Telecom Focuses on Ways to Avoid Repeat of Outages

Sees the need to harden networks so they can better withstand damage

By Matt Hamblen

September 12, 2005 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - New technologies and improved emergency procedures could help avoid prolonged communications outages should another disaster of the same magnitude as Hurricane Katrina strike the U.S., IT managers and analysts said last week.
Their ideas range from making sure that cellular and land-line telephone switches are located well above sea level to more unusual suggestions, including the use of emerging WiMax technologies and mesh networks -- or even putting radio transceivers aboard blimps that could be flown to a disaster zone.
Several analysts said the private sector could also bolster its communications preparedness by setting up consortiums to buy portable cellular sites or satellite communications equipment that could be shared during emergencies.
The question of how to better protect telecommunications systems is expected to get a lot of attention because of the massive outages caused by Katrina, which knocked out both cellular and land-line links in the disaster area.
Worst-Case Scenarios
"A lot of people will be looking at what happened with communications after Katrina to see what could be done better in the next worst-case scenario, because this is the worst-case scenario," said Charles Fleckenstein, a spokesman for Sprint Nextel Corp. who was speaking from Baton Rouge, La.
Fleckenstein described situations where repair crews found cellular towers under water and without connections to local telephone systems because "entire neighborhoods no longer exist."
And despite what were described as Herculean efforts by repair crews, several telecommunications carriers said that cellular and land-line services in New Orleans were still spotty nine days after Katrina came ashore.
A common theme last week was the need to bolster the nation's telecommunications infrastructure.
"You could go on and on, but the bottom line is that you need to harden systems," said Ken Dulaney, an analyst at Gartner Inc.


Hossein Eslambolchi, CIO at AT&T Corp.

For example, as New Orleans is rebuilt, cellular carriers should raise their entire communications systems above the flood plain, providing wireless connections to cell towers both for links to end users and to switching stations, he said.
Hossein Eslambolchi, AT&T Corp.'s CIO, said city planners and utilities nationwide need to work together to harden fiber-optic infrastructures, making the duct system that carries the fiber waterproof.
"Our cities were really designed for the horse and buggy centuries ago, with communications added above that, so you need to redesign and rethink," he said.
Eslambolchi even suggested that telecommunications vendors should consider powering their base stations and central switching offices with alternate energy sources such as solar cells.
Scott Midkiff, a professor of electrical andcomputer engineering at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, said wireless mesh technologies are "very promising" because they enable network topologies to be dynamically changed in response to outages, helping to make networks self-healing.
Even a cellular base station aboard a blimp or other airborne vehicle is "not a crazy idea," Midkiff said, noting that the military has demonstrated the concept.

Recommend Digg Twitter ShareThis

Email Print Send Feedback Reprints

Additional Resources

POLL RESULTS

Leading IT Pros Weigh In on Top IT Issues

Accelerate your knowledge of the IT world you inhabit by viewing the results of a series of polls taken by your IT peers. These polls of 100+ IT professionals each are available for full viewing. They cover key topics such as virtualization, processor performance, green IT, cloud computing and many others. Be a part of the buzz.

WHITE PAPER

For Best Results, Think Beyond the Box

Technology is complex. Keeping it running productively shouldn't be. To that end, you want to minimize the number of solutions needed in-house to simplify operations, maintenance, and support. Kodak offers a best-practices model. One company provides support for both scanner and software, for fast problem resolution without vendor finger-pointing. Download now!

WHITE PAPER

Accelerating the Path to Demand Intelligence with a Demand Signal Repository

Utilizing demand intelligence improves the precision of pricing, product assortments, channel/store placement, and promotion, which are all essential for sustainable revenue management performance. Learn more, download this free whitepaper today.

White Papers & Webcasts

2007 Gartner Magic Quadrant Report
Riverbed positioned in Leaders Quadrant of Gartner Magic Quadrant for WAN Optimization Controllers. Analyzing strengths vs. cautions, Gartner helps organizations looking to acquire...

5 Best Practice Tips for Managing BlackBerry, iPhone, & Windows Mobile Devices
(Source: Zenprise) Mobile devices continue to proliferate across the enterprise, driven largely by the increase in worker productivity, efficiency, and flexibility they provide....

Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
Are your workers going increasingly mobile? Don't wait for their calls to slam Support when they experience poor application performance on the road....

Managing Laptops Outside the Office
(Source: Absolute Software) In this webinar, learn how you can reduce costs by tracking mobile computers no matter where they are located. Featuring...

IT Best Practices: To Support or Not Support Consumer Owned Smartphones
Companies have historically standardized on a single smartphone platform. Of late, IT is facing pressure to support the increasing influx of consumer owned...

What Are 'Free' Remote Support Tools Really Costing You?
(Source: LogMeIn) In this webinar from LogMeIn, discover how "next generation" remote support tools are optimized to provide advanced capabilities like scripting, system...

Lennox Goes Mobile and Increases Service Performance by 50%
This white paper explains how Lennox remedied major system malfunctions with Aeroprise Mobility for BMC Remedy Service Desk on smartphones....

IT Strategies for Remotely Supporting a Distributed Workforce
(Source: Citrix Online) Today's workforce is a distributed one - workers across industries are telecommuting, working out of satellite offices and connecting into...

Realizing Rapid ROI Through Mobility
Companies are reaping the benefits from mobile CRM, field service and sales force automation processes with the latest Research In Motion (RIM) offerings....

Usability Is Everything
Learn what sets Workday's HR and Payroll solutions apart from the competition....

All White Papers | All Webcasts