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Knowledge is Power
As the next phase in the roll-out of 21CN across the UK begins, it will call upon the services of a large number of subcontractors to implement the replacing and testing of network equipment. Because the nature of this activity is not going to be a slow and steady one, but more in fits and starts, recruiting large numbers of permanent staff will be impractical. The problem therefore will be finding a good temporary workforce who can take on these tasks. As Gary Robinson 21CN Project Manager at Livingston explains “from a technical standpoint the installation of the optical core was the big challenge, but from a logistical perspective the access level poses a far greater one.”
Robinson explains “In the old days the skill set required to install access equipment wasn’t that great, after all it was just copper wires. Now with NGN infrastructure they will need to have a good level of understanding across a broad range of disciplines.” This in itself presents a major headache for any firm contracted to undertake installation work, as it will have to make sure that the abilities of the staff it is taking on are up to scratch, and provide any training that is deemed necessary. “Each subcontractor needs to be able to assess that the expertise of its workers is going to be adequate. They can’t afford to accept shoddy work, or risk having to do a job again because it wasn’t done correctly the first time” he notes “but at the same time they are unlikely to have the resources needed to do such assessments or to supply supplemental tuition.”
Sussex-based Max Training Ltd. aims to provide these firms with the means of the ensuring the quality of their manpower for these tasks, and covering any shortfall in expertise. It has a staff of industry specialists who can accelerate the learning curve, giving training courses to firms of all shapes and sizes, from the likes of Nokia, Vodaphone, and Orange right down to the SME players. As Martin Griffiths, its Director, explains “We tend to focus on the technologies around fixed and mobile networks, and their continuing convergence. Our goal is to make certain that the people doing the installation work are truly up to the job.”
“Everything is very different from the way it was in the past” he continues “It is likely that BT’s whole future will pivot on the success or failure of 21CN, and the company has made huge changes to its philosophy in recent times so that they are not left commercially exposed.” Like Robinson, Griffiths sees a shift in
where the responsibility lies. He notes “The onus for the making sure that the network is rolled out correctly is being moved down the supply hierarchy, and far greater pressures are being put on the subcontractors down at the bottom. They want to get the business that 21CN offers, of course, but at the same time they can’t afford to find themselves on the wrong end of a penalty clause if the job is done badly. This is putting the smaller companies right into the firing line.”
“The people they take on need to be competent, or else the consequences can be dire” states Griffiths “the cost of getting the necessary training for their workforce is a prudent investment rather than running the risk of having to send out additional engineers to redo a botched job, or even losing a contract. The complexity of the network is astronomically higher than it was in previous infrastructure roll-outs, we are talking about a fully convergent network with voice, data, and video to contend with. Each one of these is very different, and the man in the field needs an underlying knowledge of the technology behind all of them." “Also the line where their involvement ended used to be at the door step, but now it is more customer-involved, with the demarcation point being at a number of different locations inside the home” he adds.
With such a huge drain being placed on the resource pool, there are likely to be a lot of individuals being signed up who need intense tuition. Griffiths clarifies “We see a very wide diversity of competence, so the training we have to do can vary greatly. As well as the mixture of skill levels, generally every company’s training needs tend to be different, so off-the-shelf courses are not normally what is required, but rather a bespoke service.” “This
means that there is no excess of irrelevant information and the training is efficiently undertaken, and given that budgets are tight as well as time being at a premium, this is really appreciated by our clients” he concludes.
To learn more about the services Max Training can offer visit its website www.maxtraining.co.uk or call +44-1903-520051