Case study: Wireless Backhaul Optimization

BACKGROUND

A Tier 1 mobile carrier was operating a statewide network of more than 1,000 cell sites interconnecting with 2 primary mobile switching centers (MSCs). The carrier was spending more than $15 million annually on local access transport services for backhaul from the cell sites to the MSCs and interconnection from the MSCs to the local telephone company’s (LEC) access tandems. Planned 3G network upgrades promised to double T1 capacity requirements at more than 600 cell sites.

BUSINESS CHALLENGE

Reduce leased network transport costs in the face of planned capacity growth, while positioning the backhaul network to support 3G broadband data services.

NETWORK SOLUTION

CFN analyzed the wireless carrier’s embedded access transport circuits, costs, and growth requirements at the facilities level between the cell sites and the MSC, and between the MSC and the public switched network. Leveraging its FiberSource® design platform and network optimization tools, CFN designed an optimized fiber network that directly connected the MSCs and pushed interconnection points with the LEC out from the MSCs to 7 strategically placed LEC central office collocations. Working with one of the leading optical equipment vendors CFN and the vendor designed a managed optical transport platform to displace existing DS1, DS3, and SONET circuits that were at or past term. The platform displaced more than $8 million in gross circuit costs annually from the LEC and delivered net savings of more than $6 million per year. In addition, the optical transport platform was designed to deliver an aggregate capacity of more than 4,000 T1s which included 25% of the unused base capacity available for growth at no additional cost.

The final solution included:

A 60% savings on leased circuit costs.
A 30% net savings on backhaul and access transport costs.
Ability to double capacity on the platform for less than 20% incremental cost.
Seamless integration of TDM and Ethernet transport capabilities at each node.