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Home My WebLink AboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 07/30/2019 - FORT COLLINS CONNEXION UPDATEDATE: STAFF: July 30, 2019 Erin Shanley, Broadband Marketing Manager Colman Keane, Broadband Director Darin Atteberry, City Manager WORK SESSION ITEM City Council SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION Fort Collins Connexion Update. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this item is to provide Council an update on Broadband Plan milestone work to date. The presentation will cover the following areas: Broadband Timeline, Network Operations Update, Construction Update, Billing and Marketing Update. Stacey Pearson from the Paterson Center will give a presentation on the upcoming StratOp for Connexion. GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED Connexion staff will present an update on the Broadband Plan; no questions are proposed. Council may also adjourn to an Executive Session after the Work Session to discuss privileged matters relating to Connexion. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION Broadband Timeline The City Broadband Timeline illustrates the timing for the following key areas for Connexion: 1. Outside Plant Design / Construction 2. CIS/OSS for Broadband and Utilities 3. Network Electronics 4. Marketing Development, pre and post go-live marketing 5. Premise Installation Key milestones include beta testing, first paying customer and construction completion. Network Operations Update The Network Operations team is in the process of standing up a Network Operations Center (NOC). The NOC will consist of technicians and engineers who will monitor, operate, troubleshoot and maintain all Broadband electronics. • Technical Service Representatives (TSR’s) will provide Tier 1 help-desk technical assistance to end customers with 24x7 coverage. • Senior Technicians will act as an escalation point for the TSR's to help triage network issues, restore service impacts, assist with customer interface as needed, and provide advanced monitoring coverage. • Network Design and Engineering staff will act as the highest escalation point for the NOC. • The Network Design and Engineering staff will also be responsible for crafting new solutions for business customers and providing Capacity and Planning guidance for future-proofing the Broadband network. July 30, 2019 Page 2 Construction Update At the direction of City Council and voters, the City is moving forward building and implementing high-speed, next generation fiber to be available to all residents, businesses and organizations within the boundaries of the City, including land in the City’s growth management area (GMA) when it is annexed into city limits. The overall fiber network construction began in November 2018 and is expected to take 36 to 48 months, with the first paying customer brought on-line in Q3 2019. • 90 day rolling design build - design & construction • Continue to add crews to expedite construction timeline • Staffing Outside Plant Team: o Senior Fiber Engineer o Senior Fiber Technician o (3) Fiber Technician The Construction Process The first sign Connexion will be in a neighborhood is Utility locates. Flags or water-soluble paint will indicate where existing utility, gas, phone lines or other services are located. The standard pre-construction process for Connexion consists of posting updates to affected neighborhoods on Nextdoor.com as well as posting a door hanger with construction details on each home within a neighborhood (minimum 48 hours) prior to crews beginning work. Additionally, crews are conducting door knocking prior to any machinery set up in the right-of-way in front of a property. If any lawn restoration work is required, crews will also provide a follow up door hanger outlining steps for care and a direct phone number for immediate assistance. All Atlantic Engineering Group (AEG) contractors are required to display the Connexion Approved Contractor magnet on their vehicle doors identifying them. Billing The new Open SmartFlex System is moving forward, with testing currently ongoing. • Comprehensive system for all five utilities • State-of-the-art technology and cyber security • Robust web self-service capability • Configurable bill format Marketing Update The marketing team has a number of activities rolling out in Q3 2019. Door Hangers Sales Door hangers are being printed. These door hangers will be placed on all homes in a neighborhood that is ready to receive Connexion service. Marketing staff is working with Customer Care to coordinate an email out to all Utility customers with an existing email account in activated neighborhoods. Bus Shelter Ad Connexion has secured a bus shelter at Lincoln & Lemay. Additionally, Connexion will be identifying available