Benefits of a Joint Use Platform [Part 1]: For States & Organizations

People are using more and more data with their various devices. For state and local governments, getting broadband access for their citizens is an important card in the game. However, broadband deployment is being delayed in many areas, in part due to communication and data management challenges between asset owners and the companies that want to attach equipment to those assets.

These delays have become a hot-button issue for broadband companies, and for the cities or towns that desire broadband access. As a result, many states, cities, regulatory bodies, and other organizations are stepping in to initiate change.

Taking Steps to Improve Utility Asset Data Management
In March of 2017, The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) convened a public workshop to examine the implications of data management for utility safety and access. One of the key considerations was to discuss the status of platforms regarding pole and conduit information in California. In part, this workshop was held to discuss how California can promote competition among providers, ensure equal access to attachers, contractors and other stakeholders, and make utility assets as easy as possible to manage. 

Connecticut’s Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA) also tasked a working group with developing ideas to improve communications between pole owners and attaching partners. Similarly, the State of Utah has officially adopted the use of a centralized platform to streamline and establish consistency in the pole attachment relationship between pole owners and attaching entities.

The Solution: A Joint Use Platform
A centralized platform can be used to for permit applications to attach, relocate, or remove pole attachment equipment and can be used for other communications between pole owners, attachers, third-party contractors, and more. Built-in security measures allow data to be kept private or made public based on the desires of each company. This kind of platform can be used state-wide or nationwide, across various companies, to streamline asset management and communications between multiple asset owners and attachers.

Once put into use, a central platform can enable:

• More efficient fieldwork, like simplifying the “next to go” process for transfers
• The smartest path from point A to B for deploying new services, such as broadband
• Improved safety as the result of more accurate and timely asset maintenance data
• Greater market competition and improved access to data

Learn more. Schedule your consultation with an asset management expert today.