Remote Grooming and Concentration
Optimizing Bandwidth Closer to the Subscriber Edge
Features
- Reduced Backhaul and Muxing Charges
- Reduced Switch Port Costs on Central Office Equipment
- Rack Space Savings at Central Hub Office
- Deployment Flexibility for Remote Locations
- Remote Testing and Diagnostics
Introduction
In order to provide services to large serving areas, many carriers have constructed central hub networks fed by remote end offices and wire centers. Hundreds or thousands of circuits are collected and groomed in these hub locations and handed off to the appropriate network elements. Typically, large digital cross-connect switches (DCS) front-end voice and data service platforms to handle the variety of lines coming into the hub site.
As illustrated below, this centralized backhaul approach often requires a very large cross-connect infrastructure, with every T1/E1 circuit backhauled to the DCS regardless of the distance involved, and regardless of the actual bandwidth utilization of the circuit.
Service Environment with Centralized Backhaul Approach
Cost-Saving Bandwidth Efficiency and Service Flexibility
In contrast, deployment of the DNX family of scalable digital cross-connect platforms provides for remote grooming and concentration at a variety of locations. The immediate impact of this approach is more efficient backhaul into the central hub office, resulting in lower recurring backhaul costs and potentially eliminating muxing charges from the LEC for competitive carriers. Another result is the reduction or elimination of narrowband DCS platforms at the central site – possibly enabling them to be re-deployed elsewhere. This can reduce space requirements and recurring maintenance costs at the central site.
Other benefits of remote grooming and concentration include faster service provisioning and greater provisioning flexibility when new subscribers are added or subscribers request changes. Circuit moves, adds, and changes can be performed directly at the remote site versus being provisioned only from the central hub location. For competitive carriers, this can save valuable time interworking with the LEC.
In markets where subscriber densities may initially be low, service providers could find it economically attractive to deploy DNX platforms remotely and backhaul the traffic to centralized service platforms that already exist within larger markets. This approach can help jump-start incremental revenues while avoiding the need to invest in additional voice/data platforms dedicated to the new remote subscribers.
The remote grooming application highlights the scalability of the DNX family. Remote end offices often utilize the DNX-11 as the primary platform, growing into multiple chassis as the subscriber base grows. Similarly, competitive carriers with facilities-based network models can take advantage of DNX scalability to perform remote grooming in ILEC collocation space – with all of the operations and management capabilities but without the heavy up-front costs of a new site. And at concentrated customer locations such as commercial multi-tenant buildings, a DNX-11 platform, in effect, turns the building into a remote service POP.
Service Environment with DNX Performing Remote Grooming
Improved Test Access
The DNX simplifies test access and reduces test equipment costs by virtue of the diagnostic capabilities integrated into every DNX module. The DNX can perform loopbacks and test patterns, eliminating the need to deploy expensive transmission test sets. All testing can be accomplished remotely via IP or a dial line, minimizing the need to dispatch technicians. This can save valuable time for service providers working to section/partition network problems when a service disruption is detected.
Related Information
For networks where remote DNX deployments are not feasible, DNX systems can provide significant benefits by complementing wideband DCS platforms and front-ending other switching/routing network elements at the central office. See the Service Platform Concentration application note to learn more.
Related Resource
