Avoiding Assumptions

Protecting Client and Bidder in the Procurement Process With a Detailed RFP
- Page 2

by Chuck Siebuhr

Site Survey
Large buildings and campus-type environments usually have floor plans, layouts and site maps, even though they may not be current. If a complete set of plans and maps does not exist, the information must be gathered through a site survey. Whether generated by the client for distribution with the RFP or performed by prospective bidders, an accurate site survey must be conducted. Even if there are existing plans and maps, the distances and measurements must be verified.

Overview - Campus Environment
Designing a telecommunications system to provision a campus requires construction experience and a diverse technical knowledge covering planning, design, media capabilities, performance limitations and an almost limitless variety of hardware and equipment. For those who have not had an opportunity to implement a project in a multibuilding campus environment, the following is a brief overview of some of the many considerations that must be addressed and definitively resolved early in the process.

The ultimate design must ensure proper performance and establish a structured distribution network that connects multiple detached buildings. This is an infrastructure in which various media, including copper, fiber and possibly microwave/wireless systems, transport voice, high-speed data and/or video over a broad geographic area. Generally referred to as a campus system (but not limited to colleges or universities), it may include airports, hospitals, military installations, industrial and manufacturing complexes and residential and/or business parks. A campus outside plant network includes all cable that extends outward from the main cross-connect (MC), including support structures (conduit, manholes, poles, etc.), necessary to connect all buildings from the minimum point of entry (MPOE) protectors (demarc/demarcation point).

The size and scope of work to be performed must be determined in detail and well in advance of any formalized design. Typically, the plan will have to pass through several levels of review, analyses of cost vs. performance, and the reality or practicality of proposed schedules for each phase. Resource allocations must dovetail with prepared schedules and each step of the process must receive advance approval from interdependent principal parties involved in the effort. This phase is most critical and assumptions must not be made. A typical fatal assumption might be that the client's facility personnel will actually have the trenches open when the shipment of conduit arrives for placement and encasement.

Scheduling and confirmation of schedules/resources are essential and must be controlled closely. Also, there must be contingency plans for each major undertaking. An unending number of factors could jeopardize critical milestone dates, for example, unexpected weather events, work stoppages, delayed permits, licensing, inspections or any other external influence that perhaps could not have been foreseen at the outset. This type of reasoning is realistic and should emphasize the absolute necessity of being as detail-oriented as possible when undertaking a complex cabling project.

BUILDING ENTRANCE CABLES. Typically, smaller cables sized to serve a building (feeder) for its expected life cycle. Includes hand holes, pullboxes or other support structures necessary to facilitate final design.

PERIPHERAL ISSUES. Environmental, EPA guidelines, restoration requirements, etc. to include the following considerations:

• Pole placement/replacement/disposal
• Manhole environmentals and engineering
• OSHA/EPA regulations, site-specific
• National Electrical Code (NEC) and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Code
• National Electrical Safety Codes (NESC)
• Rights-of-way: private, municipal, state and/or federal
• Tree removals/landscape backfill, restoration
• Traffic control, permits, fees, licensing, required inspections
• Property boundaries and building ownership
• Aesthetics, architectural constraints, etc.
• Any legal implications that may be applicable on a case-by-case basis.

Initial Outline of Proposed Plan
With the use of a site plan, lay out the campus interbuilding distribution and entrance routes that will connect all buildings back to the MC. Note on the plans the recommended type of direct buried, underground or aerial cable plant required to support the selected application and recommend the size or makeup (copper and/or fiber) of entrance cable facilities.

Final determination of construction will be based upon field review of topography. With interbuilding routes and types of plant and support systems tentatively identified, the sizing of distribution and entrance cables may be determined. Compare this actual derived information with the client's perceived requirements. At this point, proposed design options are typically accepted or amended as necessary.

The following is a suggested format listing the major elements of a typical campus telecommunications system. Remember, this is a brief and summarized overview of what is required to execute an implementation plan. In actuality, far more will be required of system designers and project managers. Develop a concise site plan that provides clear and distinct physical details. After the major routes have been determined and approved, cable-sizing requirements should start with the farthest location from the MC and work backward, increasing pair counts or numbers of required fiber strands along the way. This will later facilitate the actual computation of the number, lengths and sizes of support structures and conduits or duct bank requirements.

If Plans Do Not Exist
The planning effort, of course, mandates site plans of existing and proposed buildings. Use architectural, electrical, mechanical, other utilities, roadway plans, etc. If plans do not exist, they must be created using exacting measurements, acquired firsthand. Identify on the plan(s) all existing building entrance routes by cable size and type of entry, underground or aerial, copper or fiber. Clearly indicate the proposed method of entering the structure, including feeder manholes, pull-boxes and specify the location within the building (room number, etc,). Clearly note all existing and proposed telecommunications spaces/locations, including telco demarcation points or secondary EFs (entrance facilities). It should be remembered that cables leaving or entering unattached buildings require stringent protection, bonding and grounding per NEC and TIA. Appropriate equipment and exact locations should also be clearly noted on plans.

Proposed trunk (distribution) routes should be identified in a distinctive manner, designating cable routes, size, type, pair counts or fiber strands distributed at, or from, designated splice points at respective manholes or other subterranean or aerial structures. Additional information should specify individual feeder routes to each building showing splice points and distribution routes from feeder manholes or pull boxes. Also, indicate which room, space or void will house each individual EF. Identify each type of cable plant intended for immediate placement or replacement and identify complements that are reserved for future use. Plans should include all manholes, hand holes, pullboxes, conduits, duct banks, buried cable trench routes, aerial pole lines, etc. Each facility, cable type, complement, support, housing, room, space and structure or component necessary for the construction effort must be included on the plan(s). Typically, multiple drawings either exist or must be prepared to satisfy this requirement.

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