Supporting Global Satellite Expansion 

How Terra Firma’s project team successfully ensured the readiness of satellite bases, repeater sites and associated data centres for future customer usage.
Situation

This Telecommunications Organisation delivers digital infrastructure-based assets and services to a wide variety of commercial customer entities. Assets include fibre, fixed network facilities such as data centres, specialised office space, cable landing stations and satellite ground stations. 

At the request of an important commercial customer driving global satellite expansion, this organisation required a critical project to support this expansion. This was achieved by creating a network of 600 satellite bases and 64 repeater sites in Eastern Australia, connected by 100 Gbps fibreoptic network to strategically located Data Centres.  

Terra Firma was engaged for Consulting and Project Management Services to ensure successful readiness of the satellite bases, repeater sites and associated data centres for this organisation for future customer usage. 

Challenge

The scope of the project was to ultimately result in the expansion of a marketleading 1TB satellite capacity to service aviation, defence and domestic end customers as part of a planned launch of three new satellites into Earth’s orbit. 

Solution

Terra Firma’s role in this large program was to ensure each nominated satellite base, repeater site and data centre was in ‘ready state’ for commercial customer utilisation. This included project management of all required infrastructure and power needs, physical officerelated components and service-based requirements for each site. 

Our Approach

Key elements of the approach used to execute this engagement included: 

  • Established project management framework and governance in alignment with Sponsor and key stakeholders. 
  • Implemented working project working teams that included all critical stakeholders. 
  • Prioritised site locations for an organised way of performing infrastructure improvements across the asset landscape. 
  • Applied monthly iterations to ensure targeted delivery of 20 asset locations for readiness completion state. 
  • Worked with technical stakeholders and vendors to deliver critical infrastructure-based activities.
Outcomes

Terra Firma successfully delivered the following outcomes within the first 10 months of the ongoing project: 

  • Project delivered significant savings under initial budget estimates. 
  • Over 300 satellite bases, 64 repeater sites, and several data centres were successfully prepared in readiness state. 
  • Project team received numerous commendations and regular recognition of successful project delivery throughout the project from all stakeholder levels. 
  • This project ensured the commercial customer entity was able to be progressively onboarded to be able to utilise the planned improved infrastructure in support of the planned Satellite expansion. 

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