Time to take inventory: service resource management systems are the databases of record for new-breed networks

Telecommunications Americas, April, 2002 by Mark Mortensen

With telecom's dramatic drop in market value, CIOs at most major wireline and wireless service providers are being asked to help reduce capital expenditures while still introducing new technologies. At issue is the efficient use of existing network resources. To achieve this, a web of information about the network and services must be stored and managed for full access by all parties.

SRM (service resource management) systems, a new generation of OSS designed to transform network and related data into useful information, automates many key functions formerly performed by engineering centers. Just as importantly, SRM systems enable easy storage and transfer of critical data to every part of the business, including:

* Inventory;

* Physical locations;

* Physical layout;

* Physical connectivity;

* Logical connectivity;

* Equipment configuration data;

* Service configuration data;

* SLA data.

The basic requirements for any SRM system include:

* Maintaining an image of network elements--how they are configured and connected, what services they support, and what customers are using those services--in a full containment hierarchy, and;

* Providing the assign and design functions to support network additions and service provisioning.

Yesterday's networks relied on OSSs that were highly customized and designed to support specific network technologies. As new-breed networks displace legacy networks, they are being replaced with SRM systems that support the full range of network technologies and services, giving unprecedented flexibility and future-proofing.

The Demand for Faster Service

As carriers grow, the demand for faster service, coupled with the inherent cost and difficulty of providing that service, is creating a double-edged sword for the CIO. Expensive network equipment is the vehicle by which carriers deliver service and gather revenue. After investment in network equipment, if customers are not satisfied with service delivery and jump to a competitor, the network's ROI is not optimized.

The dynamic nature of networks further complicates the situation. Like shifting sands, network resources mutate over time, making it difficult to pinpoint available resources necessary to fulfill a service order. The more complex the service order, the more difficult it becomes to determine which resources are required to manage and deliver the requested service. Carriers finally realize they can't do a good job of provisioning if they don't know what network resources are available.

SRM systems are designed to alleviate the strain and inefficiency caused by low-quality, piecemeal network information. By offering an overarching, multidimensional, time-ordered view of the entire network, SRM systems give carriers the ability to understand their real-time capacity and harmonize every network element. Plus, SRM systems make data accessible to other systems, such as order entry, billing, performance and fault management (see Figure 1).

By decreasing provisioning time approximately 30 percent (over less centralized methods) and provisioning costs 30 percent, a competent SRM system has a payback period of less than 18 months. In addition, most carriers typically will recover 10 percent to 20 percent of network capacity, as they load their data on the new SRM system. This number alone represents a payback of a few months.

SRM systems give carriers the ability to plan, apply, and collect and share information about all resources necessary to implement services automatically, creating an information hub for the entire business, across all technologies and disciplines. SRM systems manage and automate the following engineering functions:

* Work order tracking. SRM systems provide a clean, accurate method of tracking and sharing information about the status of work orders as they pass from an order management system through resource allocation configuration and service activation.

* Designation and assignment of functions. By centralizing network information, SRM systems allow carriers to see network capacity fully, making the design and assign function of network resources more accurate and predictable.

* Capacity engineering. The rate of network change often outpaces a carrier's ability to clean up network resources no longer used or streamline those in high demand. SRM systems give carriers a simple solution for gathering and analyzing data on network resource use. Armed with a clear understanding of patterns of demand, carriers can choose to eliminate or supplement parts of the network to optimize capacity.

* Processing control of engineering jobs. SRM systems increase productivity and minimize error by consistently updating job status, thereby providing faster, cheaper service delivery. Expensive, hard-to-find engineering skills can be assigned appropriately and cost effectively.

* Asset tracking. By functioning as a complete inventory OSS, SRM systems help carriers understand where their assets lie to optimize their use. They also track the costs and depreciation for financial accounting. Assets can be physical (equipment) or logical (a channel with defined bandwidth and quality characteristics).