One of the lessons learned from 2020 is that the ability to remotely monitor and manage telecom network assets is now a must-have capability, according to Shahar Milman, VP of busines development at Galooli. Due to the global pandemic, telecom operators had to quickly shift most of their workers to a work-from-home model and still be able to manage and monitor their networks, while physical access to remote sites suddenly became more difficult due to travel restrictions and other coronavirus limitations.
“2020 showed us how crucial it is to have remote monitoring solutions on sites,” he said.
Galooli is an industrial IoT company which works with major telecom players, including American Tower, to connect network infrastructure at tens of thousands of cellular sites, such as batteries, generators, rectifiers and aviation lights, and then provide the services and real-time analytics to monitor and manage those assets. The company, which supports remote assets in 35 countries around the world, has helped save millions of dollars in energy optimization and in fuel consumption reduction , which Milman says directly translate to a lower carbon footprint and carbon credits, depending on the country.
In addition to supporting improvements in energy efficiency, Milman points out that increasingly, operators are being required to bolster the resilience of their sites—particularly when it comes to back-up power. Last year, devastating wildfires prompted the California Public Utilities Commission to begin requiring 72 hours of battery back-up power at cellular towers in high-fire-risk areas, so that sites continue to run – and residents can receive mobile emergency alerts and call 911 — even when there are electricity shutdowns, which are becoming more common during wildfire season.
Galooli’s combination of tech and telecom services can also, for example, track tower light malfunctions and send alerts, and its partnerships with industrial battery OEMs mean that it can also provide monitoring that includes GPS tracking of assets to guard against theft. In July of 2020, for example, Galooli announced a smart battery from industrial lead battery specialist Fiamm that is equipped with both Galooli’s AI Remote Management and GPS tracking. The built-in Galooli unit increases the lifetime of the battery and optimizes its performance, while analyzing and predicting its output and enabling remote monitoring and management of battery activity, a direct cost reduction of truck trips to sites.
“I think the uniqueness of Galooli, is the AI analytics and the active control that we’re able to give to our customers,” Milman said, going on to say that the company’s offerings across both stationary and mobile offer its customers a comprehensive view across multi-function verticals in one platform. “We use AI analytics based on real data evidence that we collect from the assets that we’re connected to,” Milman added. “For over a decade, we’ve ensured that remote assets will always perform in the most optimum way for our customers.”
Learn more about Galooli here.