Telephone systems construction

Article By:

Dolch, David F. Verizon Communications Inc., Teaneck, New Jersey

Last reviewed:January 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.681200

Construction of the physical components of the telephone system from the central office to the end user. The telephone system can be roughly divided into three major components: outside plant, switching equipment, and interoffice facilities. The outside plant can be thought of as the local cables that bring the phone service to the subscribers' premises. The switching equipment resides in a building called a central office and serves to route the call to the correct location. The interoffice facilities connect one central office to another. When a call is initiated, the outside plant carries the signal to the local central office. The switching equipment in the local central office then determines the location to which the call needs to be routed. The call is then routed over the interoffice facilities to the central office serving the person being called, where the switching equipment then connects the call to the local outside plant. This article describes the outside plant portion of the telephone system.

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