[Ed's note: There may be some "engineering speak" in this article, but what speaks through was how our fellow Ka-Globe work hand-in-hand just to get our services to our Customers and make it wonderful not only to them, but also for our fellow Ka-Globe as well.]
While in the thick of preparations for the deployment of Cellsite On Wheels (COW) in Boracay one Saturday evening together with colleagues from Network Operations Division (NOD) Visayas Roel Llego, Ariel Aujero, Efren Pareno and RPI Visayas Wilbert Leonor, I got a call from Janelle Munoz of WEI. It turns out that Globe signal at Boracay Crown Regency which will house APEC delegates, fluctuates from very low to zero. Though they have a solution in mind—which is installing an Atom Cell—their problem is how to link it up to Cebu. With their bosses coming in the following Monday, I could feel Janelle’s anxiety rising by the minute!
Though we had our own challenges as well in firing up the Globe COW in ECO Village, we couldn’t just leave a Ka-Globe in trouble. So Toto and Efren checked the location of the Atom Cell and see how we could help. After going through the set-up, they proposed two options: hauling the Atom Cell signal via NTG fiber optics through FOBN or via the EG network going through BG20.
On that same evening, Toto assessed the two options and agreed that the fastest way to do it is via the BG20. Sounds easy, yes, but to make it work, a link from Boracay BG20 to Lahug has to be established. So the team called up colleagues from Cebu to help in mapping up the signal trail. Joel Cabinas and Gold Ray Gallinero of NOD Cebu took charge of the physical patches and link testing in Lahug, Jovi Ledon of DANO mapped out the trail in the EG network and Elmer Lagumbay of TFND mapped out a transport facility from Lahug AG to Roxas RNC.
After back and forth coordination, a flurry of trail-mapping and a series of link testing, the Atom Cell in Boracay Crown regency went up fast and running furiously Sunday evening. Just in the nick of time!
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About our ICONtributor
Edwin Ecarma's idea of relaxation goes back and forth between a few good rounds at the shooting range on weekends and a round or two of ice-cold beer every once in a while to cap a long day at work. Edwin heads Visayas COW Operations.
