Code of Federal Regulations (alpha)

CFR /  Title 7  /  Part 1755  /  Sec. 1755.397 RUS performance specification for line concentrators.

(a) General. (1) This section covers general requirements for a line concentrator (LC) system. This system shall operate in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications. Reliability shall be of prime importance in the design, manufacture and installation of the equipment. The equipment shall automatically provide for:

(1) This section covers general requirements for a line concentrator (LC) system. This system shall operate in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications. Reliability shall be of prime importance in the design, manufacture and installation of the equipment. The equipment shall automatically provide for:

(i) Terminating subscriber lines at a location remote from the serving central office;

(ii) Concentrating the subscriber lines over a few transmission and supervisory paths to the serving central office; and

(iii) Terminating the lines at the central office without loss of individual identity. A subscriber connected to a line concentrator shall be capable of having essentially the same services as a subscriber connected directly to the central office equipment (COE). Intra-unit calling among subscribers connected to the concentrator may be provided, but is not required.

(2) Industry standards, or portions thereof, referred to in this paragraph (a) are incorporated by reference by RUS. This incorporation by reference was approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552 (a) and 1 CFR part 51. Copies of these standards are available for inspection during normal business hours at RUS, room 2838, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250, or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.html.

(3) American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards are available from ANSI Inc., 11 West 42nd Street, 13th floor, New York, NY 10036, telephone 212-642-4900.

(i) ANSI Standard S1.4-1983, Specification for Sound Level Meters, including Amendment S1.4A-1985.

(ii) [Reserved]

(4) American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) are available from 1916 Race Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103, telephone 215-299-5400.

(i) ASTM Specification B33-91, Standard Specifications for Tinned Soft or Annealed Copper Wire for Electrical Purposes.

(ii) [Reserved]

(5) Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) standards are available from Bellcore Customer Service, 8 Corporate Place, Piscataway, NJ 08854, telephone 1-800-521-2673.

(i) TR-TSY-000008, Issue 2, August 1987, Digital Interface between the SLC 96 Digital Loop Carrier System and a Local Digital Switch.

(ii) Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) document TR-TSY-000057, Issue 1, April 1987, including Revision 1, November 1988, Functional Criteria for Digital Loop Carrier Systems.

(iii) Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) Document TR-NWT-000303, Issue 2, December 1992, including Revision 1, December 1993, Integrated Digital Loop Carrier System Generic Requirements, Objectives, and Interface.

(6) Federal Standard H28, Screw-Thread Standards for Federal Services, March 31, 1978, including Change Notice 1, May 28, 1986; Change Notice 2, January 20, 1989; and Change Notice 3, March 12, 1990. Copies may be obtained from the General Services Administration, Specification Section, 490 East L'Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, DC 20407, telephone 202-755-0325.

(7) IEEE standards are available from IEEE Service Center, 445 Hoes Lane, P.O. Box 1331, Piscataway, NJ 08854, telephone 1-800-521-2673.

(i) IEEE Standard 455-1985, Standard Test Procedure for Measuring Longitudinal Balance of Telephone Equipment Operating in the Voice Band.

(ii) [Reserved]

(8) RUS standards are available from Publications and Directives Management Branch, Administrative Services Division, Rural Utilities Service, room 0180, South Building, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250-1500.

(i) RUS Bulletin 345-50, PE-60 (Sept 1979), RUS Specification for Trunk Carrier Systems.

(ii) [Reserved]

(b) Types of requirements. (1) Unless otherwise indicated, the requirements listed in this section are considered to be fixed requirements.

(1) Unless otherwise indicated, the requirements listed in this section are considered to be fixed requirements.

(2) The concentrator system shall communicate with standard T1 digital transmission format at a minimum between the concentrator and central office terminals. Analog conversion functions at remote and central office terminals shall be capable of being eliminated to accommodate end-to-end digital transmission.

(3) The LC shall operate properly as an integral part of the telephone network when connected to physical or carrier derived circuits and central offices meeting RUS specifications and other generally accepted telecommunications practices, such as Bellcore documents TR-NWT-000303, Integrated Digital Loop Carrier System Generic Requirements, Objectives and Interface; TR-TSY-000008, Digital Interface between the SLC 96 Digital Loop Carrier System and a Local Digital Switch; and TR-TSY-000057, Functional Criteria for Digital Loop Carrier Systems.

(4) For RUS acceptance consideration of a LC, the manufacturer must certify and demonstrate that all requirements specified in this section are available and in compliance with this section.

(5) Certain requirements are included in this section for features which may not be needed for every application. Such features are identifiable by the inclusion in the requirements of some such phrase as ``when specified by the owner'' or ``as specified by the owner.'' In some cases where an optional feature will not be required by an owner, either now or in the future, a system which does not provide this feature shall be considered to be in compliance with the specification for the specific installation under consideration, but not in compliance with the entire specification.

(6) The owner may properly request bids from any supplier of an RUS accepted LC whose system provides all the features which will be required for a specific installation.

