Training lab
Fail in the LAB, not in the FIELD
Excellence comes through failure. Magenta just makes sure the failing happens here.
A city in a lab
Every piece is live plant
Every piece of equipment Magenta has ever installed in the field is a live part of this real, working network. It is not a mock-up and it is not a poster on the wall. It is the same plant the customers run on.
The lab gives technicians a safe, controlled place to learn before they go to the field, where time, safety, quality, and money are all on the line at once.
Better technicians get better results for the customer.
Hard standard
Know the plant before the field
Technicians know the plant before they go to the field. A part they have never seen, worked with, or repaired does not show up for the first time on a trouble call. Magenta considers that unacceptable.
01, 2020-05-14 to 2020-06-30
Intent / Design
The thought went on the board before the first mount went on the wall. It was drawn by hand and dated, and the early bench boards sit alongside that first sketch.
2020-06-30/lab-09
Hand-drawn: three stations and the cable run between them. The thought went on the board first.
2020-05-14/lab-01
A plywood practice board with closures mounted and a reel on the floor.
2020-05-14/lab-02
An open splice tray on the reel, with the adapters seated in the tray.
2020-05-14/lab-03
The closure lid and a pigtail laid out on the board.
2020-05-14/lab-04
A closure on its mount, with the reel beside it.
2020-05-14/lab-05
A white enclosure sitting open on the board.
2020-05-14/lab-06
A three-bay enclosure with the adapters in place.
2020-05-14/lab-07
A white splice box with the lid off.
2020-05-18/lab-08
Three boxes open on the board, with a drop organizer alongside.
02, 2020-07-23 to 2020-08-27
Shell & stations
An empty hall with boards on stands and the tables set. A RAPIDLINK face and the first furnished room fall in this stretch of dates.
2020-07-23/lab-10
The empty hall, seen wide.
2020-07-23/lab-11
Practice walls dressed with closures.
2020-07-23/lab-12
An empty board, with closures waiting on the table.
2020-07-29/lab-13
A RAPIDLINK face with the ports labeled.
2020-08-25/lab-14
The evolution continues but the training is live.
2020-08-27/lab-15
A drawing of the pull plow setup and the installation plan, worked out on the board before the build.
03, 2020-09-29
Live plant in the lab
Closures on the bench, practice walls dressed, and the whole room in one view, with a port map taped to the box. This is where the plant starts running.
2020-09-29/lab-16
An overview of the room: whiteboard notes, plywood stations, and gear on the table.
2020-09-29/lab-17
The lab isn't done, but the training is in full effect.
2020-09-29/lab-18
It's not pretty, just pretty amazing.
2020-09-29/lab-19
Show them the right way, they'll do it the right way.
2020-09-29/lab-20
A close-up of the gear, with a printed port map taped beside the box.
04, 2021-01-04
Network build-out
The board gets the plant sketch, with the cases and counts written as they were. Design intent, by hand, before the build.
2021-01-04/lab-21
The whiteboard becomes reality. Every fiber, every closure, every burn and pathway started right here.
05, 2021-01-15
Shell & stations
An empty room with the floor marked and mounts on the wall. It is the next shell, in date order.
2021-01-15/lab-22
The same room, closer in: hooks on the wall, the floor grid marked, nothing live yet.
06, 2021-01-21 to 2021-01-28
Network build-out
The table goes in, cable goes on the floor, boxes go up on the wall, and the fan-outs follow. The city fills in.
2021-01-21/lab-23
The table is in and cable is on the floor. The walls are still waiting.
2021-01-22/lab-24
The first parts of the network begin to show up on the walls. The work is moving along quickly.
2021-01-22/lab-25
Hand tools, sweat, pride, and a lot of determination beginning to yield results.
2021-01-28/lab-26
More parts of the City Network begin appearing in the lab. We're making it happen.
2021-01-28/lab-27
Brackets. Lighting. Mounts. It looks like an art gallery!
2021-01-28/lab-28
NDPs, ONTs, and cabling begin serving the citizens of "City Network."
2021-01-28/lab-29
Microduct, Conduit, Molding, Fan Outs....all coming together to showcase the build.
07, 2021-02-02 to 2021-02-11
Working city
Labeled stations, closures on the wall, and live plant. The room is working. A few yard stills from the same training set close out the run.
2021-02-10/lab-37
The working room, with the wall plant live and the benches set.
2021-02-02/lab-30
The wall is LIVE! That looks AMAZING!
2021-02-02/lab-31
A bank of ONTs on the wall, "Pill Boxes" overhead and the network is HUMMING with blazing speed!
2021-02-02/lab-32
Real techs work on real networks. This is where you learn. This is where you level up your skills.
2021-02-02/lab-33
The reel rack and the pull board.
2021-02-10/lab-34
The pull board, with reels on the stand.
2021-02-10/lab-35
The array of skills on display in this small area is nothing less than IMPRESSIVE. If it doesn't look and WORK like this, do it again.
2021-02-10/lab-36
The closures on the left feed the NDPs and ONTs on the right. The light is flowing.
2021-02-10/lab-38
The corner, with the TV on and the door open.
2021-02-10/lab-39
The HUT lives behind the grey doors on the left. The Alpha and the Omega of the "City Network".
2021-02-11/lab-40
The yard, with a lift and a telehandler by the building.
2021-02-11/lab-41
The yard, with the drill in the dirt.
2021-02-11/lab-42
A drill rod in the dirt.
2021-02-11/lab-43
A stake in the field.
Straight
The photos carry it
These are 43 stills from the lab, shown in the order they were taken, from the first sketch on a board to a working city. There are no miles, crew counts, or spend figures here. Magenta Systems, LLC does not add a story the photos do not support.
To bring your technicians through, or to have your plant built by people who trained here, call 704-457-1162. The phone is answered 24 hours a day.