Legal Node

Hughes provides Customer Care to all Business customers in the lower forty-eight (48) states of the United States 24 hours per day, 365 days per year by toll-free telephone access for resolution of problems with the Remote Maintenance Services.

The Call Center will be the single point of contact for the origination, administration, and Customer Care. For the majority of customer care calls, the Call Center personnel will assist in the diagnosis of the remote problem and take the required steps to remedy the problem over the telephone.

In the event the Call Center cannot resolve an issue over the telephone, a visit to the customer’s site, via Hughes’ Field Maintenance program, may be required.

Corrective Maintenance

Hughes will provide corrective maintenance for remote satellite terminals and will restore Customer’s malfunctioning Equipment to good working condition and may perform the following corrective maintenance as required:

• Diagnostic testing to determine the existence and cause of the malfunction;
• Removal and replacement of any malfunctioning field replaceable unit (“FRU”);
• Reorientation (re-pointing) of the antenna subsystem in the event of misalignment;
• Repair or replacement of Equipment interconnecting cables;
• Reloading initializing instructions and re-commissioning;
• Verification of proper operation and completion of service report;
• Notification to Hughes and the Customer host that Equipment has been restored to operational status.

Response Time and Service Coverage

At the time of entering the order, Customer may select Service coverage hours on a site-by-site basis from the coverage plans available for that site. Customer shall select from one of the available coverage plans set forth below.

Time and Materials

This option is provided at no cost to the customer. A field maintenance technician will be assigned and will contact the customer to arrange a site visit. There are no Service Level Agreements (SLA) for this option. Typical tech response time is 7-10 days. Any work performed and materials needed will be billed to the customer.

Next-Business-Day Coverage

Service Coverage Hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., local time, Monday through Friday, holidays excepted, beginning the next business day after a call is received. Customer’s call shall be considered received the same day when received by Hughes between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., local time at the remote site, Mondays through Fridays, holidays excluded. Calls shall be considered received the following business day if received by Hughes at any other time.

Next-Day Coverage

Service Coverage Hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., local time, 365 days per year, beginning the next calendar day after a call is received. Customer’s call shall be considered received the same day when received by Hughes between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., local time at the remote site. Calls shall be considered received the following day if received by Hughes at any other time.

Same-Day 12x7 Coverage

Service Coverage Hours are 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., local time, 365 days per year, beginning at the time a call is received. Customer’s call shall be considered received the same day when received by Hughes between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., local time at the remote site. Calls shall be considered received the following day if received by Hughes at any other time.

Same-Day 24x7 Coverage

Continuous Service Coverage 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.

Authorization Required

Upon authorization of Field Service dispatch, Hughes will dispatch a customer service representative (“CSR”) to be onsite at Customer's premises, in accordance with the maintenance response time indicated (measured from the time of authorization by Hughes). For sites with Next-Business-Day Coverage, Hughes will dispatch a CSR to be onsite before the end of the next Hughes business day after the call was received by Hughes. For sites with Next-Day Coverage, Hughes will dispatch a CSR to be onsite before the end of the next calendar day after the call was received by Hughes.

Maintenance Response Time Table

Corrective Maintenance Exclusions

Remote maintenance excludes any of the following:

• Maintenance, repair, or replacement of parts damaged or lost through catastrophe, accident, lightning, theft, misuse, fault, or negligence of the Customer, or causes external to the Equipment, including, but not limited to, failure of, or faulty, electrical power or air conditioning, operator error, failure, or malfunction of data communication Equipment not provided to Customer by Hughes, or from any cause other than intended and ordinary use.
• Changes, modifications, or alterations in or to the Equipment by anyone other than Hughes or its subcontractors and other agents, other than Hughes-approved upgrades and configuration changes.
• De-installation, relocation, or removal of the Equipment or any accessories, attachments, or other devices.

Spare Parts Support

If Customer has purchased one of the services described above, spares will be provided at no additional charge. Spares for the Equipment antenna subsystem, including reflectors, mounts, and modems will be centrally stocked at a designated location in the continental United States.

Hughes will replace malfunctioning Equipment components on a one-for-one exchange basis with a functionally equivalent spare part.

Time and Materials Services

In addition to the Services coverages described above, Customer may also elect to order a Hughes technician to visit a Customer location on a Time and Materials basis. In such instances, Hughes will make reasonable efforts to visit the applicable site for purposes of diagnosing and correcting the problem as promptly as possible, but Customer acknowledges that Hughes does not make guarantees relative to times to respond or times to repair with Time and Materials Services. The charges associated with Time and Materials Services will be Hughes' then-current charges.

Customer Responsibilities

If Customer has purchased one of the field maintenance services described above, Customer shall also have the following responsibilities:

• Customer hereby grants Hughes or its authorized representatives access to Equipment and related locations and areas of Customer’s facilities and premises.
• Customer shall provide Hughes' Service representatives with access to electrical power, water, and other utilities, as well as telephone access to the Customer help desk as required for efficient Service.
• Customer shall provide safe access to Equipment on Customer premises and will maintain the environment where the Equipment is located in a safe and secure condition.
• Customer personnel shall cooperate with and assist the Hughes Service representative in providing maintenance services.