(7) When required by the owner, the supplier shall state compliance to the Carrier Serving Area (CSA) requirements, as stated in Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) Standard TR-TSY-000057, Functional Criteria for Digital Loop Carrier Systems.

(c) Reliability. (1) The failure rate of printed circuit boards shall not exceed an average of 2.0 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals during the first 3 months after cutover, and shall not exceed an average of 1.0 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals during the second 3-month period. The failure rate for the equipment shall be less than 0.5 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals after 6 months. A failure is considered to be the failure of a component on the PC board which requires it to be repaired or replaced.

(1) The failure rate of printed circuit boards shall not exceed an average of 2.0 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals during the first 3 months after cutover, and shall not exceed an average of 1.0 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals during the second 3-month period. The failure rate for the equipment shall be less than 0.5 percent per month of all equipped cards in all system terminals after 6 months. A failure is considered to be the failure of a component on the PC board which requires it to be repaired or replaced.

(2) The line concentrator terminal units shall be designed such that there will be no more than 4 hours of total outages in 20 years.

(d) System type acceptance tests. General test results will be required on each system type. Any system provided in accordance with this section shall be capable of meeting any requirement in this section on a spot-check basis.

(e) Features required. The network control equipment and peripheral equipment shall be comprised of solid-state and integrated circuitry components as far as practical and in keeping with the state-of-the-art and economics of the subject system.

(f) Subscriber lines--(1) General. (i) The remote LC units shall operate satisfactorily with subscriber lines which meet all of the conditions under the bidder's specifications and all the requirements of this section. This section recognizes that the loop limit of the line concentrator is dependent upon the transmission facility between the LC central office termination and the LC remote unit. When voice frequency (physical) circuits are used, the loop limit from the COE to the subscriber shall be 1900 ohms (including the telephone set). When electronically derived circuits (carrier, lightwave, etc.) are used, the loop limits of the electronic system will control. The bidder shall identify the loop limits of the equipment to be supplied.

(1) General. (i) The remote LC units shall operate satisfactorily with subscriber lines which meet all of the conditions under the bidder's specifications and all the requirements of this section. This section recognizes that the loop limit of the line concentrator is dependent upon the transmission facility between the LC central office termination and the LC remote unit. When voice frequency (physical) circuits are used, the loop limit from the COE to the subscriber shall be 1900 ohms (including the telephone set). When electronically derived circuits (carrier, lightwave, etc.) are used, the loop limits of the electronic system will control. The bidder shall identify the loop limits of the equipment to be supplied.

(i) The remote LC units shall operate satisfactorily with subscriber lines which meet all of the conditions under the bidder's specifications and all the requirements of this section. This section recognizes that the loop limit of the line concentrator is dependent upon the transmission facility between the LC central office termination and the LC remote unit. When voice frequency (physical) circuits are used, the loop limit from the COE to the subscriber shall be 1900 ohms (including the telephone set). When electronically derived circuits (carrier, lightwave, etc.) are used, the loop limits of the electronic system will control. The bidder shall identify the loop limits of the equipment to be supplied.

(ii) There should be provisions for such types of lines as ground start, loop start, regular subscriber, pay stations, etc.

(2) Dialing. (i) General. The line concentrator remote and central office terminal equipment shall satisfactorily transmit dialing information when used with subscriber dials having a speed of operation between 8 and 12 dial pulses per second and a break period of 55 to 65% of the total signaling period.

(i) General. The line concentrator remote and central office terminal equipment shall satisfactorily transmit dialing information when used with subscriber dials having a speed of operation between 8 and 12 dial pulses per second and a break period of 55 to 65% of the total signaling period.

(ii) Subscriber dial interdigital time. The remote and central office LC equipment shall permit satisfactory telecommunications operation when used with subscriber rotary dial interdigital times of 200 milliseconds minimum, and pushbutton dialing with 50 milliseconds minimum.

(iii) Subscriber line pushbutton dialing frequencies. The frequency pairs assigned for pushbutton dialing when provided by the central office shall be as listed in this paragraph (f)(2)(iii), with an allowable variation of [1.5 percent: ------------------------------------------------------------------------

High group frequencies (Hz)

Low group frequencies (Hz) ---------------------------------------

1209 1336 1477 1633------------------------------------------------------------------------697............................. 1 2 3 Spare.770............................. 4 5 6 Spare.852............................. 7 8 9 Spare.941............................. * 0 22 gauge copper conductor without causing a self-sustaining fire or permanently damaging other arrester positions. Where all cable pairs entering the housing are 24 gauge or finer, the arresters and mountings need only coordinate with 24 gauge cable conductors.

(iv) Remote terminal protectors may be mounted and arranged so that outside cable pairs may be terminated on the left or bottom side of protectors (when facing the vertical side of the MDF) or on the back surface of the protectors. Means for easy identification of pairs shall be provided.

(v) Protectors shall have a ``dead front'' (either insulated or grounded) where live metal parts are not readily accessible.

(vi) Protectors shall be provided with an accessible terminal of each incoming conductor which is suitable for the attachment of a temporary test lead. They shall also be constructed so that auxiliary test fixtures may be applied to open and test the subscriber's circuit in either direction. Terminals shall be suitable for wire wrapped connections or connectorized.