bus shelters through Lamar Advertising within active neighborhoods to provide additional out of home (OOH) advertising. July 30, 2019 Page 3 Movie Theater Advertising Connexion is currently running 00:15 second pre-show ads on screens from July - Dec 2019 at the following Fort Collins Theaters: • The Lyric - all screens • Cinemark Movie Bistro and XD - 9 screens • Classic Worthington 6 - 6 screens • Cinemark Fort Collins - 16 screens Social Media Connexion continues to post updates on Facebook and Twitter. Updates are 1-2x per day and include information about Connexion, reposts/tweets for other City entities including The City of Fort Collins, Fort Collins Utilities, City of Fort Collins Recreator, etc. as well as fun, relevant technology or industry related content, employee spotlights and more. Follow Connexion on twitter at @ConnexionFC and Facebook at @FCConnexion. Website Development The new Connexion site, www.fcconnexion.com will launch in August, following the completion of the Open SmartFlex CIS/OSS testing. The site will provide a new look and feel for Connexion, along with product information and e-commerce capabilities. Customers visiting fcconnexion.com will be able to go directly into the Open portal and sign up for new service, schedule an install and manage their account. ATTACHMENTS 1. Powerpoint presentation (PDF) 1 Work Session – Connexion Update July 30, 2019 ATTACHMENT 1 City Broadband Timeline 2 (Utilities) OSP Design / Construction CIS/OSS (Broadband & Utilities) Network Electronics Premise Installation OSP Design Standards Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2018 2019 2020 2021 - Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2022 1st Start of Beta Test Paying Customer Construction Complete Marketing Development / Pre-Launch Marketing Post Go-Live Marketing Network Operations Update 3 • NetOps Team in process of standing up a Network Operations Center, or "NOC“. • The NOC will consist of Technicians and Engineers to monitor, operate, troubleshoot and maintain all Broadband electronics. • Technical Service Representatives (TSR’s) will provide Tier 1 help-desk technical assistance to end customers with 24x7 coverage. • Senior Technicians will act as an escalation point for the TSR's to help triage network issues, restore service impacts, assist with customer interface as needed, and provide advanced monitoring coverage. • Network Design and Engineering staff will act as the highest escalation point for the NOC. The Network Design and Engineering staff will also be responsible for crafting new solutions for business customers and provide Capacity and Planning guidance for future-proofing the Broadband network. Construction Update 4 • Rolling design build - 90 days - design & construction • 36-48-month timeline with first customer Q3 2019 • Continue to add crews to expedite construction • Staffing Outside Plant Team: Sr. Fiber Engineer, Sr. Fiber Technician, (3) Fiber Technician, (3) Installers (Interviews in progress) Construction Process 5 • Utilities locates • Flags, water soluble paint • Door Hangers placed by crews 48 hours prior to work in a neighborhood • Door knocking prior to machinery set up in right-of- way in front of property • Notifications on Nextdoor.com Construction Update 6 Outside Plant Report - July AEG Construction Detail COFC Total FDH's = 277 Total FDH'S Ready for Sale = 0 Underground Work Year to Date Total Missile Bore 76,162' Directional Bore 96,503' Pothole or Keyhole for Existing Utilities 3,961 Pull/Blow Fiber through Conduit 114,059' Install Vault (17x30x24) 675 Install Vault (30x48x36) 14 Install Vault (36x60x36) 24 Install Flower Pot (10x10) 949 Technical Services Install Underground FDH Enclosure 4 Splice Closure Preparation 75 Single Fusion Fiber Splicing 1,143 Billing Update 7 • Comprehensive system for all five utilities • State-of-the-art technology and cyber security • Robust web self-service capability • Configurable bill format Customer Facts and Numbers 8 Marketing Update 9 Sales Door Hanger: Will be placed on all homes in a neighborhood that is ready to receive Connexion service. Marketing Update 10 Bus Shelter Ad Location: Lincoln & Lemay Marketing Update 11 Movie Theater Advertising: 00:15 sec ad will run July – Dec 2019: • The Lyric • Cinemark Movie Bistro & XD o 9 screens • Classic Worthington 6 o 6 screens • Cinemark Fort Collins o 16 screens VIDEO TO BE SHOWN AT MEETING Marketing Update: Twitter Follow us @ConnexionFC 12 Marketing Update: Facebook Follow us @FCConnexion 13 Marketing Update: Website 14 Website Development • New Connexion site http://www.fcconnexion.com • August go-live • Following completion of CIS/OSS Testing Marketing Update: Website 15 16 17 Connexion Launch Party 18 CELEBRATE WITH US! • Thursday, August 29, 2019 • 5 – 7p.m. • The Lincoln Center