For the telecom industry, network transformation is not a singular event but a constant process, but it can be made easier through refinement and collaboration with the right partners

1. For the telecom industry, network transformation is not a
singular event but a constant process, but it can be made easier
through refinement and collaboration with the right partners.
HOW TO OPERATE
29

2. 30 IP network stewardship with Huawei
33 ODN O&M: Manageable and easy
36 China Unicom Shanghai: Devising
strategies to bear the future
IP network stewardship with Huawei
By Ayush Sharma
I
n any business, ne w technologies are The second is a tech upgrade put into place without
ideally meant to reduce costs, but this proper consideration of how to make money off of
logic is on the verge of breaking down in it; a premature LTE launch would be an example
the telecommunications field. The fancy here, seeing as the issues of terminal compatibility
smartphones that carriers subsidize are now (TDD/FDD), roaming, and battery life have yet to
drowning their own networks in a deluge of data. be resolved. The third hindrance is basically timing.
LTE rollouts will soon put carriers back above Figuring out the time to launch a product or service
water, if they haven’t already, but these victories that best capitalizes on consumer buzz can be a real
may be short-lived. More infrastructure will be crapshoot, while waiting for your next doodad to be
needed, and it cannot be paid for through the perfected can be equally risky. Think about Windows
mere piping of 1’s and 0’s. Services are needed, and Phone if you need a reminder. The critics have largely
some of the ones now offered are real dazzlers; but hailed it as the greatest thing since sliced bread, but
if their rollout is not smooth and timely, they may it has elicited yawns from American carriers and
never turn a profit. industry pundits, who view the mobile OS game
strictly as a two-horse race.
A more telco-oriented gamble might be Sprint’s
Facing hindrances seemingly belated decision to get into the iPhone
game late last year, a move which prompted investors
The launches of certain services such as high- to grab their torches & pitchforks. However, iPhone
speed broadband and IPTV have often furnished 4S sales since then have proven very robust, and time
a lackluster experience involving intermittent will tell if the operator comes out ahead with this
service, ineffective maintenance, and overall gambit.
mediocrity. When this occurs, these services can To keep these issues at bay, a telco needs four
fall into a sort of no-man’s land that is hard to things, before an offering is launched – technology,
escape from as upgrade investments are hard to capacity, competence, and execution. That’s where
justify in the face of an apathetic public. Huawei comes in. To cater to operators’ business
An operator may face three types of hindrances to and technical needs, and address the aforementioned
the monetization of their latest & greatest products challenges, Huawei has developed a comprehensive
and services. The first is basically a poor quality of professional services suite that spans a typical project
experience (QoE) stemming from technological lifecycle. Fig. 1 illustrates the eight phases involved
ineptitude prior to and during launch; the many – consultation, planning, design, implementation,
issues relating to IPTV often fall under this rubric. operation, optimization, innovation, and expansion.
30