(vii) If specified, each protector group shall be furnished with a factory assembled tip cable for splicing to the outside cable; the tip cable shall be 20 feet (6.1 m) in length, unless otherwise specified. Tip cable used shall be RUS accepted.

(viii) Protector makes and types used shall be RUS accepted.

(l) Power equipment--(1) General. When specified, batteries and charging equipment shall be supplied for the remote terminal of the line concentrator.

(1) General. When specified, batteries and charging equipment shall be supplied for the remote terminal of the line concentrator.

(2) Operating voltage. (i) The nominal operating voltage of the central office and remote terminal shall be 48 volts dc, provided by a battery with the positive side tied to system ground.

(i) The nominal operating voltage of the central office and remote terminal shall be 48 volts dc, provided by a battery with the positive side tied to system ground.

(ii) Where equipment is dc powered, it must operate satisfactorily over a range of 50 volts [6 volts dc.

(iii) Where equipment is ac powered, it must operate satisfactorily over a range of 120[10 volts or 220[10 volts ac.

(3) Batteries. (i) Unless otherwise specified by the owner, sealed batteries shall be supplied for the remote line concentrator terminal.

(i) Unless otherwise specified by the owner, sealed batteries shall be supplied for the remote line concentrator terminal.

(ii) The batteries shall have an ampere hour load capacity of no less than 8 busy hours. When an emergency ac supply source is available, the battery reserve may be reduced to 3 busy hours.

(iii) The batteries shall be sealed when they are mounted in the cabinet with the concentrator equipment.

(iv) When specified by the owner, battery heaters shall be supplied in a bidder-furnished housing.

(4) Charging equipment. (i) One charger capable of carrying the full dc power load of the remote terminal shall be supplied unless otherwise specified by the owner.

(i) One charger capable of carrying the full dc power load of the remote terminal shall be supplied unless otherwise specified by the owner.

(ii) Charging shall be on a full float basis. The rectifiers shall be of the full wave, self-regulating, constant voltage, solid-state type and shall be capable of being turned on and off manually.

(iii) When charging batteries, the voltage at the battery terminals shall be adjustable and shall be set at the value recommended for the particular battery being charged, provided it is not above the maximum operating voltage of the central office switching equipment. The voltage shall not vary more than [0.02 volt dc per cell between 10% load and 100% load. Between 3% and 10% load, the output voltage shall not vary more than [0.04 volt dc per cell. Beyond full load current the output voltage shall drop sharply. The above output voltage shall be maintained with input line voltage variations of plus or minus 10 percent. Provision shall be made to manually change the output voltage of the rectifier to 2.25 volts per cell to provide an equalization charge on the battery.

(iv) The charger noise, when measured with a suitable noise measuring set and under the rated battery capacitance and load conditions, shall not exceed 22 dBrnC. See Figure 7 of this section, Charger Noise Test as follows: [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR29AU95.007

(v) The charging equipment shall be provided with a means for indicating a failure of charging current whether due to ac power failure, an internal failure in the charger, or to other circumstances which might cause the output voltage of the charger to drop below the battery voltage. Where a supplementary constant current charger is used, an alarm shall be provided to indicate a failure of the charger.

(vi) Audible noise developed by the charging equipment shall be kept to a minimum. Acoustic noise resulting from operation of the rectifier shall be expressed in terms of dB indicated on a sound level meter conforming to American National Standards Institute S1.4, and shall not exceed 65 dB (A-weighting) measured at any point 5 feet (1.5m) from any vertical surface of the rectifier.

(vii) The charging equipment shall be designed so that neither the charger nor the central office equipment is subject to damage in case the battery circuit is opened for any value of load within the normal limits.

(5) Power panel. (i) Battery and charger control switches, dc voltmeters, dc ammeters, fuses and circuit breakers, supervisory and timer circuits shall be provided as required. Portable or panel mounted frequency meters or voltmeters shall be provided as specified by the owner.

(i) Battery and charger control switches, dc voltmeters, dc ammeters, fuses and circuit breakers, supervisory and timer circuits shall be provided as required. Portable or panel mounted frequency meters or voltmeters shall be provided as specified by the owner.

(ii) Power panels, cabinets and shelves, and associated wiring shall be designed initially to handle the line concentrator terminal when it reaches its ultimate capacity as specified by the owner.

(iii) The power panel shall be of the ``dead front'' type.

(6) Ringing equipment. The ringing system shall provide sufficient ringing on a bridged basis over the voltage and temperature limits of this section and over subscriber drops within the limits stated by the bidder. The ringing system shall be without operational problems such as bell tapping during dialing. The bidder shall state the minimum number (not less than two) of main station ringers that can be used for each ringing option available.

(7) Interrupter equipment. The interrupter may be an integral part of the system or may be part of the associated central office equipment connected to the line concentrator central office terminal.

(8) Special systems. Manufacturers of LC systems that operate by extending ringing current from the central office shall state their required input ringing (voltage and frequency) and the limitations on the connected subscriber loop.

