subject: Who Holds Responsibility For The Demarc Extension? [print this page] To the telecom agent and carrier, this means that the customer will associate a bad connection with the service provided by the agent or carrier no matter who's to blame, even if the customer was responsible!
A demarc extension, as mandated by federal regulations for every telecom circuit, is not only the most important transmission path within a building's telecommunications infrastructure, but also completes the circuit route for your customer. A bad demarc extension and improper fault isolation of a circuit means a bad connection and will extend delivery time or immobilize a business until the issue is resolved, thus the customer is looking at you for answers and quickly. It does not enhance your customer relationship when you say "it was your responsibility"!
Problem:
If you're an agent you have been there before; the customer has been sold a circuit and wants it to be operating immediately. Here are a few scenarios:
- Responsibility for the demarc extension has never been clear and finally
when if is clarified, you may have an upset customer
- The customer forgets or gets someone inexperienced to install the demarc
extension
- The circuit is not working and the finger pointing begins. The customer calls
the installer back in to determine the issue and installer does not
understand circuits or eCPE. Thus, the agent/carrier blames the demarc
extension and the installer blames the circuit.
From the customer's perspective, in any scenario, the agent/carrier should take responsibility for the demarc extension.
Solution:
It may be a challenge for the agent or carrier to find a company to handle all aspects of the demarc extension as well as installing the circuit on a national or international basis. In addition to the cabling involved in the demarc extension, it is to the agent and carrier's best interest to partner with a company that understands telecom circuits and has the ability to provide additional services, such as:
