PROJECT
Virtua have partnered with several MNO’s (Major Network Operator’s) to perform card upgrades on their mobile sites throughout the UK. Over the last several years we have already swapped out thousands of cards, like this site near Bristol.
This end-of-life card is being swapped out with an upgraded 2G unit, a vital cellular band for the emergency services.
SOLUTION
Virtua’s I&C Engineer, Matt, has enabled hundreds of these sites with hardware upgrades. First, he instructs the site to be locked down via the MNO’s NOC, enabling work to commence. Making sure that all anti-static prevention is in place, Matt then removes the old card and replaces with the new one. After uploading the new software and IP addresses onto the new card, a call goes into the MNO’s NOC and the site is reset and all support checks are undertaken.
Once finished, the site is then made live again, enabling our engineer to perform test calls, including a call to the emergency services to gain a zone code to make sure all services are live. If the site upgrade was a 4G or 5G enabled site a speed test would also be performed.
BENEFIT
The newly installed card will enable higher capacity and better processing speeds for the operator. The old card is then sent back to our warehousing team who ship it back to the MNO for recycling. The site is finished within the hour, to which our engineer then moves on to the next one.