(m) Fusing requirements--(1) General.(i) The equipment shall be completely wired and equipped with fuses, trouble signals, and all associated equipment for the wire capacity of the frames or cabinets provided.

(1) General.(i) The equipment shall be completely wired and equipped with fuses, trouble signals, and all associated equipment for the wire capacity of the frames or cabinets provided.

(i) The equipment shall be completely wired and equipped with fuses, trouble signals, and all associated equipment for the wire capacity of the frames or cabinets provided.

(ii) Design precautions shall be taken to prevent the possibility of equipment damage arising from the insertion of an electronic package into the wrong connector or the removal of a package from any connector or improper insertion of the correct card in its connector.

(2) Fuses. Fuses and circuit breakers shall be of an alarm and indicator type, except where the fuse or breaker location is indicated on the alarm printout. Their rating shall be designated by numerals or color codes on the fuse or the panel.

(n) Trouble location and test--(1) Equipment. (i) Trouble indications in the system may be displayed in the form of lights on the equipment units or printed circuit boards.

(1) Equipment. (i) Trouble indications in the system may be displayed in the form of lights on the equipment units or printed circuit boards.

(i) Trouble indications in the system may be displayed in the form of lights on the equipment units or printed circuit boards.

(ii) When required, a jack or other connector shall be provided to connect a fault or trouble recorder (printer or display).

(2) Maintenance system. (i) The maintenance system shall monitor and maintain the system operation without interruption of call processing except for major failures.

(i) The maintenance system shall monitor and maintain the system operation without interruption of call processing except for major failures.

(ii) The maintenance system shall be arranged to provide the ability to determine trouble to an individual card, functional group of cards, or other equipment unit.

(o) Spare parts. Lists of spare parts and maintenance tools as recommended by the bidder shall be provided. The cost of such tools and spare parts shall be indicated and shall not be included in the base price.

(p) Drawings and printed material. (1) The bidder shall supply instructional material for each line concentrator system involved at the time of delivery of the equipment. It is not the intent of this section to require system documentation necessary for the repair of individual circuit boards.

(1) The bidder shall supply instructional material for each line concentrator system involved at the time of delivery of the equipment. It is not the intent of this section to require system documentation necessary for the repair of individual circuit boards.

(2) Three complete sets of legible drawings shall be provided for each central office to be accessed. Each set shall include all of the following:

(i) Drawings of major equipment items such as frames, with the location of major component items of equipment shown therein;

(ii) Wiring diagrams indicating the specific method of wiring used on each item of equipment and interconnection wiring between items of equipment;

(iii) Maintenace drawings covering each equipment item that contains replaceable parts, appropriately identifying each part by name and part number; and

(iv) Job drawings including all drawings that are individual to the particular line concentrator involved such as mainframe, power equipment, etc.

(3) The following information shall also be furnished:

(i) A complete index of required drawings;

(ii) An explanation of electrical principles of operation of overall concentrator system;

(iii) A list of tests which can be made with each piece of test equipment furnished and an explanation of the method of making each test;

(iv) A sample of each form recommended for use in keeping records;

(v) The criteria for analyzing results of tests and determining appropriate corrective action;

(vi) A set of general notes on methods of isolating equipment faults to specific printed circuit cards in the equipment;

(vii) A list of typical troubles which might be encountered, together with general indications as to probable location of each trouble; and

(viii) All special line concentrator system grounding requirements.

(4) When installation is to be done by the bidder a complete set of drawings shall be provided by the owner, such as floor plans, lighting, grounding and ac power access.

(q) Installation and acceptance--(1) General. Paragraphs (q)(2)(i) through (q)(3)(xxi) of this section covers the general requirements for the installation of line concentrator equipment by the bidder, and outlines the general conditions to be met by the owner in connection with such installation work. The responsibilities apply in both the central office installation and remote terminal installations, unless otherwise noted.

(1) General. Paragraphs (q)(2)(i) through (q)(3)(xxi) of this section covers the general requirements for the installation of line concentrator equipment by the bidder, and outlines the general conditions to be met by the owner in connection with such installation work. The responsibilities apply in both the central office installation and remote terminal installations, unless otherwise noted.

(2) Responsibilities of owner. The owner shall:

(i) Allow the bidder and its employees free access to the premises and facilities at all hours during the progress of the installation;

(ii) Provide access to the remote site and any other site for development work needed during the installation;

(iii) Take such action as necessary to ensure that the premises are dry and free from dust and in such condition as not to be hazardous to the installation personnel or the material to be installed (not required when remote terminal is not installed in a building);

(iv) Provide heat or air conditioning when required and general illumination in rooms in which work is to be performed or materials stored;

(v) Provide suitable openings in buildings to allow material to be placed in position (not required when a remote terminal is not installed in a building);

(vi) Provide the necessary conduit and commercial and dc-ac inverter output power to the locations shown on the approved floor plan drawings;

(vii) Provide 110 volts a.c., 60 Hz commercial power equipped with a secondary arrester and a reasonable number of outlets for test, maintenance and installation equipment;

