National Grid Wireless opens Gateway to the future
24th Jul 2007
Network infrastructure provider National Grid Wireless has unveiled a new system - Gateway - that will dramatically reduce the amount of time it takes to arrange access to its 5,500 active sites, which are often shared by a wide range of wireless communications providers and broadcasters. The system, designed to manage the movement of external personnel and contractors via a web portal, will only be available to accredited companies that have registered with National Grid Wireless.
"From the outset, we wanted to create a solution that worked for our customers and contractors," said Ben Quinn, director of asset management for National Grid Wireless. "The previous system was labour intensive, for us and our customers, and we believed we could offer something much better. We have listened to the needs of our customers and developed a system and process that will significantly streamline access to our sites and will provide excellent value for money in comparison with the administration charges associated with more traditional access management programmes.
"We have created a unique 'one stop shop' that pulls together the access management and invoicing in one easy to use solution. Once a booking is made via Gateway we handle the rest of the process - including any required third party consents.
"Site safety and operational flexibility were two other key considerations in the development of Gateway. To address these we incorporated residual risk registers and the ability for network faults to override scheduled maintenance visits. Importantly we also ensured that Gateway would be accessible via PDAs and 3G enabled devices."
Quinn concluded: "To ensure the robustness and usability of Gateway we undertook a comprehensive testing programme, including a pilot with a major customer, contractor and our own staff, earlier this year. Based on the success of the trial and the feedback received to date we believe that Gateway is the first of its kind and will set the standard that other, similar systems will be benchmarked against in the future."
Speaking on behalf of Alan Campbell Communications, the contractors involved in the pilot, rigging co-ordinator Jane Smith explained: "Gateway is set to revolutionise the way we operate. With the new system, access is much quicker and easier to obtain. Turnarounds that might previously have taken up to 48 hours can now be achieved within 10 minutes."
