete range of daily maintenance and periodical inspection services which help remarkably improve equipment efficiency and reduce the probability of failures through timely identification and removal of latent hazards.

Upon requests of operators, ZTE may transfer skills to maintenance engineers of the operators and share experience in maintenance with them.

1  Scope of O&M support services

To actively respond to and assist operators in network construction, ZTE is able to provide various technical support service modules based on the needs of different operators in any region:

I. RNC side network maintenance, alarm handling, etc.

II. Analysis of network indicators, etc.

III. Emergence response and alarm handling, etc.

IV. Service customization development, etc.

V. O&N skill training: including field training and training at ZTE University

VI. Assurance of communications services during important periods: Escalated assurance, and intensified personnel and technical support for special occasions.

2  O&M support process

The complete O&M support process for radio networks is illustrated in the figure below. For actual O&M support projects, the process can be tailored by addition or deduction based on the needs of customers and conditions of the projects. For third party O&M support, necessary phases can be selected for the O&M support agreements.

Figure 1 O&M support process

3  Activities of O&M support

Specific activities of O&M support include fault management, communication service assurance, routine tour inspection, customization development of services, skill training, routine maintenance, and emergency maintenance.

3.1　 Fault management

ZTE assists the operator in end-to-end assurance of communications services, to improve the perception of users and actively react to user complaints. Faults are classified based on the inconvenience caused by network faults or hazards to users. Various user complaints received by business departments of the operator are screened and classified to locate faults and minimize the cycle of complaint handling.

By fault management, it means to set up a 7×24 hotline for receiving and recording complaints (including complaints submitted by end users regarding the network performance), remove equipment faults according to the service level agreement (SLA) and work interfaces agreed by both parties, restore original functionality and performance of equipment, give reports on fault handling, and track the progress of fault handling.

3.2　 Assurance of communication services

This service is provided for planned large events or emergency events in which the operator has to escalate the level of network operation. Based on the current classification and requirements of the network optimization center regarding events for assurance of communications services, the maintenance for communications service assurance plan will be submitted within several working days after the network optimization center has delivered the communications service assurance plan. Once the maintenance for communications service assurance plan is approved, ZTE’s team will strictly follow the plan to ensure communications services in a satisfactory and effective manner.

3.3　 Routine tour inspection

Routine maintenance is periodic inspection of equipment operation to identify and handle any identified problems, for timely discovery of latent hazards, prevention of accidents, and identification and handling of faults.

ZTE assists the operator in periodic tour inspection to effectively control the activities and performance of tour inspection and prevent and reduce possible causes of network faults.

Specifically, active and preventive maintenance is provided to examine the alarms sent by equipment, status of systems and environment of equipment operation, conduct preliminary analysis of the operation information, and eliminate all latent hazards to ensure the stable operation of equipment. The primary goal of tour inspection is to ensure service quality and equipment stability of the network.

3.4　 Service customization development

Service customization development means proposed customization of the software tools and network management software used in the current network and R&D of related software based on customer requirements, mainly for promote the customer satisfaction.

3.5　 Technical training

Upon the request of a customer, ZTE will prepare a field or full-time training plan for delivering field training and clarification regarding the WCDMA skills for transfer listed by ZTE. Moreover, periodic examinations of trainees will be arranged, and skill transfer reports will be submitted.

3.6　 Routine maintenance

Routine maintenance is an active approach of periodic maintenance for equipment in the normal status, with periodic inspection of equipment operation to identify and handle any identified problems, for timely discovery of latent hazards, prevention of accidents, and identification and handling of faults.

3.7　 Emergency maintenance

Emergency maintenance is provided in the case of an emergency fault. It refers to the actions taken to remove the fault and restore system or equipment operation, so as to recover and reduce losses due to the fault.

The emergency maintenance process will be immediately started in the case of a major fault. Information including system prompts and alarms, signal tracking and error logs is analyzed to promptly locate the range of the fault, identify causes of the fault and take corresponding actions.