Thread regarding AT&T layoffs

Back in the day the CO used to be loud (mechanical clicking) from all the equipment, smas, 1A, crossbar, etc.. A lot of mechanical noise. Now it’s even louder with the multitude of overheated equipment fans running, trying remove the excessive heat produced to power the lasers and cards. When needed, It’s very difficult to work on the equipment and be on the phone with support at the same time. My quiet room is on a different floor than toll, it’s near the 5ess and DMS switch, depending on which office I’m in. I’m assuming that noise levels and excessive heat for the employees and equipment doesn’t factor into his engineering equation. Only the initial environmental cost analysis for energy consumption.

It’s not helping that CBRE has to place multiple large fans in various locations in order to try to keep the temp under 88 or 90 degrees and cool overheated equipment. The hotter it is the louder the equipment fans, they are trying to keep up with the heat load.

Conclusion: need to return to the previous temp program for various reasons.

This process needs reevaluated, the equipment is being negatively affected along with the personnel. It’s costing the company more money when all data points are factored in.

Sounds like the cell site model to trim down sites in the middle of the night to save on power. They think they don’t drip coverage, but they do. And then the sites don’t come back up and are down for a few days until som one finally addresses it.

Looks good on paper, but the customers suffer.

I’ve turned up 5150’s and 7342’s in outside huts with intermittent AC cooling in the SE. when they overheat DLC is too busy doing residential installs so SSIM gets the repair ticket. DLC will be gone soon.

i thought the unions were all about better worker conditions. what is their stance on federally mandated sanitary worker conditions?

My guess is someone was using automation to run reports but no one actually had the knowledge to verify the accuracy of the output. Hence the tech dispatches. But automate! Automate! AI! AskAT&T! Hurry up and roll it out! Nevermind if it tears everything up downstream - look at us! We ran a program after Googling how and it’s great!

You’ve got a person touting how green they can make the company by saving on energy bills, all while not even capturing the repercussions and damage done by a policy implemented based on inaccurate reporting.

They did the same thing years ago in office buildings. Said to keep the blinds closed. And they would keep the temp at 78 in the summer and 73 in winter.

I worked in a building that turned off the hot water to save money. It made it unsanitary for hand washing after using the restroom!! Also TP was only filled every three days!!

Not all CO’s have basements, even if they do there are battery strings on the 1st fr with the equipment, they don’t do well with heat, just like the 5ess or DMS 100.

In my SE area, environmental doesn’t care about humidity and will wait +24 hrs or more to dispatch a CRE tech on high heat. Save a dollar, spends thousands, the government, err AT&T way. Eventually going to run out of cards, like we already are on the Litespan systems. Paying Verizon a fortune to get any spare fiber plugs from them now.

In SoCal one central office is without running water
CBRE chose to ignore a 10 day notice from the water district

It was just a matter of time. The 5ESS is very temperature sensitive, the new equipment, not so much. Look at the temperature parameters for the SR1, the 5150, 9500 and the MX980/460. We are stating to see failures temp failures in the DWDM equipment and CRE hasn't even changed the temp in those locations.
Want to stay cool, go to the basement where the batteries are 77 degrees.
Average dBm reading in a Central Office is about 80-85 with all of the fans running. I have to find a "quite" place to hear on the phone. I can bi--h about it, (does nothing) or I can plan to be debt free and tell AT&T to hide and go ph--k themselves. I plan the latter.
With all of that said, I'll take that $45 dollars an hour to drive 2 hours to get a switch pack and drive back 2 hours at $45 an hour to bring it back. I will then stay on the phone with India for an additional 6 hours. Collecting some sweet overtime.
We need to understand that AT&T crunches numbers. They are not good at it. (T-Mobil, DirecTV, Warner Media). If you can't profit from AT&T ineptitude, I don't know what to tell you. I'm just a level 0 Union Dreg. I can't image the opportunities that exist for VP and higher to rake money from this company.

Hot as h$ll in my central offices

Yes the equipment does not like heat or high humidity
Things get moist
And the 48v plant batteries don’t like anything over 80
Ki-ls them

As an employee you can be replaced, you are just a number and a liability. They might become concerned if too much equipment needs replaced or more customer outages.

I experienced the same thing this week. Was sweating my azz off in the CO.

too many machines to keep cool. temperature rationalization.

I really appreciate this post. I felt like I was going to pass out today. I try to follow the rules but I literally walked across the street from the Central Office to get a drink. It has been really brutal this week and some of last week especially with all the Psets. Thanks for the post as I did not realize what was going on.

It’s probably a cool 72 degrees in his office.

Those cards and SFP lasers put off a lot of heat, I can always tell in my office when it’s hot because the fujitsu 9500 fans sound like a jet engine about to take off. It’s been happening much more frequently, my high temp and humidity alarms have also been going off a lot too.

It’s been very uncomfortable without hardly any cool air movement and temp up 88 or over 90 degrees. Feel like I have heat exhaustion some days because I’m constantly moving around while working on different equipment and stop sweating. All the fans I have turned on are just blowing around the hot air that the equipment is producing. Think of a hot hair dryer blowing on you. Not good!

So that’s why it’s been so hot in my CO, I wondered why the temp keeps creeping up and my High temp and humidity alarm go off. I thought there was an issue with the chiller or air handling unit. I agree, he needs to reverse course or be dismissed. I’m also having more card failures due to heat and now I know why. You would think and engineer would know about heat, electronics = shorter life span or outright failure.