TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY
PreciseSync NTP and PTP server family locks every base station, switch, billing platform and NOC in your network to a single Stratum 1 UTC reference, so a handover failure, a CDR record and a fault log all point to the same moment in time.
<15 ns
ACCURACY WITH GNSS SIGNAL LOCK
<100 ns
PTP, IRIG-B AND 1PPS OUTPUT ACCURACY
184-ch
MULTI-GNSS L1/L2/L5 PARALLEL TRACKING
THE HIDDEN BACKBONE OF A STABLE NETWORK
A regional mobile operator runs hundreds of base stations, a multi-vendor backhaul network, a packet core, a billing mediation platform, a lawful intercept probe and a network operations centre. Every one of those systems carries its own internal clock. Without a disciplined on-premises reference that reaches every layer, each clock drifts at its own rate. The gap between them is invisible until there is a fault. Then the investigation begins, and every correlation takes twice as long because the timestamps disagree.
5G NR makes the problem measurably worse. Coordinated multipoint, massive MIMO and TDD frame synchronization all require phase alignment within 1.5 microseconds across a cluster of base stations. A free-running NTP client cannot deliver that, and a public internet time pool introduces firewall holes that most operators' OT security policies explicitly prohibit.
Sertel designed the PreciseSync family to give operators a single, on-premises answer to this problem: a 184-channel multi-GNSS receiver that acquires GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou and NavIC-IRNSS simultaneously across L1, L2 and L5 bands, distributing PTP IEEE 1588v2 with ITU-T G.8275.1 to the radio domain and Stratum 1 NTP to the rest of the network, from one product family and one UTC reference.
The problem
These are the failure patterns field engineers encounter most frequently during synchronization audits at mobile operator sites across India and the Middle East.
RAN phase alignment gaps causing handover failures
4G LTE-A and 5G NR base stations require phase synchronization within 1.5 microseconds for coordinated multipoint and beamforming to work correctly. Without a disciplined on-premises UTC reference, handovers fail silently and engineers spend days tracing RF complaints back to a clock that was never properly synchronized.
Mixed NTP and PTP infrastructure with no common reference
Most operator networks carry a mix of legacy NTP-synchronized OSS/BSS platforms and newer PTP-aware radio equipment. Running two separate synchronization layers from different sources means the two halves of the network never agree on the same second, and fault correlation becomes guesswork.
Satellite signal loss at rooftop and remote tower sites
Indoor equipment rooms, rooftop cabinets with partial sky view, and remote rural towers are routinely exposed to GNSS outages from obstruction, interference, or weather. Without a stable holdover oscillator, even a brief signal loss pushes synchronized base stations out of tolerance and into service-affecting drift.
CDR and lawful intercept timestamps that fail audit
Interconnect billing settlement, quality-of-service reporting, and lawful intercept requests all require sub-second event timestamps traceable to UTC. When mediation servers, switching elements, and security probes run on different free-running clocks, audit reviews surface discrepancies that are expensive to explain and impossible to correct retroactively.
The Sertel solution
The PreciseSync family was engineered to sit at the centre of a mixed-generation telecom network, where legacy NTP infrastructure, 4G backhaul, new 5G fronthaul and OSS/BSS platforms all need to agree on the same second. Plug in the antenna, assign an IP address, and every connected element inherits a Stratum 1 UTC reference within minutes. Choose NTP, PTP, or both, in the form factor that fits the installation.
Multi-GNSS receiver with L1, L2 and L5 tracking
A 184-channel parallel-tracking receiver acquires GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou and NavIC-IRNSS simultaneously across three frequency bands (L1, L2, L5), maintaining Stratum 1 lock even where a single constellation or band is partially obstructed.
Stratum 1 NTP and SNTP server
The PreciseSync-SMC-300 family serves NTP and SNTP with multicast and broadcast capability, giving OSS, BSS, billing platforms, NOC dashboards and IT infrastructure a single GPS-disciplined UTC reference without any network dependency on a public time source.
PTP IEEE 1588v2 grandmaster with telecom profiles
The PreciseSync-GMC-300 family runs the ITU-T G.8265.1 frequency profile and the ITU-T G.8275.1 phase and time profile, the exact profiles mobile backhaul, microwave transport and 5G fronthaul networks are built around, with P2P and E2E delay measurement and one-step and two-step mechanisms.
IRIG-B, 1PPS and frequency reference outputs
Simultaneous IRIG-B AM and TTL outputs, configurable 1PPS, and 2.048 MHz or 1.544 MHz frequency reference serve legacy TDM transport, test and measurement equipment, and disturbance recorders from the same GNSS disciplined source as the NTP and PTP outputs.
OCXO holdover for remote and indoor sites
A high-stability, oven-controlled oscillator maintains microsecond-level frequency accuracy throughout a satellite signal outage, protecting tower sites, indoor equipment rooms and roof-mounted cabinets from drifting out of synchronization during interference events or GNSS maintenance windows.
