Most telecommunication networks have been built up over a number of years. As a result, operators can often find themselves relying on legacy infrastructure that was installed ten, twenty or even thirty years ago. This makes the task of maintaining legacy networks crucial for most of the world’s established operators.
Why are legacy telecom networks still relevant today?
While the term ‘legacy’ may indicate that the technology is out of date, there are a variety of reasons why an operator might decide to keep an old network operational.
- It may simply be that it still provides for the users’ needs.
- It could be influenced by economic reasons such as return on investment challenges.
- Or plans to switch off (sunset) a network may be a logical step, but end users and industry need more time to prepare for the change, such as the case with 2G network sunsetting.
What are the challenges?
Legacy systems, although reliable and well-understood by their users, are by their very nature old and in some cases completely unsupported by the original equipment manufacturer. In this scenario your organisation is exposed to significant risk if you were to suddenly require a critical spare for example.
The challenge with replacing legacy systems, especially ones that have been relied upon for years or even decades, is that it’s a complex undertaking. Putting the cost aspect aside, upgrades can require the operator to carefully schedule its deployment to ensure that staff are trained, that other systems are integrated properly and that there are no shortfalls in productivity or delivering services.
How do you overcome these challenges?
Our message is simple: network operators need not worry about reliable product supply when maintaining their legacy networks.
Not only does TXO Systems have arguably the world’s largest collection of fixed and mobile telecoms infrastructure, specialising in rare and legacy platforms. We also offer an industry-leading telecom equipment test & repair service that allows you to sweat your assets for longer. So the chances are we’ll have the item on our shelves, ready to be dispatched exactly when you need it, or we can carry out a repair to preserve your asset and make it operational once again.
What to do if you’re maintaining a legacy network
If you have a role in maintaining a legacy network, please contact us. TXO is always here to help with your enquiries and benchmark ourselves against your current supplier(s). Even if you are replacing a legacy system, we can help with that too.