(viii) Provide suitable openings or channels and ducts for cables and conductors from floor to floor and from room to room;

(ix) Provide suitable ground leads, as designated by the bidder (not required when remote terminal is not installed in a building);

(x) Provide the necessary wiring, central office ground and commercial power service, with a secondary arrester, to the location of an exterior remote terminal installation based on the voltage and load requirements furnished voltage and load requirements furnished by the bidder;

(xi) Test at the owners expense all lines and trunks for continuity, leakage and loop resistance and ensure that all lines and trunks are suitable for operation with the central office and remote terminal equipment specified;

(xii) Make alterations and repairs to buildings necessary for proper installation of material, except to repair damage for which the bidder or its employees are responsible;

(xiii) Connect outside cable pairs on the distributing frame (those connected to protectors);

(xiv) Furnish all line, class of service assignment, and party line assignment information to permit bidder to program the data base memory within a reasonable time prior to final testing;

(xv) Release for the bidder's use, as soon as possible, such portions of the existing plant as are necessary for the proper completion of such tests as require coordination with existing facilities including facilities for T1 span lines with properly installed repeaters between the central office and the remote terminal installations;

(xvi) Make prompt inspections as it deems necessary when notified by the bidder that the equipment, or any part thereof, is ready for acceptance;

(xvii) Provide adequate fire protection apparatus at the remote terminal, including one or more fire extinguishers or fire extinguishing systems of the gaseous type, that has low toxicity and effect on equipment;

(xviii) Provide necessary access ports for cable, if underfloor cabling is selected;

(xix) Install equipment and accessory plant devices mounted external to the central office building and external to the repeater and other outside housings including filters, repeater housings, splicing of repeater cable stubs, externally mounted protective devices and other such accessory devices in accordance with written instructions provided by the bidder; and

(xx) Make all cross connections (at the MDF or Intermediate Distribution Frame IDF) between the physical trunk or carrier equipment and the central office equipment unless otherwise specified in appendix A of this section.

(3) Responsibilities of bidder. The bidder shall:

(i) Allow the owner and its representatives access to all parts of the building at all times;

(ii) Obtain the owner's permission before proceeding with any work necessitating cutting into or through any part of the building structure such as girders, beams, concrete or tile floors, partitions or ceilings (does not apply to the installation of lag screws, expansion bolts, and similar devices used for fastening equipment to floors, columns, walls, and ceilings);

(iii) Be responsible for and repair all damage to the building due to carelessness of the bidder's workforce, exercise reasonable care to avoid any damage to the owner's switching equipment or other property, and report to the owner any damage to the building which may exist or may occur during its occupancy of the building;

(iv) Consult with the owner before cutting into or through any part of the building structure in all cases where the fireproofing or moisture proofing may be impaired;

(v) Take necessary steps to ensure that all fire fighting apparatus is accessible at all times and all flammable materials are kept in suitable places outside the building;

(vi) Not use gasoline, benzene, alcohol, naphtha, carbon tetrachloride or turpentine for cleaning any part of the equipment;

(vii) Be responsible for delivering the CO and remote terminal equipment to the sites where they will be needed;

(viii) Install the equipment in accordance with the specifications for the line concentrator;

(ix) Have all leads brought out to terminal blocks on the MDF (or IDF if stated in appendix A of this section) and have all terminal blocks identified and permanently labeled;

(x) Use separate shielded type leads grounded at one end only unless otherwise specified by the owner or bidder or tip cables meeting RUS cable crosstalk requirements for carrier frequencies inside the central office;

(xi) Group the cables to separate carrier frequency, voice frequency, signaling, and power leads;

(xii) Make the necessary power and ground connections (location as shown in appendix A of this section) to the purchaser's power terminals and ground bus unless otherwise stated in appendix A of this section (ground wire shall be 6 AWG unless otherwise stated);

(xiii) Place the battery in service in compliance with the recommendations of the battery manufacturer;

(xiv) Make final charger adjustments using the manufacturer's recommended procedure;

(xv) Run all jumpers, except line and trunk jumpers (those connected to protectors) unless otherwise specified in appendix A of this section;

(xvi) Establish and update all data base memories with subscriber information as supplied by the owner until an agreed turnover time;

(xvii) Give the owner notice of completion of the installation at least one week prior to completion;

(xviii) Permit the owner or its representative to conduct tests and inspections after installation has been completed in order that the owner may be assured the requirements for installation are met;

(xix) Allow access, before turnover, by the owner or its representative, upon request, to the test equipment which is to be turned over as a part of the delivered equipment, to permit the checking of the circuit features which are being tested and to permit the checking of the amount of connected equipment to which the test circuits have access;

(xx) Notify the owner promptly of the completion of work of the central office terminals, remote terminals or such portions thereof as are ready for inspection; and

(xxi) Correct promptly all defects for which the bidder is responsible.

