Companies Data

							   T E X A S E XC AVAT I O N S A F E T Y S Y S T E M




Texas Excavation Safety System Digs AT&T
Companies’ Data Center Hosting Service
  Texas Excavation Safety System
  Situation: TESS needed to meet government regulations and integrate its systems into a single,
  reliable operations center
  Solution: AT&T family of companies1 provide data center hosting with IDCs
  Result: TESS spends less time and resources managing the network, allowing for more focus
  on other business-critical operations

     n order to seamlessly              Because the SBC Internet Data Center      in Texas, helps businesses prevent
 I   integrate security, voice and      (IDC) helps ensure that TESS is always    damages to vital buried lines
                                        up and running, the organization is       before excavation.
support services, network circuits      now able to keep its members notified
                                                                                  When companies in Texas need to
and environmental systems into          of potential excavation sites, even
                                        during power outages.                     begin a dig, they contact TESS,
one reliable operations center,                                                   which has been in operation since
Texas Excavation Safety System          “The new AT&T companies and the           1987 TESS notifies owners of buried
                                        AT&T account team helped us bring         facilities so that the location of all
(TESS), a public safety service
                                        all of our services together to meet      lines can be marked ahead of time.
for businesses in Texas, enlisted       our voice and data needs,” said Lee       This facilitates damage prevention
the help of the new AT&T family         Marrs, president, Texas Excavation        and ensures public safety. By law, TESS
                                        Safety System. “Because of this,
of companies for data center
                                        employees have spent less time
hosting services.                       fighting equipment failures, and we’re    “With nearly 2 million incoming and
                                        also saving a tremendous amount in        8 million outgoing calls expected this
Since implementation, TESS has spent    maintenance costs.”                       year alone, we needed a reliable
less time and resources managing its
                                                                                  provider that could help us manage
network. The organization is now able   Texas Excavation Safety System (TESS),
                                                                                  our voice and data network so we
to focus on its more than 700 member    a nonprofit organization that serves as
                                                                                  could run our business as efficiently
companies throughout the state.         a public safety service for companies
                                                                                  as possible,” said Lee Marrs, president,
                                                                                  Texas Excavation Safety System.


                                                                                         SGB02251-1 • December 2005
 About TESS
 Texas Excavation Safety System (TESS) is a nonprofit organization that serves as a public safety service for companies in Texas
 and helps businesses prevent damages to vital buried lines before excavation.


                                             “We’re the people you call before
     Why AT&T Companies?                                                                       By law, TESS must provide its
                                             you dig,” said Marrs. “And with nearly
                                                                                               services 24 hours a day, 365 days
                                             2 million incoming and 8 million
 AT&T Inc. is one of the world’s                                                               a year. Therefore, reliable voice
                                             outgoing calls expected this year
 largest telecommunications holding                                                            and data services are critical to
                                             alone, we needed a reliable provider
 companies and is the largest in the                                                           the organization.
                                             that could help us manage our voice
 United States. Operating globally under
                                             and data network so we could run our
 the AT&T brand, AT&T companies are
                                             business as efficiently as possible.”        “We rely entirely on AT&T companies
 recognized as the leading worldwide
 providers of IP-based communications                                                     to keep us connected at all times,
                                             In 2001, TESS recognized the need
 services to business and as leading                                                      even during power failures and bad
                                             for more secure and reliable services
 U.S. providers of high-speed DSL                                                         weather, as required by law,” said Marrs.
                                             and approached the AT&T family of
 Internet, local and long distance
                                             companies for a solution. AT&T               TESS also wanted to consolidate its
 voice, and directory publishing and
                                             companies recommended the imple-             services with one provider in order to
 advertising services.
                                             mentation of a data center hosting           reduce expenses. TESS put its trust in
 AT&T Inc. holds a 60 percent own-           solution, an equipment-housing               AT&T companies for its local, long
 ership interest in Cingular Wireless,       service that offers on-site technical        distance and toll-free calling services.
 which is the No. 1 U.S. wireless            support, scalable bandwidth and              It continues to rely on AT&T companies
 services provider with more than            network transport in a fault-tolerant        for SBC Yahoo!® DSL2 and Cingular?
 52 million wireless customers. For          and secure environment within a              Wireless service. Further, TESS has
 more information about AT&T products        state-of-the-art Internet data center.       renewed its contract for long distance
 and services, contact your local                                                         voice services and extended its IDC
 AT&T technical sales representative,        The Internet Data Centers (IDCs)
                                                                                          services contract for another five years.
 or visit www.TheNewATT.com.                 are designed with redundant power
                                                                                          1
                                             supplies, dual-grid access, and                  Services provided by former SBC companies,
                                                                                              which are now part of the new AT&T Inc.
                                             completely redundant power backups
must provide its services 24 hours
                                             to ensure a highly available solution        2
                                                                                              With the close of its acquisition of AT&T Corp.,
a day, 365 days a year. Therefore,                                                            SBC companies are currently making the
                                             and maximum uptime for TESS’ voice
reliable voice and data services are                                                          necessary legal and regulatory filings required
                                             and data applications. In addition,              to offer products and services under the new
critical to the organization.
                                             all systems are monitored by the                 AT&T brand.

Before 2001, TESS relied on a main-          on-site 24/7 Operations System
frame to support traffic; but the            Center, which allows TESS to virtually
organization soon realized that it           monitor its network circuits, fire
wasn’t secure or immune to power             protection, environmental controls
outages. In addition, TESS was               and security systems.
spending a great deal of time, money,
                                             The data center hosting solution
and energy using various telecomm
                                             has provided TESS with lower
and equipment vendors instead of
                                             maintenance costs, increased uptime
one point of contact.
                                             and productivity. Because the IDC
                                             is managed by AT&T companies,
                                             employees no longer worry about
                                             an equipment failure.