Mobile operator, MTN SA, says it has implemented a software solution that will complement and expand its current operating efficiencies and assist in accelerating on-going improvement of network quality indicators.

The COPS-AIC software solution from Celcite, a provider of automatic optimisation tools and services for wireless networks, will also empower MTN’s engineers to manage the network more effectively.

The company says the implementation is part of its drive towards network expansion with the aim of continually evolving and enhancing its growing 2G and 3G networks to deliver invaluable customer experiences.

“MTN is committed to offering its customer base a consistent world-class network experience,” said Kanagaratnam Lambotharan, chief technology officer at MTN SA.

“Our planning and optimisation engineers will use the COPS-AIC software to gain foresight of challenges that the network may encounter and be able to counteract this proactively and thus improving efficiency on our network coverage,” he explained.

Furthermore, this software implementation will also allow MTN to automatically diagnose the root cause of any network issue experienced, and discriminate between Radio Frequency (RF) and operational issues to improve focus and speed up issue resolution, said Lambotharan.

“MTN was looking for a tool to empower its engineers and further improve efficiencies,” said Graham Kemp, Celcite’s regional managing director for Africa.

“As networks become more complex, with multiple bands and multiple carriers, it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain and optimise these without the use of automation through intelligent correlation of diverse data sources.

“COPS-AIC will now enable MTN to further optimise its core 2G and 3G networks, giving it an even more stable base from which to roll out additional 3G capacity, and also in time, bandwidth to optimise its new LTE network as it is rolled out,” he said.

“We look forward to the efficiencies that the Celcite COPS-AIC solution will bring to our network today and into the future,” Lambotharan concluded.