Development and Support of LLUMS

Introduction

In 2005, shortly before the formation of Openreach, Enterprise Systems was introduced to BT. The team was tasked with building a web-based application (which became LLUMS) to track the national rollout of Local Loop Unbundling (LLU). The system was built using the ubiquitous LAMP stamp, though it had to be deployed on Windows until appropriate hardware could be provisioned.

System Growth and Expansion

As the needs of Openreach’s Plan and Build team evolved, the scope of LLUMS grew to cover additional requirements. The system was expanded to include tracking of the Next Generation Access (NGA) rollout, management of NGA capacity issues, TAM, and MDF Capacity Management. This expansion was made possible by the flexible and well-normalized data model that LLUMS was built upon. As demand scaled, the infrastructure provided grew, first to a dedicated rack mount server in a single data centre, and then to a pair of dedicated servers in two data centres, with database synchronisation enabled.

Agile Methodology and Collaborative Working

One of the key factors in the success of LLUMS was the early adoption of agile methodology. This approach allowed the Enterprise Systems team to respond to new requirements and deliver custom functionality within 3-month deployment cycles. The agile process includedd close collaboration between Openreach staff and the Enterprise Systems development team, especially when working together on-site in Aberdeen. This way of working allowed us to minimise time consuming requirements gathering and approval processes and was instrumental to the continued adoption of LLUMS.

System Migration and Peak Usage

LLUMS proved to be a valuable asset to Openreach, and as a result it was used to migrate numerous other systems within the company. At its peak in 2017, Enterprise Systems had 10 full-time staff members dedicated to the development and support of LLUMS. The system’s usage reached a maximum of 2,000 active users, demonstrating its widespread adoption and importance within BT.

Conclusion

The development and support of LLUMS by Enterprise Systems showcased the team’s ability to build a flexible, scalable, and user-friendly system that met the evolving needs of BT and Openreach. Embracing agile, encouraging close collaboration and trusting the team allowed them to deliver a system that not only tracked the national rollout of LLU but also the following NGA programme. The success of LLUMS is a testament to the skill and dedication of the Enterprise Systems team and their counterparts in Openreach.