The Network Operations Center (NOC) is the beating heart of satellite and teleport operators’ networks that deliver value to customers.
As the fundamental building block for a successful operation, this is where customer services are managed and triaged; this is where transmission equipment is monitored and controlled; and this is where third party suppliers are coordinated. This is also where service incidents and operational changes are dealt with and all key operational activities are carried out.
NOCs are generally resourced with highly experienced operators who can manage multiple systems and technologies across multiple vendor service providers and potentially large volumes of customers. NOCs can be local to the teleport or remote from the teleport.
Where remote NOCs are employed, there’s an opportunity to benefit from economies of scale by managing multiple facilities from a single ‘multi-facility’ NOC. A step further than the remote NOC is a virtual NOC, where resourcing is provided by NOC operators working from home, each in a different location, perhaps even in a different country or continent.
Whether NOCs are local, remote or virtual, they undoubtedly remain one of the most important functions of any facility and critical to the success of the business and customers they serve.
For this report, nine teleport operators and four technology providers were interviewed, providing in-depth one-to-one discussions on a broad range of NOC related topics. The World Teleport Association (WTA) Report, Building a Better NOC, will soon be released, and will be free for WTA Members and available for purchase by non-members.