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The HughesNet® service is ordered; it’s on the schedule. Now installation day has arrived, and the team gets to work on the final piece that makes it all happen. To fully appreciate the work of an installer, it helps to have some understanding of the complexity, challenges, and importance of what installers do. Far more than just being order fillers, professional installers have to be part technical expert, part problem solver, and part goodwill ambassador.
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"There’s no telling what Hughes installers might run into at an installation site, so it’s vital that they’re quick on their feet, able to use creative problem solving, and have excellent communication skills,” said Cliff Rees, senior director of Field Services for Hughes.
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In addition to deploying technical equipment, installers manage a mix of troubleshooting, scheduling, customer service, and inventory management issues. Installations can take place at almost any type of location, including residences, large and small businesses, commercial properties, and government sites. That means the installer must be prepared for any type of building whether it’s a high-rise, a ranch home, a warehouse, a mall, or a log cabin. And, in many cases, the only direct contact a customer has with Hughes is the installer, which makes it critical that the installer make a great first impression.
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On average, Hughes handles roughly 3,500 to 5,000 consumer installations and between 500 and 750 enterprise installations in North America each week. To implement all those installations, Hughes works with more than a dozen professional companies throughout the U.S., such as Atlanta Network Systems, Wisconsin-based Advanced Digital Inc., and Alpha Data Communications in Pennsylvania.
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Managed Services Require Sophisticated Skills
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The trend of enterprises towards managed services was a hot topic at the 2009 Hughes Installer Training Seminar (HITS) held in Baltimore, Maryland this October. Because more and more of today’s HughesNet enterprise installations involve a managed service, installers must be armed with a solid understanding of terrestrial transports like DSL and cable, in addition to satellite. They also need to be experts in technical matters such as firewalls, protocol converters, switches, and routers so they can quickly troubleshoot problems and readily connect the HughesNet service to the customer’s other applications, which could include everything from point-of-sale to tank-monitoring devices.
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Zeroing In
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Recently, Alpha Data Communications deployed a complex emergency network that included over a million terminals, a Cisco router, and Voice over IP (VoIP) phones. Many of these installations were located in aged county courthouses with thick walls or at remote microwave tower locations, presenting a variety of challenges. But with an installation team of seasoned technicians and a careful implementation strategy, the network rollout was seamless.
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“The high standards that Hughes sets for its installations helped train my crews to put quality, professionalism, and craftsmanship at the top of each job,” said Brian Balk, CEO of Alpha Data Communications. “Because of this training, they were able to quickly resolve challenging issues, such as how to ground to a lightning ring at the base of a 100-foot tower, or to assess the structural feasibility of a custom mount on a 3-foot parapet granite wall, making each job a success.”
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At Hughes, it’s all about quality service delivery, and installers are key members of the entire HughesNet team that makes it happen. See recent issues of Channels to get the complete story of other team members such as manufacturing, pilot engineering, network operations, and customer service.
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