I take it the reason for the digital side of things is to close small exchanges that house broadband only and PSTN equipment and allow for larger exchanges with generators to serve a better service and provide power to run the Fibre feeding the areas that the small exchanges used to cover?
and if an exchange does not have an exhaust for a generator (I have seen what you are on about) how is long term power provided to run the IP equipment - battery bank?

In reply to a post by thomaswarne01:

I take it the reason for the digital side of things is to close small exchanges that house broadband only and PSTN equipment and allow for larger exchanges with generators to serve a better service and provide power to run the Fibre feeding the areas that the small exchanges used to cover?
and if an exchange does not have an exhaust for a generator (I have seen what you are on about) how is long term power provided to run the IP equipment - battery bank?

Well-many small and medium sized exchanges have generators.

Im not an expert in the generators so I can�t answer your question about exhausts.

UPS units (very large and very small) are used heavily in BT exchanges, but actually are often only required in the gap between a power cut and when the generator kicks in.

What I would say is that the closure of small and medium exchanges is an ambition and yes digital voice will help. But people need to remember that exchanges contain much more than just residential voice and broadband equipment. Each exchange is different so you might find a small exchange that quite simply can�t be closed as it contains equipment in there that is part of very lucrative contracts.

In reply to a post by Icaras:

Each exchange is different so you might find a small exchange that quite simply can�t be closed as it contains equipment in there that is part of very lucrative contracts.

Or indeed equipment that most don't have a clue about and others can't talk about.

For the paranoid I'm not talking about listening devices or other super secret spy stuff, I'm talking about the descendants of our early warning / relay systems. Have a Google of UKWMO and associated technologies if curious.