Three form factors: rack, redundant and DIN Rail
A standard 1U 19 inch rack server (SMC-300 / GMC-300) covers most central site and NOC deployments. The R variant adds full internal redundancy across the GPS receiver, master clock, comparator, and dual power supply for mission-critical hubs. The DIN Rail variant fits panel-mounted installations inside compact equipment rooms and field cabinets.
Applications
4G and 5G radio access networks
Supplies the nanosecond-level phase reference base stations need for coordinated multipoint, MIMO, and 5G NR beamforming, distributed via PTP over the IP backhaul to each cell site in the cluster.
Mobile backhaul and IP transport
Acts as a PTP grandmaster at the network edge or aggregation point, propagating time along the backhaul chain so every hop between the base station and the core inherits the same UTC reference.
Core network, IMS and packet switching
Synchronizes MSC, S-GW, IMS and packet core elements so session records, call traces and billing detail records across platforms all map to the same moment, simplifying fault isolation and revenue assurance.
Network operations centres and OSS/BSS
Gives NOC dashboards, alarm management and trouble-ticketing a common Stratum 1 clock via NTP, so event storms correlate cleanly across every element being monitored and timestamps in reports are audit-ready.
Carrier data centres and PoPs
Stamps application servers, security probes, CDN nodes and lawful intercept platforms inside carrier data centres and points of presence to a GNSS-disciplined UTC reference, supporting interconnect audit and compliance obligations.
Indoor equipment rooms and field cabinets
The DIN Rail variant installs directly on the panel in space-constrained equipment rooms, street-side cabinets, and remote sites with limited rack space, extending Stratum 1 NTP or PTP time to local switching and transmission equipment.
From our commissioning logs
During a 5G NSA rollout audit at a tier-2 operator's aggregation hub, engineers found a 900-microsecond spread in the PTP offset measurements reported by three eNodeBs on the same ring. The operator's existing free-running grandmaster had been drifting uncorrected for several weeks, and a cluster of handover failures in a high-density urban sector had been blamed on RF interference rather than timing.
We replaced the hub's existing grandmaster with a single PreciseSync-GMC-300, configured to run the ITU-T G.8275.1 telecom profile, and distributed PTP down the existing backhaul ring to each site. Every base station locked to within 50 nanoseconds of UTC in under two hours. The NTP output of the collocated PreciseSync-SMC-300 simultaneously synchronized the site's OSS collector and lawful intercept probe to the same UTC reference.
The handover failure rate in the affected sector dropped to baseline in the first complete traffic cycle after the cutover. The operator's subsequent performance report closed with clean timestamps across every NE in the cluster. That is the practical value of a correctly specified grandmaster: less time correlating logs and more time improving the network.
Relevant products
Stratum-1 GNSS Time Server
A compact 19 inch rack PTP time server with OCXO holdover and 15 ns timing accuracy under GNSS lock. One unit feeds PTP Ethernet, IRIG-B, 1PPS and any number of slave clocks.
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Redundant Stratum 1 GNSS Time Server
Redundant GNSS receivers, master clocks, comparator and dual power supplies in a 2U or 3U Eurocard chassis. Built for substations and control rooms where time must never stop.
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Stratum-1 PTP Time Server, DIN Rail
A panel-mounted PTP time server that fits inside control cabinets without rack space. Delivers IRIG-B (AM) and PTP Ethernet from a multi-constellation GNSS receiver with OCXO holdover.
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Digital Display
A six-digit wall clock that pulls time straight from your NTP server over the existing Ethernet network. The everyday choice for offices, control rooms and production halls that already run a time server.
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Digital Display
Shows the current date in large LED digits, synchronised to the same NTP source as your clocks. Pair it with a time display at shift boards, gate houses and reception areas so logs and records never disagree.
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Digital Display
A compact three-character display that names the day of the week, driven by NTP. Useful on shop floors and in maintenance bays where weekly schedules and rotating shifts decide who works where.
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Digital Display
A 28-character, multi-row LED board that combines time and date with live plant values such as frequency, MW output or ambient temperature. Reads data over Ethernet, OPC or 4-20 mA and supports scrolling and flashing messages.
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Digital Display
Our largest standard time display, built for turbine halls, warehouses and assembly floors where staff read the clock from a distance. Accepts NTP, PTP, IRIG-B, RS-232, RS-485 or differential pulse input in a wall-mount housing.
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Digital Display
A small-character NTP clock sized for panel fronts, server racks and operator consoles. It brings the same synchronised time to close-range viewing points where a wall display would be oversized.
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Digital Display
A slave clock for sites that distribute time from a master clock rather than over the LAN. IRIG-B or differential pulse input on a multi-drop bus drives up to 300 displays within a 1 km radius, and one failed unit never stops the rest.
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MULTI-FREQUENCY · MULTI-CONSTELLATION GNSS
Multi-constellation GNSS reception for positioning, navigation and timing, with interfaces and configurations matched to the application.
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Talk to a Sertel field engineer about specifying the right PreciseSync model for your RAN, backhaul or core synchronization requirement. We ship across India and the Middle East and provide on-site commissioning with full lifecycle support.
