Triple-Play Provider Twin Valley Telephone Reduces Windshield Time with DPS Monitoring System

Twin Valley Telephone is a triple-play provider serving several counties in the Kansas area. The company is currently deeply involved with a major communications project bringing fiber directly to the homes of their customers. At DPS Factory Training, Twin Valley Telephone learned how to use their DPS monitoring equipment to support this and other company projects.

Brandon Hamel and Kevin Thompson Twin Valley Telephone

Twin Valley Needed a Solution to Monitor Legacy Equipment
After acquiring several exchanges, Twin Valley Telephone needed a monitoring solution to enhance their network visibility. Kevin Thompson, Central Office Manager at Twin Valley, indicated that an RFP was sent out to solicit solutions for our company.

In response to Twin Valley's request, DPS Director of Sales Rick Dodd put together a detailed quote and extended an invitation to a DPS web demo. After attending the online demonstration and comparing the DPS with the other proposals they had received, Thompson knew he'd found the solution he needed. "'The research that we did on the DPS gear indicated that it was a very solid product,"' he said.

A New Monitoring System - Installed in Just Days
Twin Valley Telephone purchased a T/Mon NOC, a DTMF box, and NetGuardian remotes to monitor their sites.

Veteran DPS installer Chris Hower flew out to Twin Valley to install the system, and he had it up and running within days of his arrival. He also installed a T/Mon software module for Thompson and his staff to evaluate. "'Chris installed the ASCII Interrogator module in T/Mon so we could try it out,"' Thompson said. "'We purchased it right away after we saw how it seamlessly integrated our SONET pieces into our alarm system."'

A Network Monitoring Upgrade Reduces Costly Windshield Time
With their new DPS monitoring system, Twin Valley Telephone is planning to significantly reduce the windshield time used to manage their large territory. The territory is divided into a western and an eastern region, with one technical operations center in each. However, in times of crisis, technicians sometimes have to drive across the territory to service the network equipment outside of their own region, burning precious time and incurring unnecessary expenses. "'There are times when a technician may have to drive two-and-a-half hours in the opposite direction,"' Thompson said.

By using pager profiles for geographic locations and skill sets, Twin Valley will be able to page the closest technician who has the necessary skills to respond to any given alarm. This will eliminate a lot of waste by reducing technician travel time.

By attending a DPS Factory Training Event, Thompson was able to learn even more about these cost-saving capabilities of their monitoring system. "'We've got big plans for it,"' Thompson said.

"'There are a lot of equipment vendors out there who have a course taught by an excellent teacher, but they have no practical application knowledge. Everything being done in-house at DPS is a great asset."'

Thompson did have one Factory Training regret that he wished to share: "'We should've been out here sooner,"' he said.

Factory Training Provides Practical Monitoring Knowledge
DPS Training offers clients a chance to work with the engineers and technicians who design and install DPS equipment, giving them a much more informed knowledge of how they can use their monitoring system to add value to their organizations. "'It's always good to have the gear in front of you, and have the people who build the gear teaching the course,"' said Thompson of his week of training. "'There are a lot of equipment vendors out there who have a course taught by an excellent teacher, but they have no practical application knowledge. Everything being done in-house here is a great asset."'

At Factory Training, Thompson was able to learn about new equipment. He hopes to deploy temperature and humidity sensors at many Twin Valley sites in the near future, and he looks forward to a continuing relationship with DPS. "'DPS is absolutely one of the better vendors we've worked with,"' he said.

Give Us a Call!

To find out more about this and other DPS applications, give us a call at our toll-free number and talk to one of our network specialists. They'll help you put together a perfect fit solution for your network!