Technical staff working with telecommunications carriers, service providers, public utilities and broadcasting companies apply the skills and knowledge in this unit. They combine technical optical communications skills with broader organisational and administrative skills to test and commission DWDM systems in a range of commercial contexts and environments.

This unit applies to high capacity telecommunications transmission undertaken by carriers and utility companies for long haul communications as well as metropolitan area networks.

ELEMENT

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA

1. Prepare to commission DWDM transmission system

1.1. Implement hazard risk control measures

1.2. Review system specifications and technical data by identifying system operating parameters

1.3. Obtain and check tools and test equipment needed for the work

1.4. Verify all necessary equipment is installed, and circuit cards and filler cards are correctly located and seated

1.5. Check that interconnecting fibres to optical multiplexers and shelves are intact and correctly routed

1.6. Establish communication between computer and DWDM shelf

1.7. Upload latest software release to each DWDM shelf in the network

2. Commission DWDM transmission system

2.1. Connect an optical test set and a physical optical loopback to the system, and select protocol compatible with the DWDM hardware

2.2. Check the status of the connection and that test set data is passing correctly

2.3. Monitor quality of received signal by setting performance monitoring (PM) features and retrieve PM counts

2.4. Verify that no errors are counted by the test set during a long term stability test while customer input signal is set to the worst case (minimum) power level

2.5. Verify that no alarms are generated during the long term stability test period

2.6. Dispose of antistatic packaging to minimise environmental impact

3. Complete test and commissioning documentation

3.1. Finalise documentation on commissioning test results

3.2. Present results to appropriate person according to established procedures

Required skills

communication skills to:

liaise with internal and external personnel on technical and operational matters

relate to work associates, supervisors, team members and clients

literacy skills to:

interpret technical documentation, such as equipment manuals, specifications and service orders

write reports using standard formats

numeracy skills to interpret results and evaluate different types of technical data

planning and organisational skills to plan, prioritise and monitor own work and that of others

problem solving and contingency management skills to:

adapt testing procedures to requirements of particular situations

modify activities depending on operational contingencies, risk situations and environments

safety awareness skills to:

apply precautions and required action to minimise, control or eliminate hazards that may exist during work activities especially when dealing with infra-red laser light

select and use required personal protective equipment conforming to industry and occupational health and safety (OHS) standards

work systematically with required attention to detail without injury to self or others, or damage to goods or equipment

technical skills to:

backup and restore

clean optical fibre connector

examine optical fibre connector for contamination and assess whether cleaning is required

install software

measure optical power using handheld optical power meter

measurement of DC and AC voltages

select and use appropriate test equipment

setup internet protocol (IP) addresses and subnet masks

Required knowledge

alarms

DWDM principles of operation

electrostatic discharge precaution

features and operating requirements of test equipment including:

hand-held optical power meter

transmission test set

optical spectrum analyser

functions of optical add drop multiplexer

IP addressing, subnet mask, dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) and default gateway

International Telecommunications Union (ITU) wavelength grid for DWDM

optical fibre connector types and characteristics

optical fibre types and characteristics

path protection and protection switching

physical optical loopbacks and software loopbacks

protocols used on optical DWDM systems

ring topologies and linear network topologies

specific OHS requirements that impact on the safe inspection of optical connectors and the safe measurement of optical power from laser transmission systems

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit

Evidence of the ability to:

plan and coordinate commissioning

test and commission DWDM transmission system

complete test and commissioning documentation

comply with all related OHS requirements and work practices.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment must ensure:

access to sites on which testing and commissioning a DWDM transmission system may be conducted

use of test equipment currently used in industry

manufacturer's technical documentation.

Method of assessment

A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit:

direct observation of the candidate performing test and commissioning

review of test and commissioning documentation completed by the candidate

oral or written questioning to assess knowledge of test and commissioning procedures.

Guidance information for assessment

Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role is recommended, for example:

ICTOPN5118A Plan and configure dense wavelength division multiplexing systems

ICTOPN5119A Perform acceptance and commissioning test on optical network

ICTOPN5120A Plan for an optical system upgrade and cut over

ICTOPN5122A Test the performance of specialised optical devices

ICTOPN5123A Analyse and integrate specialised optical devices in the network.

Aboriginal people and other people from a non-English speaking background may have second language issues.

Access must be provided to appropriate learning and assessment support when required.

Assessment processes and techniques must be culturally appropriate, and appropriate to the oral communication skill level, and language and literacy capacity of the candidate and the work being performed.

In all cases where practical assessment is used it will be combined with targeted questioning to assess required knowledge. Questioning techniques should not require language, literacy and numeracy skills beyond those required in this unit of competency.

Where applicable, physical resources should include equipment modified for people with special needs.

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

DWDM shelf maybe part of:

long haul system

metropolitan area (metro) system.

Optical test set may include:

Acterna/JDSU ANT-20 advanced network tester

synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH)/synchronous optical network (SONET) analyser

SDH/SONET STM-1/4/16 or OC-3/12/48 transmission test set - bit error rate test (BERT)

Optical loopback may include:

fibre optic patchcord connecting transmit and receive ports via inline variable optical attenuator (VOA)

short fibre optic patchcord connecting transmit and receive ports with fixed attenuator at receive port input if required.

Protocol may include:

D1 video 270 Mbps

ESCON 200 Mbps.

fast Ethernet

fibre channel

gigabit Ethernet

SDH:

STM-1

STM-4

STM-16

STM-64

SONET:

OC-3

OC-12

OC-48

OC-192.

Performance monitoring features may include:

equipment performance monitoring:

threshold crossing alerts

SDH:

errored bytes (EB)

errored seconds (ES)

severely errored seconds (SES)

out-of-frame seconds (OFS)

SONET:

coding violation (CV)

errored seconds (ES)

severely errored seconds (SES)

severely errored framed seconds (SEFS).

Long term stability test may refer to:

24 hour period

48 hour period

72 hour period.

Appropriate person may include:

customer

network administrator

network planner

project manager

supervisor.

Unit sector

Telecommunications

Optical networks

This unit contains employability skills.