Evaluating Your Building's Telecommunications Capabilities and Service Providers

Find Out What Your Landlord Doesn't Know and is Afraid to Ask!*

Whether you're moving to a new office space, expanding or just plannning to add telecommunications service -- better check out your building and see what can be delivered, who can deliver it and how quickly.

The following is a checklist you can submit to your building owner. The point is to determine which of these services you can get, which alternative serrvice providers can deliver them and who are the service providers who already have a already have a presence in the building.

Local Telephone Service

• POTS lines (plain old telephone service)
• Both way lines for PBXs
• Direct Dial Incoming Lines to PBXs
• Dedicated Circuits to a Local Telephone Service Provider

Long Distance Telephone Service

• Incoming toll free calls
• Outgoing domestic calls
• Outgoing international calls
• Calling Cards
• Dedicated Circuits to a Long Distance Telephone Service Provider

High Speed (High Bandwidth) Data Communication Services

• Frame Relay Service
• ISDN for Video Teleconferencing
• Dedicated high capacity circuits (T1, T3, OC3, etc.)

High Speed (High Bandwidth) Internet Access

• Dedicated T1 circuit for exclusive tenant use
• DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) circuit
• Shared high capacity T1 giving smaller tenants access within a few days of moving in

Access to Internet Based Services

• E-Mail
• E-Commerce
• Business to Business E-Commerce
• Web Site Hosting

What to Look for in the Building's Telecommunications Infrastructure

• High capacity, high speed fiber optic and copper connections coming into the building
• High speed copper and fiber optic riser cable
• Clean, well-organized equipment rooms for housing electronics to support these services. Clearly labeled cables and cable distribution frames. Room for growth .
• Up-to-date, well maintained electronic equipment (different types needed to deliver different telecommunications services)
• Access for running more cable as needed or as technology changes (Very Important)
• A building owner whose representative can clearly explain the building telecommunicaitons capabilites to the tenants

Note: Some building owners own and control the cable that feeds into the tenant space. Find out how this works and if the building owner will sell access via thta cable to any telecommunications service provider you choose.


What Else to Look For
Choice of telecommunications service providers.
Fast turn around time for service delivery. Some buildings have this with "on site" provider whose service is already in the building.
Flexibility to order services from any service provider with whom you choose to do business. Some building owners won't let some service providers into the building.
Reliability. Telecommunications services provided by companies with sound financials and a good track record.
Information. With telecommunications technology rapidly changing, you will need help in determing your current and future requirements.

*(Excerpt from Telecom Tutorials, 2nd Edition, Tutorial #33)

For More Tutorials Click on the Book Cover Below

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