(4) Information to be furnished by bidder. The bidder shall accompany its bid with the following information:

(i) Two copies of the equipment list and the traffic calculations from which the quantities in the equipment list are determined;

(ii) Two copies of the traffic tables from which the quantities are determined, if other than the Erlang B traffic tables;

(iii) A block diagram of the line concentrator and associated maintenance equipment will be provided;

(iv) A prescribed method and criteria for acceptance of the completed line concentrator which will be subject to review;

(v) This special grounding requirements including the recommended configuration, suggested equipment and installation methods to be used to accomplish them;

(vi) The special handling and equipment requirements to avoid damage resulting from the discharge of static electricity (see paragraph (j)(4)(iii) of this section) or mechanical damage during transit installation and testing;

(vii) The location of technical assistance service, its availability and conditions for owner use and charges for the service by the bidder; and

(viii) The identification of the subscriber loop limits available beyond the line concentrator.

(5) Installation requirements. (i) All work shall be done in a neat, workmanlike manner. Equipment frames or cabinets shall be correctly located, carefully aligned, anchored, and firmly braced. Cables shall be carefully laid with sufficient radius of curvature and protected at corners and bends to ensure against damage from handling or vibration. Exterior cabinet installations for remote terminals shall be made in a permanent, eye-pleasing manner.

(i) All work shall be done in a neat, workmanlike manner. Equipment frames or cabinets shall be correctly located, carefully aligned, anchored, and firmly braced. Cables shall be carefully laid with sufficient radius of curvature and protected at corners and bends to ensure against damage from handling or vibration. Exterior cabinet installations for remote terminals shall be made in a permanent, eye-pleasing manner.

(ii) All multiple and associated wiring shall be continuous, free from crosses, reverses, and grounds and shall be correctly wired at all points.

(iii) An inspection shall be made by the owner or its representatives prior to performing operational and performance tests on the equipment, but after all installing operations which might disturb apparatus adjustments have been completed. The inspection shall be of such character and extent as to disclose with reasonable certainty any unsatisfactory condition of apparatus or equipment. During these inspections, or inspections for apparatus adjustments, or wire connections, or in testing of equipment, a sufficiently detailed examination shall be made throughout the portion of the equipment within which such condition is observed, or is likely to occur, to disclose the full extent of its existence, where any of the following conditions are observed:

(A) Apparatus or equipment units failing to compare in quantity and type to that specified for the installation;

(B) Apparatus or equipment units damaged or incomplete;

(C) Apparatus or equipment affected by rust, corrosion or marred finish; and

(D) Other adverse conditions resulting from failure to meet generally accepted standards of good workmanship.

(6) Operational tests. (i) Operational tests shall be performed on all circuits and circuit components to ensure their proper functioning in accordance with appropriate explanation of the operation of the circuit.

(i) Operational tests shall be performed on all circuits and circuit components to ensure their proper functioning in accordance with appropriate explanation of the operation of the circuit.

(ii) All equipment shall be tested to ensure proper operation with all components connected in all possible combinations and each line shall be tested for proper ring, ring trip and supervision.

(iii) All fuses shall be verified for continuity and correct rating. Alarm indication shall be demonstrated for each equipped fuse position. An already failed fuse compatible with the fuse position may be used.

(iv) Each alarm or signal circuit shall be checked for correct operation.

(v) A sufficient quantity of locally originating and incoming calls shall be made to demonstrate the function of the line concentrator including all equipped transmission paths. When intra-link calling is supplied, all intra-link transmission paths shall be demonstrated.

(7) Acceptance tests and data required. (i) Data shall be supplied to the owner by the bidder in writing as a part of the final documents in closing out the contract as follows:

(i) Data shall be supplied to the owner by the bidder in writing as a part of the final documents in closing out the contract as follows:

(A) A detailed cross connect drawing of alarm to power board, central office battery to physical trunks or carrier system, wiring options used in terminals, channels, filters, repeaters, etc., marked in the owner's copy of the equipment manual or supplied separately;

(B) The measured central office supply voltages applied to the equipment terminals or repeaters at the time the jack and test point readings are made and ac supply voltages where equipment is powered from commercial ac sources;

(C) A list of all instruments, including accessories, by manufacturer and type number, used to obtain the data; and

(D) The measurements at all jack or test points recommended by the manufacturer, including carrier frequency level measurements at all carrier terminals and repeaters where utilized.

(ii) Data in the form of a checklist or other notations shall be supplied showing the results of the operational tests.

(iii) The bidder shall furnish to the owner a record of the battery cell or multicell unit voltages measured at the completion of the installation of the switching system before it is placed in commercial service. This is not required at a site where the owner furnishes dc power.

(8) Joint inspection requirements. (i) The bidder shall notify the owner in writing at least one week before the date the complete system will be ready for inspection and tests. A joint inspection shall be made by the bidder and the owner (or owner's engineer) to determine that the equipment installation is acceptable. The inspection shall include physical inspection, a review of acceptance test data, operational tests, and sample measurements.

(i) The bidder shall notify the owner in writing at least one week before the date the complete system will be ready for inspection and tests. A joint inspection shall be made by the bidder and the owner (or owner's engineer) to determine that the equipment installation is acceptable. The inspection shall include physical inspection, a review of acceptance test data, operational tests, and sample measurements.

