Nokia Flexi Base Station

Controller (Flexi BSC)

One network provider rises to the challenge

with innovative solutions, advanced features,
and enhanced capabilities – Nokia Networks.
Our solutioneers chart a smooth evolutionary
course to protect operators’ installed base
and future-proof their investments. And
they develop new products geared to drive
revenues up and costs down. Witness our
Flexi BSC: Engineered to provide remarkable
capacity, it leaves a small footprint and
consumes little power.

Bigger capacity, smaller package

The latest Nokia Base Station Controller, the Flexi BSC, offers
vastly improved capacity in a compact package the size of a
single cabinet. If you are seeking to boost capacity and improve
your network with the latest technology, look no further than the
Flexi BSC. It delivers plenty of capacity to meet even the most
demanding requirements. Featuring the latest Intel processors, it
rivals any other BSC for CS traffic capacity and outperforms them
all in terms of PS traffic handling capacity.
All but unlimited traffic handling
The Flexi BSC scales to suit just about any size demand, so its
PS traffic handling capacity is practically unlimited. No need to buy
new BSCs when this one grows in step with your business. Market
leading CS traffic handling capacity with 25,000 erlangs takes care
of the solid base of revenue coming from call traffic.
Built to trim OPEX Rugged and reliable

Far more capacity from one box means far less equipment to Software releases, new radio network parameters, and
install and operate. Its compact format saves site space and configuration changes may be downloaded to the BSC and
costs, and the easily connected interfaces expedite installation to base stations (BTSs) from the central NetAct™ Operations
to cut IMPEX. OPEX savings figure prominently in the Flexi BSC. Support System without interrupting network traffic.
For one, its advanced technology and compact, single-cabinet Automatic fault detection and redundant hot standby units
design minimize power consumption. Figures below 1 W per minimize downtime. Even if a call control or switching unit
TRX attest to its remarkable efficiency. develops a fault, very few calls and connections are lost. And
sophisticated overload protection mechanisms ascertain
Easy to extend
traffic handling capacity under extreme conditions.
Accommodating up to 4,200 TRXs in one cabinet, its capacity Unmatched availability
scales in one TRX steps. You can start low and pay as you grow,
adding Packet Control Units as demand dictates. Measured in Reliability and high availability have always been key assets
erlangs or Mbit/s, traffic handling costs have never been so low. of Nokia BSCs. The Flexi BSC carries on the tradition with
And adding more capacity to your installed base has never a 0.9999998 availability rating, a figure that makes it the
been easier. market leader.
The Flexi BSC’s peak processing capacity is over 25,000 erlangs The ultra advanced NetAct™ Operations Support System
with our nominal call mix, and it supports up to 4,200 BTS provides integrated network management and automated
sectors. This means you can use all 4,200 TRXs to their full management processes to drive OPEX down even further. It
extent to capitalize fully on your investment. also leverages centralized tools for network wide operations
and enables more proactive responses to network events to
With so many transceivers to work with, you can make
help boost revenue. And it helps optimize CAPEX by providing
handovers more efficient and reduce signaling overhead
a steady stream of information, enabling managers to make
between the mobile switches (MSS) and BSC to save
informed business decisions.
installation, commissioning, spare parts, operating, and
maintenance costs. And because this unit is so easy to extend, Advanced software for superior performance
you can add on improved functionality without having to adapt
Courtesy of its sophisticated software, the Flexi BSC can
the system architecture.
accommodate any mix of CS and PS traffic to maximize
Effortless updating capacity. It puts into your hands advanced software
tools that let you “squeeze” utmost capacity and efficiency
What’s more, the Flexi BSC’s modular structure lets you from the radio spectrum and resolve congestion in
increase traffic handling capacity by updating its processors as urban networks.
faster Intel products become available. The latest step up the
evolutionary ladder to higher TRX capacity from 3,000 to 4,200 Our solutioneers know that software is the most cost-
TRXs is an excellent example of the continuous evolution of effective way of boosting network reliability and capacity. This
Intel processing solutions. is why our commitment to our BSC software’s evolutionary
advance runs deep. Count on us to keep coming up with
Additionally, new transmission options are introduced in the improvements that benefit you.
form of plug-in units to make integrated solutions updateable
as smoothly as possible. Whether it is capacity, functional The latest in radio network performance software is the
evolution or transmission, the Flexi BSC is here to serve for unique Nokia innovation called Orthogonal Sub Channel
years to come with easy updates. (OSC). OSC introduces a doubling of the channel capacity;
that is, four users sharing the same radio slot via a Double
Less to install and maintain Half Rate (DHR) channel, made possible through unique
innovation by Nokia. When an operator needs to increase
Equipped with an IP switch, the Flexi BSC offers flexible
capacity, this is normally achieved through extending the
connectivity options, brings IP capability to all external
BTS configuration (via increasing the TRX and combiner
interfaces such as Packet Abis and A over IP, and enables high
port count), increasing the combining loss, and potentially
capacity SIGTRAN (SS7 over IP) links to maximize traffic usage.
impacting coverage. OSC can provide this increased capacity
The Flexi BSC comes complete with built-in SDH/Sonet without requiring new TRXs (or related hardware) and
capability as well as conventional PCM interfaces. With the avoiding the network impact. Consequently, for the operator
benefit of this optical interface, you need fewer connections, an increased capacity can be provided more easily and
which translates to less installation effort, faster rollout, and effectively. Due to the capacity improvements realized by
lower maintenance costs. External transmission equipment is OSC, fewer TRXs are necessary in order to realize a specific
unnecessary, so there are far fewer network elements capacity or spectral efficiency.
to support.
Ready for WCDMA and LTE Key features at a glance

