Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) Requested Unbundled Network Elements (UNE) Construction (CRUNEC) provides a method where you may request Qwest to construct new facilities for utilizing Qwest's Unbundled Network Element (UNE) facilities. CRUNEC is not required for requests that can be resolved through facility work or assignments, such as:
Qwest's CRUNEC applies to the following Wholesale products and services:
For specific information regarding the above products and services refer to the individual Product Catalog (PCAT).
CRUNEC is available throughout Qwest's 14-state local service territory within Qwest's exchange boundaries limited by various stipulations including, but not limited to governmental or jurisdictional restrictions.
To obtain additional facilities, you must submit a CRUNEC request. Such requests will be evaluated on an Individual Case Basis (ICB). You will be responsible for any construction charges that a Qwest retail end-user would be responsible for paying.
Regulations and policies impacting individual products and services are defined within each product and service found in the Qwest Wholesale Products and Services web pages.
When you order the same or substantially similar service available to Qwest retail end-users, Qwest will not charge for CRUNEC where such charges are not provided in the state specific Tariffs/Catalogs/Price Lists or where such charges would not be applied to a Qwest retail end-user.
Qwest bills for CRUNEC only when facilities, which would not otherwise be constructed by Qwest, are being constructed solely upon your request, or when you request construction involving a timeline that is shorter than defined by Qwest.
If at any time during the CRUNEC process you miss the critical timeframes specified, you must restart the process by submitting a new service request for the UNE being ordered.
If, while engineering is preparing the quote (QPF Process), spare facilities or a funded job in progress are found, the CLEC will be eligible for a full refund of the RQPF/CQPF. This may happen as a result of a number of activities including an end users request to disconnect an existing service.
The Service Manager will contact the CLEC to advise and request the CLEC to resubmit a service request as soon as possible. After the service request is resubmitted and the service order is completed, the Service Manager will submit the QPF refund request.
Should the QPF process be stopped by the CLEC at any point in the Quote Preparation process after the CLEC remitted QPF, Qwest will refund payment excluding expenditures already incurred for the EF&I of the requested service. A brief description of the work completed will be provided to the CLEC. The refund will be processed through Qwest's within 5 business days of receipt of the form from.
Should the CRUNEC process be stopped by the CLEC at any point in the Construction process after the CLEC remitted the Construction payment, Qwest will refund payment excluding expenditures already incurred for the EF&I of the requested service. A brief description of the work completed will be provided to the CLEC. The refund will be processed through the Qwest.BART billing system within 120 business days.
Technical characteristics for the product supported by the UNE for which you are requesting CRUNEC are described in the Technical Publications section of the product specific PCAT.
Nonrecurring charges are comprised of the following rate elements:
The RQPF is a nonrecurring charge assessed for a preliminary review of records only and will provide a high level overview of the cost of construction. This quote will only provide a high level visibility to the cable placement needed as well as the estimated construction cost to place the cable based on ideal field conditions. The estimate provided via RQPF is based on records only and will not be binding. A credit for the cost of the RQPF will be applied towards the CQPF.
The CQPF is a nonrecurring charge assessed prior to preparing the CRUNEC quote. This quote will include both the cable placement needed as well as the construction cost to place that cable based on actual field conditions. A credit for the CQPF will be applied to the cost of construction if you accept the quoted CRUNEC price. A CLEC may choose this option after receipt of an RQPF, or may opt to pay for the CQPF at any time after receiving notification that facilities are not available for your service request.
Qwest retains the CQPF if you choose not to proceed with the construction. At any point after remitting the payment for the CRUNEC Quote, you decide to discontinue the construction, Qwest will refund your payment, excluding expenditures already incurred for the Engineered, Furnished and Installed (EF&I) of the requested UNE and the CQPF, with a brief description of the work completed. Contact your Qwest Service Manager to cancel the construction.
The CRUNEC quote amount to be billed will be determined using the same financial analysis criteria Qwest uses to assess whether to build for itself. This includes the cost to recover for EF&I and is determined by a process parallel with that used to price the equivalent Qwest retail construction. EF&I is defined as:
Qwest uses current EF&I cost including, but not limited to material and supplies, engineering, supervision and labor, overhead expenses for construction operations, cost incurred due to unusual conditions, and property owner and governmental requirements (e.g., Rights-of-Way, moratoriums, environmental studies).
Wholesale rates for this product or service, including tariff references and any applicable discounts, are provided in your current Interconnection, Resale, Commercial, or other governing agreements.
Tariffs, regulations and policies are located in the state specific Tariffs/Catalogs/Price Lists.
When facilities are not available, Qwest will build facilities dedicated to an end-user if Qwest would be legally obligated to build such facilities to meet its Provider of Last Resort (POLR) obligation to provide basic Local Exchange Service or its Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) obligation to provide primary basic Local Exchange Service. In other situations, Qwest does not agree that it is obligated to build UNEs, but will consider requests to build UNEs pursuant to your Interconnection Agreement with exceptions that may apply where Commission Orders or State Requirements exist. The CRUNEC process is how Qwest implements the requirements outlined in your Interconnection Agreement . Nothing in this PCAT shall be construed as modifying Qwest obligations under your Interconnection Agreement.
Network elements will not be built if it is determined that the requested element will jeopardize the reliability of Qwest's existing network, endanger Qwest's employees or consumers, is not consistent with the National Electrical Code (NEC), or does not meet Network Equipment Building Standards (NEBS) requirements. All quotes will be based on Qwest's approved facilities, materials and vendors.