(A) The owner shall review the acceptance test data and compare it to the requirements of this section.

(B) Sample measurements shall be made on all systems installed under this contract. Test methods should follow procedures described in paragraph (g)(5) of this section.

(C) A check shall be made of measured test point and jack readings for compliance with the manufacturer's specifications. This applies also to channels, terminals, carrier frequency repefault locating circuits.

(ii) In the event that the measured data or operational tests show that equipment fails to meet the requirements quirements of this section, the deficiencies are to be resolved as set forth in Article II of the 397 Special Equipment Contract. (Copies are available from RUS, room 0174, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250-1500.) The reports of the bidder and the owner shall be detailed as to deficiencies, causes, corrective action necessary, corrective action to be taken, completion time, etc. (The information and recordkeeping requirements of this section have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under the control number 0572-0059)

Appendix A to Sec. 1755.397--Specification for Line Concentrator

Detailed Equipment Requirements

(Information To Be Supplied by Owner) Telephone Company (Owner) Name:___________________________________________________________________Location:_______________________________________________________________ Number of LC's Required: --------Line Concentrator Locations: ------------------------------------------------------------------------

No. of Central

Location Lines Office------------------------------------------------------------------------

........... ...........

........... ...........

........... ...........

........... ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. General

1.1 Notwithstanding the bidder's equipment lists, the equipment and materials furnished by the bidder must meet the requirements of paragraphs (a) through (p) of this section, and this appendix A.

1.2 Paragraph (a) through (p) of this section cover the minimum general requirements for line concentrator equipment.

1.3 Paragraph (q) of this section covers the requirements for installation, inspection and testing when such service is included as part of the contract.

1.4 This appendix A covers the technical data for application engineering and detailed equipment requirements insofar as they can be established by the owner. This appendix A shall be filled in by the owner.

1.5 Appendix B of this section covers detailed information on the line concentrator equipment, information on system reliability and traffic capacity as proposed by the bidder. Appendix B of this section is to be filled in by the bidder and must be presented with the bid. Office Name (By Location)___________________________________________________________ LC Designation__________________________________________________________

2. Number of Subscriber Lines ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wired

Equipped only------------------------------------------------------------------------Single-Party........................................ ........ ........Pay Station (Type:--------)......................... ........ ........Other (Describe:--------)........................... ........ ........

Total......................................... ........ ........------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. Loop Resistance

3.1 Number of non-pay station lines having a loop resistance, including the telephone set as follows:

3.1.1 For physical trunks between the remote and the office units, the loop resistance is to include the resistance of the trunk. ------------------------------------------------------------------------

No. of

lines------------------------------------------------------------------------1200-1900 ohms............................................. ...........1901-3200 ohms............................................. ...........3201-4500 ohms............................................. ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.1.2 Number of pay station lines having a loop resistance, excluding the telephone set, greater than: ------------------------------------------------------------------------

No. of

lines------------------------------------------------------------------------1200 ohms (Prepay)......................................... ...........1000 ohms (Semi-Postpay)................................... ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------

When physical trunks are used, these resistances include that of the facility between the CO and the remote.

3.1.3 Range extension equipment, if required, is to be provided: -------- By Bidder -------- By Owner (Quantity and Type)_____________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

4. Traffic Data

4.1 Average combined originating and terminating hundred call seconds (CCS) per line in the busy hour: ------ CCS/Line. (Assume originating & terminating equal.)

4.2 Percent Intra-Calling --------

4.3 Total Busy Hour Calls --------

5. TYPE or RINGING

5.1 Frequency No. 1. 2. 3. 4.

Frequency (Hz).......................... ...... ...... ...... ......Max. No. of Phones/Freq................. ...... ...... ...... ......

5.2 Minimum ringing generator capacity to be supplied shall be sufficient to serve -------- lines (each frequency).

6. Central Office Equipment Interface

6.1 COE will be:

6.1.1 COE Manufacturer ________________________________________________________________________ Type____________________________________________________________________ Year____________________________________________________________________ Generic_________________________________________________________________

6.1.2 -------- See digital central office specification for the switchboard at -------------------- .

6.2 Interface will be:6.2.1 -------- Line Circuit(s)6.2.2 -------- Direct Digital Interface6.2.3 -------- Other (Describe) ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

6.3 Mounting rack for line concentrator furnished by: -------- Bidder -------- Owner (Specify width and height of rack available) (Width) (Height)

6.4 Equipment to be installed in existing building: -------- Yes (Attach detailed plan) -------- No

7. Transmission Facilities

7.1 Transmission facilities between the central office and remote terminals shall be:

7.1.1 Type: -------- VF Carrier Derived Circuits -------- Digital Span Line (DS1) -------- Other ________________________________________________________________________ (Attach a layout of the transmission facilities between the central

office and the remote terminals describing transmission and

signaling parameters, routing and resistance where

applicable.)

7.1.2 Utilizes physical plant -------- Cable Pairs (Existing/New) -------- Other ________________________________________________________________________

Note: Unless otherwise stated, physical plant will be supplied by the owner.

