Christmas Embargo Period On Telstra Network
Purpose
This notice is to advise of the annual network embargo over the Christmas holiday period and to inform our customers of potential impacts during this time in order to assist them manage any telecommunication needs.
Background
Embargo and Restriction periods are imposed during this holiday period (18 December – 17 January) to protect the network against accidental failures that may impact on customers and take some time to restore due to a reduced work force during this time. Restrictions and Embargos are standard practice and are imposed regularly to cover holiday periods and special events.
What is the impact on your business?
It is important to note that there are no impacts or changes to the fault processes
1. Embargo Period (Friday 18 December 2009 to Sunday 10 January 2010)
- During this period NO planned changes can be carried out in the restricted sites / infrastructure / network of any nature unless a Severity 1 or Severity 2 fault docket exists
- No work will be conducted on power and new racks in exchanges. However, customers using shared infrastructure – Telstra Equipment Building Access (TEBA) – can seek a separate exemption submission and approval. This excludes where customers are working on their own equipment (i.e. co-location) Customers using IP-based or Hosting products who are planning to make changes to the components under their control may require assistance or support from Telstra. Therefore it is essential that these customers are informed that unless Telstra is aware of their requirements, we may not be able to assist during the embargo period.
2. Restriction Period (Monday 11 January 2010 – Sunday 17 January 2010)
- Telstra staff and contractors will be required to submit potential network impacts and seek approval for build during the restriction period which may cause a delay in the installation of new services. Customers will be advised if there are any changes to delivery dates.
Other considerations
- Forecasts: to ensure that Telstra can resource appropriately to meet the requirements prior to and after the restriction/embargo periods, it is vital that complete and accurate forecasts are received by Telstra by Monday 16 November 2009
- Local councils place restrictions on Telstra which limits the work, especially civil works, that can be carried out particularly in CBD areas
- Fast tracks and escalations: during the Christmas period, the special conditions and approvals which need to be applied for when connecting a service tend to take longer which impacts on our ability to conduct fast tracks and escalations in the required timeframe.
Exemptions – activities that are exempt during this time
1. Restriction period
- Assurance activity
- Customer activations
- Builds within Telstra exchange (TEBA) areas – specifically DSLAM installations
- Upgrade and repairs to existing customer equipment.
2. Embargo period
- Assurance activity
- Customer activations (except at Internet Data Centres and site visits – these will require a separate exemption submission and approval).
Important dates to remember
• Embargo (hard): Friday 18 December 2009 – Sunday 10 January 2010
• Restriction (soft): Monday 11 January 2010 – Sunday 17 January 2010
* Please note: all starting dates for restrictions commence at 00.00 hours. All finishing dates for restrictions conclude at 24.00 hours.