Leatherhead, UK – Independent mobile network planning and optimisation consultancy AIRCOM International, has been named the market leading supplier of engineering tools to operators by global telecom software market analysis house, OSS Observer. 

The recently published OSS Observer Service Fulfilment Market Review report reveals that AIRCOM International currently has a 19% share of a $542 million market.  By tracking revenues for products and other related professional services, it estimates AIRCOM’s 2007 engineering tools revenue to be a market-leading $85 million, with strong operator mobile network expansion believed to be the key factor behind its growth. 

AIRCOM provides a wide range of mobile network engineering tools and services to operators.  ENTERPRISE is its integrated suite of network engineering software, which provides mobile network engineers with the tools to plan, operate and optimise 2G, 2.5G, 3G and 3.5G cellular and WiMAX networks.  It has a global customer base, and currently works with the likes of China Mobile, Orange, T-Mobile, Telefonica, Telstra, Vodacom and Vodafone.

“The mobile engineering tools arena is changing rapidly as operators look to get better spectrum, improve equipment efficiency and support more customers with less staff,“ says Margaret Rice-Jones, CEO at AIRCOM International.  “As the environment has changed, AIRCOM has been able to adapt quickly, and we are now able to deliver additional supporting services to our customers.”

“As a result, we now offer the most complete software solution of any vendor to our customer base, and we have continued to deliver mobile planning, design and performance management solutions to operators right across the globe.   I am delighted to see that we are now considered number one for network engineering tool support.”

The OSS Observer report predicts that global engineering tool spend by operators will reach $629 million by 2012, with spend on stand-alone, technology specific tools declining significantly.  As networks become more complex, it predicts that end-to-end service and network design tools - such as those offered by AIRCOM’s ENTERPRISE tool suite - will grow to become the predominant factor in the network engineering tools industry.