February 28, 2002 — (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — Alcatel (alcatel.com), an optical networking provider, hasbeen awarded a $45 million contract by the Sea-Me-We 3 (mw3.fcr.fr)consortium to upgrade the network to support 10 Gbit/s transmission,representing a 40 percent capacity increase.
Alcatel is the sole provider for the terrestrial portion of the project,including Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing systems and end-to-endnetwork management. Alcatel will also supply the major part of the underseaoptical networking infrastructure. The installation and commissioning of the10 Gbit/ s upgrade will be completed and operational by Feb. 2003.
The upgrade will be performed on seven out of the ten Sea-Me-We 3 segmentsand in the landing stations of more than nine countries from Portugal toHong-Kong. The upgrade will allow these countries to benefit from a highcapacity bandwidth network for Internet and multimedia traffic and for dataand traditional telecommunications services.
Sea-Me-We 3 is the world’s longest intercontinental network connectingNorthern Europe to East Asia and Australia, spanning approximately 40,000km. Initially designed to support 2.5 Gbit/s WDM transmission, twowavelengths out of eight, on a single optical fiber pair, will be upgradedto 10 Gbit/s. The upgrade uses an original solution based on advanced 10Gbit/s technology innovated by Alcatel in undersea transmission.
The terrestrial portion of the contract entails the implementation ofadvanced optical networking products, including synchronous digitalhierarchy Optical Multi-Service Node systems at 10 Gbit/s, long-haul DWDMsystems at 10 Gibt/s, and digital cross-connects. The upgraded system willbe managed by Alcatel’s integrated network management platform, providingsupervision and provisioning.
“We are very pleased with the integrated end-to-end solution provided byAlcatel as leading supplier,” said Alain-Paul Leclerc, procurement groupchairman, Sea-Me-We 3. “Taking into account the complex configuration ofSea-Me-We 3 – connecting more than 30 countries, across continents and underoceans, they offer a terrestrial and submarine approach with acost-effective common system management platform, great flexibility andseamless technology. This upgrade will allow Sea-Me-We 3 to continue itsprosperous expansion with higher bit rate and world-class level ofservices.”