3. How to Operate
IP network stewardship with Huawei
Advisory
A new network is merely an expensive ult
Cons Pla
n
bauble if it does not improve the
and
Transitional
Design
bottom line. Huawei will draw up a
Exp
Managed
Huawei
professional
Innovate
plan that specifies key benefits that services
ent
lem
the number crunchers will love, Op
Imp
tim
ize ate
Oper
in terms of your current user base,
new revenue streams, and ROI. Subscription
Figure 1 Huawei professional services
How it works into action. A governance model is also implemented
for various organizations and external entities.
Current network auditing – Today’s networks
Huawei’s business solutions draw on the are constantly in flux; in spite of stringent in-
industry experiences of the last two decades, house regulations designed to ensure consistency,
particularly in the field of IP transformation. architecture that is homogeneous and anomaly-free is
extremely rare. An independent audit that determines
Consultation & Planning phases these inconsistencies is created, which will form the
(Advisory services) basis for network standardization, which will, in turn,
form the basis for benchmarking. This audit also aides
Huawei adapts its methods to meet customer the process of network simulation and helps mitigate
needs, not vice versa. Huawei will draw on the the effects of any catastrophic failure later on.
operator’s own experiences with what works, Business planning – A new network is merely
and combine this with a SWOT analysis of their an expensive bauble if it does not improve the
current planning, execution, and management bottom line. Huawei will draw up a plan that
techniques, to jointly create a transformation plan specifies key benefits that the number crunchers
best suited to the customer’s place in the ecosystem. will love, in terms of your current user base, new
High-level transformational planning – revenue streams, and ROI.
A high-level transformation program is created
that will function as a blueprint for a common Design and Implementation phases
understanding between the different stakeholders
(operator & vendor). Fig. 2 illustrates a typical IP- Architectural assessment – Huawei will employ a
based transformation program plan developed by collaborative model between vendors and other third
Huawei’s professional services team. parties that will better enable the review and evaluation
Establishment of a joint program management of the architectural roadmap, existing network designs,
office – It can be very difficult to adapt the latest network component details, applications & services
technologies to suit the business needs of a particular (current & future), and how they relate to the technical
carrier. A joint project management office (PMO) objectives. This helps ensure consensus concerning the
is created to assure that vision and strategy translate architectural state of and identifies gaps in the current
31 JAN 2012 . ISSUE 64

4. Huawei Communicate
• Network baseline & blueprint creation
• Gap analysis
• Operational planning
• Engage vendors & third parties
• Educational section organization
• Business planning • Resource identification & delegation for project team
• Network performance measurement
• Service & network profiling • Technical strategy & solution architecture
• Work with vendors to meet
• Launch planning development
expectations for architecture,
• Ecosystem establishment • Migration plan & implementation plan development
service & network
• Design & migration validation
• Live migration of pilot sites
• Monitoring of KPIs, KQIs, and user experience
Phase 1: Phase 2: Phase 3:
Business & technical planning Validation & implementation Operation & optimization
Figure 2 IP transformation planning
network design. uses intelligent mechanisms [migration (initially)
Test-driving the anticipated network – and routing (later) plans] and automation tools
Network simulation is resource intensive and to churn out large-scale configuration files that
time consuming. Therefore, validation procedures accelerate the migration process and eliminate
should be broken up into modules (functionality, typical manual errors. Proactive O&M is extremely
performance, security, scale, etc.) and implemented important for an integrated network as it ensures
using third-party tools or the vendor’s lab; this QoE integrity, which is why Huawei employs
helps preserve architectural simplicity. If this option various tools that visualize the network and service
proves unattractive, a section of the operator’s states.
own network can be used as the wind tunnel; this Network optimization – The dynamism
requires more methodical planning & stricter of modern networking renders optimization
controls, but it yields more valid results. a constant struggle. Software updates, service
Knowledge transfer planning and “go-to- launches, and network expansion are always being
market” initiatives – Those who design networks implemented, which warrants perpetual fine
typically do not manage or operate them, which tuning. Huawei helps identify traffic optimization
makes gap analysis (of specific technology paths so that bottlenecks are removed, processing
transformations) and subsequent development of overhead is minimized, failure detection is
a knowledge transfer plan all the more important improved, and single-point failures are eliminated
as it must include the technology basics, product from network operation.
training, hands-on training (if relevant) and Today’s networks are very complex and involve
demonstration. In parallel, the product team must multiple technologies, protocols, and services.
have a thorough understanding of its new toy as No vendor can offer a “one-size-fits-all” piece of
its features must be slick and seamless by the time hardware that resolves all issues throughout the
marketing and pilot trials ramp up. network lifecycle. A partner is needed who can
work with an operator at each stage to make sure
Operation and Optimization phases that all the little pieces fit together to form the
expected picture; Huawei is that partner.
Migration & pilot network evaluation –
Huawei plans each site carefully and accurately, and Editor: Cao Zhihui caozhihui@huawei.com
JAN 2012 . ISSUE 64 32