textfiles/phreak/SWITCHES/bellres2.txt

       SSWC - Bell Research Report (Vol II)

       All research gathered, tested and mastered by the original
       members of SSWC:

       Chance - The Technician - Cellular Phantom


       SSWC presents our latest text file continuing our discussion
       on Bell Operating Departments. Note that information in 
       this file is subject to change. However, we will try to keep
       you updated as much as possible. 


     We will begin by discussing an important department of Bell, 
  known as the Maintenance Center (MC) or Special Service Center
  (SSC). The MC is responsible for verifying and coordinating the
  transfer of special service activities between the Construction
  Work Group (CWG) and the Central Office Work Group (COWG). The MC
  or SSC will maintain control of all special service transfers.

       Note: When using an approved transfer switch, testing of
             Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) services will be
             performed by the CWG. The MC need only test services
             classified as type "B". (This type of classification
             is generally used on the Computer System for Mainframe
             Operation (COSMOS) mainframe).

     The MC will receive a copy of the cable transfer and associated
  work orders from the Loop Assignment Center (LAC) prior to the
  scheduled start date of the transfer. They will deal with any 
  unrecognized problems (such as clearing defective pairs, if 
  requested by the Distribution Service Design Center (DSDC), and
  giving notification of what pairs have been or cannot be cleared)
  that would require new pair count assignments.   
     
     The MC shall arrange with the CWG, Frame Control Center (FCC),
  SSC, and other necessary departments for the transfer of special
  and designed services that require release or special handling.
  During the transfer of these services, the MC will maintain 
  communication with all personnel involved in the transfer 
  activity.
   
     The MC or SSC shall coordinate the release and transfer of
  special and designed services designated as "B" services. The time
  and date for each service release shall be recorded on the MC copy
  of the Special Service Protection List and Defective Pair List.

       Note: Time and date of release must be negotiated in advance
             of the cable transfer. No work shall be permitted on
             service requiring a release until a method of procedure,
             including release date and time and personnel required,
             has been established by the MC and approved by the 

             customer and SSC control office responsible for those
             services. When the MC receives work of those specific
             or out-of-the-ordinary release requirements, the 
             Construction Management Center (CMC) supervisor, FCC
             supervisor, and other necessary work group supervisors
             must be notified in advance so they can begin work on
             the transfer. 
     
     The MC shall test all affected special and designed services
  completed by the CWG as the transfer progresses. The CWG need not
  wait for verification by the MC, unless problems are encountered.
  The CWG will inform the MC of progress. The MC shall have the
  authority to stop the transfer procedures at any time if extensive
  trouble reports develope. If this occurs, the MC supervisor will
  lead an investigating committee to determine the cause of trouble
  and to recommend corrective action. 

     After all work is completed, the MC will issue a final closing
  number for the completed transfer. The MC will notify the FCC that
  the transfer is complete and will give them the closing number.
  The MC will post the Cable Transfer Form as complete and will 
  forward the transfer, including changes, and Defective Pair List
  to the LAC.  


     We will now discuss the uses of the Cable Transfer Administration
  (CTA), and how they operate at a successful level. 

     The general functions and responsibilities of the CTA work group
  is to provide flexibility in the design of the cable network, 
  existing cable pairs are transferred for one cable count to another
  cable count. This is commonly referred to as a cable transfer or 
  cable throw. The transfer occurs in a splice and involves 
  disconnecting pairs of wires beyond the splice from one feeder
  cable count and reconnecting then to a different feeder count.
  The result is that the count of the pairs beyond the splice will
  change. The configuration, identification, and possible transferring
  of working cable pairs are complex and time-consuming. The work
  is further complicated by the many functions required of other 
  work groups. To ensure that these operations are performed free of
  service interruptions and with maximum efficiency, timing and close
  coordination among all the work groups involved are mandatory.

     The same coordination is required to complete drop wire re-
  connections (line transfers). The Cable Transfer Committee (CTC)
  is also responsible for organizing this work in a timely manner.
  As soon as practical, after the line transfer have been completed,
  the old cable should be cut off and removed. (Their is more
  hardware work involved in this process, however we regret that
  we have not yet been able to fully research and understand what
  further hardware applications are used). 



   
      In order for the Cable Transfer Committee to obtain a high 
  degree of transfer efficiency, all committee members must attend
  committee meetings on a selective basis and monitor the published
  minutes (in other words review information from past meetings).
  Higher management will be able to evaluate the effectiveness of 
  the transfer committee. The number of jobs completed as scheduled
  and the ability of the committee to identify problems should be 
  monitored as a measure of committee success in scheduling and
  completing cable transfers.
  