If Qwest constructs a network element that satisfies the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) description of a UNE, a facility or equipment used in the provision of telecommunications service, that network element shall be deemed a UNE. Once the facility is constructed, Qwest retains ownership and responsibility for administration and maintenance of the facility.
To request CRUNEC, you must amend your Interconnection Agreement prior to placing a request for CRUNEC. Information regarding amending your Interconnection Agreement, is located in the Interconnection Agreement.
Prior to the ordering of a CRUNEC build, you may initiate a request for a RQPF to determine the feasibility of moving forward with the CRUNEC Process.
When you submit a service request for EEL, LMC, Sub-Loop, Unbundled Local Loop, UDF or UDIT products or services, the process used to determine if facilities are available is equivalent to the process used to determine if assignable facilities exist for Qwest retail services.
This includes checking for:
If facilities are not available, your service request will be returned to you with a message indicating facilities are not available and to contact your Qwest Service Manager for options.
Prior to initiating CRUNEC you may wish to request a RQPF. The RQPF is based on records only and will not be binding. If you determine to move forward with the CRUNEC process the RQPF fee will be applied toward the CQPF fee.
To receive a RQPF Quote the following steps must be followed:
If you do not remit the full RQPF payment along with the original signed contract, a RQPFquote will not be provided.
Within five business days of receiving your signed RQPF contract and full RQPF payment, the RQPF quote will be emailed to you and your Qwest Service Manager. The RQPF quote contains a high level overview of the labor and material costs along with a brief description of work. (e.g., place 2,500 feet of cable).
When you choose to initiate CRUNEC, you will need to complete the following process then resubmit your service request. The first step includes the Construction Quote Preparation Fee (CQPF) contract and the second step includes the CRUNEC contract.
The first step requires you to complete the following:
If you do not remit the full CQPF payment along with the original signed contract, a CRUNEC quote will not be provided.
Within 20 business days of receiving your signed CQPF contract and full CQPF payment, the CRUNEC quote will be emailed to you and your Qwest Service Manager. The CRUNEC quote contains a breakdown of labor and material costs along with a brief description of work (e.g., place 2,500 feet of cable).
The second step requires you to complete the following:
When you accept the CRUNEC quote, you must resubmit your service request and associate it with the CRUNEC by completing the following fields on the Local Service Request (LSR) or Access Service Request (ASR) form:
Failure to provide the above information limits Qwest's ability to associate your requested UNE with the constructed facility.
The following tables provide additional assistance in determining the activities, timeframes and deliverables required for CRUNEC:
| RQPF Activities | Responsible Party | Timeframes | Required Deliverable |
| Provide Request | CLEC | Not applicable |
|
| RQPF Request | Qwest Service Manager | Within three business days after receiving a complete and accurate request |
|
| Delivery of RQPF Contract | Qwest BART | Two business days after receiving a complete request |
|
| RQPF Contract Acceptance | CLEC | 30 business days * |
|
| Delivery of RQPF Quote | Qwest Engineering | 5 Business Days |
|
| Acceptance of RQPF Quote and Request of CQPF | CLEC | 30 Calendar Days |
|
| CRUNEC Activities | Responsible Party | Timeframes | Required Deliverable |
| Provide Request | CLEC | Not applicable |
|
| CQPF Contract Request | Qwest Service Manager | Within three business days after receiving a complete and accurate request |
|
| Delivery of the CQPF Contract | Qwest BART | Two business days after receiving a complete request |
|
| CQPF Contract Acceptance | CLEC | 30 business days * |
|
| Delivery of CRUNEC Quote | Qwest | 20 business days after CQPF Contract Acceptance. |
|
| CRUNEC Quote Acceptance | CLEC | Interval as defined in your Interconnection Agreement. If not defined, the interval is 90 business days * |
|
| CRUNEC Contract Acceptance | CLEC | 30 business days * |
|
| Resubmit the service request | CLEC | Recommended to resubmit the service request at the same time you return the signed CRUNEC contract and full CRUNEC quote payment. |
|
| Estimated Ready for Service Date | Qwest Service Manager | 5 business days after Qwest Engineering is notified signed CRUNEC contract and full CRUNEC payment was received. |
|
| Construction | Qwest | ICB |
|
* If you do not provide the deliverables identified in the table above in the specified timeframe you must restart the process by submitting a new service request for the UNE being ordered.
For information about delayed service request handling information can be found in the Ordering Overview.
General provisioning and installation activities are described in the Provisioning and Installation Overview.
Billing and Receivable Tracking (BART) billing is described in Billing Information - Billing and Receivable Tracking (BART).
Local Qwest 101 "Doing Business with Qwest"
View additional Qwest courses by clicking on Course Catalog.
Qwest contact information is located in Wholesale Customer Contacts.
1. Can an estimate of possible construction charges be obtained prior to submitting a CRUNEC request?
No. Estimated pricing will not be available prior to the assessment and payment of the QPF.
2. What happens if a CLEC cancels CRUNEC in the middle of construction being performed?
You are responsible for the already incurred EF&I cost for the work completed. Should you chose to discontinue the CRUNEC work, Qwest will refund your payment, excluding expenditures already incurred for the EF&I of the requested service and the QPF, with a brief description of the work completed.
3. Are previous Dark Fiber Initial Record Inquiry (IRI) fees refunded if a CLEC goes through CRUNEC for additional facility placing?
No. You are requesting a separate process as a result of a previous fiber inquiry request field verification not finding facilities.
Last Update: February 6, 2008
