AT&T Shows Off Its “NASA” of Networks

A top-secret location in North Texas houses what some call the "NASA" of networks.

AT&T Inc.'s Network Operations Center boasts floor-to-ceiling monitors fixed in front of a state-of-the-art command center that hosts dozens of workers with their eye on the network.

"This is the heart and soul of our network," said Adam Vital, vice president and general manager of North Texas.

Each worker in the NOC is essential to the efficiency of AT&T's network.

"The workers here react to alerts that indicate customers' service may be impacted," said David Nichols, AT&T Texas president.

In one area near the NOC, little compartments house AT&T wireless phones. Each one is consistently tested, monitored and eventually perfected for network use -- and that network is getting some major upgrades.

"We will be placing more than 5,000 antenna and more than 900 cell sites across the Metroplex," Nichols said.

The goal is to improve voice quality, reduce dropped calls and increase the speed of the network. It also means more to monitor in the NOC and even more to come.

"This is just the beginning," Vital said. "We're just on the cutting edge right here."

The NOC is also where workers monitored data usage at Cowboys Stadium during the Super Bowl.

AT&T said it saw twice the data usage from last year's Super Bowl in Miami. AT&T customers sent almost 1 million text messages over the period of 10 hours.

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