     The use of these procedures will reduce customer trouble reports
  and the overall cost of cable and line transfers and will permit
  balancing the work force and work load for all groups involved.
  By completing cable transfers promptly, in accordance with the
  time schedule, changes to transfer sheets will be minimized, the
  need for rerunning cables will be reduced, testing cables can be
  properly scheduled, and time spent on field work can be shortened.
  The errors, frustrations, and probability of cable troubles 
  associated with delays in this kind of work can be virtually 
  eliminated.
     
     A Cable Transfer Committee must be established in each network
  distribution service/construction district to ensure close 
  coordination and proper timing of cable, line, or station transfers.
  Districts that cover a large service area (having more that one
  Loop Assignment Center or Maintenance Center) may require more
  than one committee.


     When scheduling transfers, consideration must be given to work
  tours and peak load periods (busy times of the week) of all work
  groups to optimize the continuity of the cable transfer activity.
  Consideration must also be given to time required by the CWG
  to complete preliminary work, by the LAC to analyze and lay out
  the transfer, by the Circuit Provision Center (CPC) to check the
  design of special services, by DSDC, Construction Management
  Center (CMC), and installation to make the resulting changes, and
  by the MC and/or SSC to negotiate with special service customers.
  The Cable Transfer Committee must negotiate all completion dates.
  The transfer committee chairperson will monitor and take action
  on excessive time intervals for all work groups. Transfers that
  involve an extremely large number of working circuits may require
  scheduling in smaller segments. Transfers should be scheduled to
  maintain continuity until wire work is completed. The committee
  is responsible for all special scheduling. Offices with 
  mechanized assignment records such as COSMOS or TIRKS require
  more strict scheduling due to transaction restrictions.
  Sequence transfers and the reusing of counts cleared on previous
  transfers may also require more strict scheduling. Cable 
  transfers worked via COSMOS must be closely monitored to avoid
  long-term storage of cable transfers in the data base.
  Long-term storage causes changes for the FCC and CWG, thereby
  
  causing lost time. The committee will make preliminary arrange-
  ments for the transfer of special and designed services. The LAC
  will provide a list of all special services, by Common Language
  Circuit Identification (CLCI), that are in the affected cable 
  count to the DSDC prior to scheduling the transfer in the firm
  period. The DSDC will forward the list to the CPC along with the
  new and old cable makeup for the reissuance of new Work Order
  Record Detail (WORD - The work authorization and layout card
  for designed special services) documents and redesigns, if
  necessary.

     After the new WORD documents are received, the FCC will bring
  the Work Authorization (WA - The first page of the WORD document)
  to the CTA committee meetings. The WA copy will contain the work
  description and associated notes for the transfer and, most
  important, will give the circuit classification code "A" or "B".
  


     Next we will discuss information concerning the Telephone 
  Outside Plant. This brief discussion will inform you exactly what
  path cables take from the CO to the subscribers residence. 
  This path is as follows:


      1  Main Distributing Frame (MDF)
      2  Tip Cables
      3  Cable Vault
      4  CO Manhole
      5  Main Conduit 
      6  Subsidiary Conduit 
      7  Insulated Joint
      8  Main Distributing Terminal (MDT)
      9  Riser Cable
     10  Distributing Terminal 
     11  Anchor Guy
     12  Aerial Cable Cross Connecting Box
     13  Telephone Company Owned Pole
     14  Aerial Cable
     15  Strand (one cable)
     16  Joint Use Pole Electric or Telephone
     17  Terminal 
     18  Splice
     19  Electric Wires
     20  Urban Wires
     21  Dropwire
     22  Main U.G. Cable
     23  Stub
     24  Rear Wall Cable
     25  Buried Cable
     26  Cribbing 
     27  Block Pole


     After completing this sequence the cables will then run into
  the residence, providing telephone service. 




     *     Note to the reader: In order to gain maximum knowledge 
             from this file, it is suggested that you obtain and
             study our first file. 
           
           This concludes SSWCs Bell Research Report (Vol II).
           The information contained in this file is solely for the
           use of Phone Phreaks that FULLY understand what has been
           discussed. If you do not FULLY understand what has been
           discussed in this file, it is extremely advisable not to
           attempt to use any of this information, whereas you 
           could cause an extreme negative impact on the rest of the
           Phreak community. Have a good time, learn what you can,
           but never think you know more than you do. To the
           novice this file is all technical BullShit. However, to
           the experienced Phreak, its much, much more.


   *  SSWC: The leader in innovative phreaking!