AT&T To Replace 17,000 Batteries

An anonymous reader writes "After four fires in two years — see earlier Slashdot discussions for background — AT&T is going against its own independent lab findings and declaring that the Avestor batteries powering its U-verse network aren't safe and need to be replaced. This is the network that SBC was building out prior to acquiring AT&T. Following the latest broadband equipment cabinet explosion in Wisconsin, the carrier says it will swap out 17,000 batteries deployed in several states across its network."

Comments

Re:But... why?

[Locutus]

some have said that hot summer days were helping with the overheating of the batteries and the explosions. But, if you notice, the last explosion happened in late December in Wisconsin. Not likely to have been a very "hot" day. It could still be a heat issue if there's internal overheating do to "other" internal computer equipment, power supplies, and other equipment inside those boxes.

Don't expect AT&T to tell anybody what's really going on. After the dozens of images and stories that went out after the first explosion, AT&T is on top of these blown-up systems like white on rice.

Another interesting detail is that the company hired to examine the systems after the first two explosions said that the batteries and safety equipment were sound. They also said that they were likely better than most other batteries on the market. If this is the case, AT&T is going to have to start putting very large warning stickers on these boxes as they keep exploding. Maybe something like this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pluckytree/2186452007/in/pool-stickfiguresinperil/

or a version of this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/blackloveinspace/494802125/in/pool-stickfiguresinperil/

LoB

Another sign of VRAD overheating observed?

[Lauren Weinstein]

Out here in the West San Fernando Valley (Los Angeles) -- and it can get *very* hot here during the summer -- where AT&T has widely deployed VRAD cabinets (though U-verse is not activated here yet), I've recently noticed another sign of possible overheating problems. On the side of the VRAD cabinets is apparently a large air intake with an exposed filter element. On several units I've observed recently, the filter element first vanished completely, and then was replaced shortly thereafter with what appear to be rather bulky external fan units. Interesting. --Lauren--

Re:There's nothing good hearted about this

[ScrewMaster]

That and earning a lot of good PR. Most of us don't mind so much when companies make mistakes (we all recognize that, well, sometimes shit happens.) It is when a corporation goes into deny/ignore mode that we get pissed off. This will cost AT&T a bit of cash, sure, but they deserve that for buying crap batteries in the first place. Furthermore, imagine the hot water they'd be in if this started happening again. Somebody upstairs decided not to take the risk.

Smart move.