Another key feature of the Flexi BSC is its ability to interwork High circuit • and packet handling capacity, from 4,200 TRXs
with WCDMA. It enables handovers from GSM BSS to WCDMA in a compact, single-cabinet format
RAN and vice versa, and supports both CS (handover and MS •L
 ow power consumption
cell re-selection) and PS (MS cell reselection) modes. No other
•F
 ull flexibility in BTS configurations with unlimited number
platform is better suited for building GSM/WCDMA networks and
of sectors and sites
providing seamless services to users.
• Modular for easy expansion and evolution
GSM/EDGE-LTE interworking is gaining currency, and service
•B
 uilt-in IP and SDH/Sonet connectivity
continuity for multimode operations will soon be a big issue.
The Flexi BSC is ready to tackle the LTE challenge. On top of •S
 upports SIGTRAN (SS7 over IP)
functional interworking, the co-locationing of Flexi BSC with •V
 ery efficient use of radio resources with flexible voice and
Multicontroller BSC also brings the product evolution path data traffic mix
towards the Multicontroller RNC. •H
 ighest radio network efficiency with innovative features
Tops in transmission efficiency such as OSC
•B
 SC and MSC may be sited apart to boost transmission
Nokia BSCs act as BTS controllers and as remote voice and data efficiency
concentrators, thereby cutting the cost of leased transmission
•F
 ield-proven reliability, advanced architecture, and superior
lines. Whether the need is for traditional PCM, optical STM-
flexibility
1/OC-3 or IP/Ethernet, the Flexi BSC will provide integrated
solutions for the most cost- efficient option. •S
 wift fault detection and hot standby units for minimal
downtime
Concentrated to cut costs
•P
 owerful handover and power control algorithms for high
Our BSCs install at remote locations, reducing the number of call success rate
transmission links back to the MSS. The BSC concentrates traffic •F
 ull support of the market leading NetAct™ network
as close to the air interface as possible – that is; near the BTSs management system
where traffic is generated – to save transmission costs. Siting •G
 SM-WCDMA interworking
the PCU as an integral part of the BSC also helps concentrate
•C
 o-location option with Multicontroller BSC
PS traffic and spares you the expense of distributing data to a
remote location. •G
 SM-LTE interworking .
 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION OF FLEXI BSC
Capacity Maximum capacity: 4,200 TRXs
Capacity increase in 1-TRX steps
Maximum connectivity: 4,200 BTS cells
800 E1/T1 external PCM interfaces
Up to 18 STM-1/OC-3 optical external interfaces with redundancy options
Up to 14 Gigabit Ethernet external interfaces for IP with redundancy options
Performance Voice: 25,200 erlangs
Data: 30,720 (E)GPRS 16 kbit/s channels
Weights Flexi BSC fully loaded (one cabinet) approx. 350 kg
Floor loading below 500 kg/m2
No need for raised floor
Cabinet dimensions 2000 x 900 x 600 mm
Height x width x depth (mm)
Power supply Inputs -48 or -60 V dc
Direct floating batteries can be used in both cases
Power consumption Nominal power consumption: 3.0 kW
Typical operating power consumption of 4,200 TRX Flexi BSC
is around 4 kW with average number of Packet Control Units
and external interface units in use
Environment:
Safety EN 60950 and UL 60950
Fire resistance GR63CORE & TP76200MP
Earthquake resistance ETS 300 019 & GR63CORE
Environmental requirements ETS 300019-1-3
EMC specifications EN 300386-2 & FCC part 15
Acoustic noise ETS 300 753 & GR63CORE
Restriction of Hazardous Substances EU 2002/95/EC (RoHS)
Product collection and disposal EU 2002/96/EC (WEEE)

Product code C401-01100-DS-201410-1-EN Nokia Solutions Visiting address:

and Networks Oy Karaportti 3, ESPOO, Finland
P.O. Box 1 Switchboard +358 71 400 4000
FI-02022
Finland

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