7.1.3 Terminal equipment for transmission facility to be supplied by: -------- Owner -------- Bidder

7.1.3.1 Carrier e/w voice terminations -------- Yes -------- No Manufacturer and type___________________________________________________Central office voice terminations Equipped --------, Wired Only --------

7.1.3.2 Digital span line (DS1) supplied by -------- Owner -------- Bidder Manufacturer and Type___________________________________________________

7.1.3.3 Number of repeaters (per span line) --------

7.1.3.4 Diverse (alternate) span line routing required -------- Yes (Describe in Item 11) -------- No

7.1.3.5 Span line terminations only -------- Yes -------- No

7.1.3.6 Span line power required (CO and Remote Terminals) -------- Yes -------- No

7.1.3.7 Physical facility between CO and remote Loop Resistance -------- ohms, Length -------- meters

8. Power Equipment Requirements

8.1 Central Office Terminal

8.1.1 Owner-furnished -48 volt dc power -------- Yes -------- No

8.1.2 Other (Describe)________________________________________________________________________

8.1.3 Standby power is available -------- Yes -------- No

8.2 Remote Terminal

8.2.1 Owner-furnished -48 vdc power -------- Yes -------- No

8.2.2 Bidder-furnished power supply -------- Yes -------- No

8.2.3 AC power available at site: -------- 110 vac, 60 Hz, single-phase -------- Other (Describe in Item 11)

8.2.4 A battery reserve of -------- busy hours shall be provided for this line concentrator terminal when it reaches -------- lines at the traffic rates specified.

8.2.5 Batteries supplied shall be: -------- Lead Calcium-------- Stabilized Electrolyte-------- Sealed Lead Acid-------- Other (Describe in item 11)

8.2.6 Standby power is available -------- Yes -------- No

9. Remote Terminal

9.1 Mounting

9.1.1 -------- Outside Housing (To be furnished by bidder)

9.1.2 -------- Concrete Slab to be furnished by owner (Bidder to supply construction details after award.)

9.1.3 -------- Manhole, environmentally controlled (Describe in Item 11)

9.1.4 -------- Pedestal Mounting

9.1.5 -------- Pole Mounting (Owner-furnished installed pole)

9.1.6 -------- Prefab Building (Owner-furnished site)

9.2 Equipment is to be installed in an existing building. -------- Yes -------- No(Attach detailed plan.)

9.3 Other (Describe)________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

10. Alternates

11. Explanatory Notes

Appendix B to Sec. 1755.397--Specification for Line Concentrators

Detailed Requirements; Bidder Supplied Information Telephone Company (Owner) Name:___________________________________________________________________ Location:_______________________________________________________________ Line Concentrator Equipment Locations Central Office Terminal:________________________________________________ Remote Terminal:________________________________________________________

1. General

1.1 The equipment and materials furnished by the bidder must meet the requirements of paragraphs (a) through (p) of this section.

1.2 Paragraph (a) through (p) of this section cover the minimum general requirements for line concentrator equipment.

1.3 Paragraph (q) of this section covers requirements for installation, inspection and testing when such service is included as part of the contract.

1.4 Appendix A of this section covers the technical data for application engineering and detailed equipment requirements insofar as they can be established by the owner. Appendix A of this section is to be filled in by the owner.

1.5 This appendix B covers detailed information on the line concentrator equipment, information as to system reliability and traffic capacity as proposed by the bidder. This appendix B shall be filled in by the bidder and must be presented with the bid.

2. Performance Objectives

2.1 Reliability (See paragraph (c) of this section) ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

2.2 Busy Hour Load Capacity and Traffic Delay (See Paragraph (g) of this section) ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

3. Equipment Quantities Dependent on System Design

3.1 Transmission Facilities between the Central Office and Remote Terminals ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quantity Quantity

Type equipped wired only------------------------------------------------------------------------

........... ...........

........... ...........

........... ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. Power Requirements

4.1 Central Office Terminal Voltage_________________________________________________________________ Current Drain (Amps) Normal --------, Peak -------- Fuse Qty --------, Size --------, Type -------- Heat Dissipation (BTU/Hr.) --------________________________________________________________________________

4.2 Remote Terminal AC or DC________________________________________________________________ Voltage_________________________________________________________________ Current Drain (Amps) Normal --------, Peak -------- Fuse Qty --------, Size --------, Type -------- Heat Dissipation (BTU/Hr.) --------________________________________________________________________________

Power required for heating or cooling equipment in remote bidder-furnished housing ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

5. Temperature and Humidity Limitations

5.1 Temperature ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Central

office Remote*------------------------------------------------------------------------Maximum F (C)................................. ........... ...........Minimum F (C)................................. ........... ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------

5.2 Relative Humidity ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Central

office Remote*------------------------------------------------------------------------Maximum....................................... ........... ...........Minimum....................................... ........... ...........------------------------------------------------------------------------* Show conditions outside bidder-furnished housing.

6. Explanatory Notes [60 FR 44729, Aug. 29, 1995, as amended at 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004] Sec. Sec. 1755.398-1755.399 [Reserved]