ZTE OSS: An Effective Solution for Managed Services

Challenges to OSS

With the rapid evolution of network technologies and convergence of networks, operators are transforming into full-service operators. As a result, they have had to come to terms with more specialized networks and more complicated OAM technologies. In networks constructed during the early stages of competition, there is a range of equipment and devices provided by different vendors. Each vendor has their own operation support system (OSS) for their devices, and in a converged network, several OSSs may coexist. This creates great challenges in quickly responding to market demands and solving end-to-end faults.

To reduce OAM costs, increase efficiency, break down barriers between OSSs, and improve coordination between vendors, operators must upgrade or reconstruct their existing OSSs and focus on customer service innovation.

Having developed, produced, and managed a full range of telecom equipment for many years, ZTE is highly experienced in managing integrated network resources and OSS optimization. ZTE has launched its own OSS, which has an integrated architecture to help operators quickly respond to market demands, empirically predict opex, control operation risks, and lower TCO.

ZTE’s End-to-End OSS

The core elements of a service product are tool, process, and human resources. The tool provides technical support and core competitiveness. It plays a critical role in reducing costs and improving efficiency and is the main source of profit.

Integrated OSS architecture

ZTE’s end-to-end OSS is based on the enhanced telecom operations map (eTOM) model, which comes from the telecommunication industry, and the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) model, which comes from the IT industry. ZTE’s OSS has sets of NetNumen, ZSmart, and UNIPOS tools that are used for end-to-end network management—from planning and optimization to OAM and OSS/BSS management.

NetNumen includes a fault management system (FMS), performance management system (PMS), unified site management system (USMS), customer experience management center (CEMC), and easyservice system (ESS). ZSmart includes electronic operation and maintenance system (eOMS), investment management (IM), smart optical distribution network (eODN), and business intelligence (BI). UNIPOS includes network planning, MR call trace, and signaling probe.

ZTE’s end-to-end OSS features

●  end-to-end tools. These are related to wireless access, core network, transmission, and services. They are used for network optimization, management, maintenance as well as service operation support.

●  support for equipment of multiple vendors. The OSS supports network OAM for equipment provided by third-party vendors such as Huawei, Ericsson, Cisco, and Nokia Siemens.

●  support for multiple networks. The OSS provides managed services for CDMA, GSM, UMTS, IMS, LTE, IPTV, GPON, and VAS products.

●  scalability. With modular design, the OSS architecture is scalable. It can be easily upgraded to support cloud services.

To date, ZTE’s end-to-end OSS has been successfully deployed by operators worldwide, including China Mobile, Ncell Nepal, PMI Canada, TTSL/Aircel, India, and ETC Ethiopia.

ZTE has also established partnerships with IBM, HP, BMC, and CA. ZTE is trying to transform its OSS into an integrated NGOSS architecture.

Visualization of managed services

To allow an OSS to provide managed services for devices of different vendors, services must be standardized. The first step in standardizing managed services is to make the services visual.

Service visualization can be realized by using visual tools, which allow maintenance personnel to better understand the status of a network. A tool must clearly and visually show the status of each device and key information about the network. This is particularly important for maintaining complex systems.

Visualization involves visualizing process and data. In process visualization, the tool promptly reports operational progress and results based on the status of each service and gives instructions on how to proceed. In data visualization, key service information and statistics are presented visually. Data is displayed visually in an easy-to-understand way so that user experience can be improved.

Visualization helps clarify logically abstract concepts and can also be used to oversee local or remote and centralize managed services. This saves human resources, money, and space.

ZTE’s OSS solution includes visual tools for reporting, alarm presentation, end-to-end SLA management, and customer experience management in order to meet diverse OMA demands.

Rebuilding the automatic standard process

Today, managed services must go beyond service visualization. An important issue is how to integrate all sub-processes effectively to form a complete automatic standard process.

ZTE’s OSS solution can rebuild an automatic standard process. In a specific managed-service scenario, the OSS first analyzes the problems experienced by the customer, then it connects all OSS nodes and incorporates various self-developed and third-party tools. In this way, efficiency is improved and opex is reduced.

ZTE also includes IT maintenance experience in its OSS solution and provides low-cost, highly efficient process configuration and management tools that meet the demands of the managed services. ZTE’s OSS is scalable and supports various interfaces.

Method for ZTE OSS Projects

The method for OSS construction includes consulting, OSS swapping, OSS improvement, and managed service optimization.

 ● consulting. This involves determining the customer’s architecture requirements, strategically planning the network, and setting prices. Then, a highly efficient OSS/IT system architecture or a reconstructed OSS/IT service process is worked out.

●  OSS swapping. This involves swapping existing OSSs for new ones. Detailed investigation, planning, and training, should be done before swapping.

●  OSS improvement. This involves customizing functions, deploying the OSS, transitioning systems, and providing OSS training.

 ● managed service optimization. This includes configuration management, skill transfer, and service optimization.

When constructing an OSS, customer demands, property rights, and maintenance costs should all be considered. Advantages and disadvantages of self-developed products, outsourced products, and purchased products should also be considered.

ZTE’s integrated OSS solution is designed to address customer difficulties. It has the three most important features demanded by operators: unified managed services, tools to visualize process and data, and transparent management of the entire network in the whole process.

ZTE’s integrated OSS solution is the result of years of innovation in OSS products. It overcomes traditional OSS limitations and transfers OSS services from the customer to MSP. ZTE OSS is poised to bring new revenue growth and competitiveness to operators in managed service markets.