22 May 2003 Paris/Brussels-- IRISnet, Brussels' regional high-speed network, has selected new switches from Cirpack, a vendor of next generation voice switches for operators' infrastructures.
The network is jointly operated by Mobistar and Telindus on behalf of the regional government, selected its public telephony switches to deliver high quality voice services to its customers in the Region of Brussels: ministries, administrations, hospitals, government agencies, etc.
This decision is part of a global move aimed at upgrading IRISnet's network to cope with the increasing success of its voice services as well as to provide next generation telephony over broadband local loops.
Cirpack switches are now replacing existing voice infrastructure equipment to connect users' ISDN PBXs to IRISnet IP/ATM backbone, and later provide voice services directly over IP or ATM networks. Cirpack equipment manage all voice services and provide the link to Mobistar's network.
Alain Van den Broeck, General Manager of the IRISnet Consortium, said, "IRISnet can now provide high quality voice service on a very large scale and even offer technical innovations to its customers - such as VoIP."
Cirpack's switches are carrier-class equipment designed to manage all advanced voice services over any type of networks: legacy circuits as well as IP and ATM. They are compatible with all telephony protocols used in the PSTN. Platforms are highly scalable and meet the needs of small service providers as well as those of larger operators looking for nodes capable of managing several hundred-thousand simultaneous calls.
Jean-Pierre Dumolard, Cirpack's CEO, said, "IRISnet's mission is to provide the Brussels' institutions with state-of-the-art telecommunication technologies at a lower cost and with the best quality of service. All Cirpack's teams are working in that
direction."
After months of testing, IRISnet selected Cirpack switches in March 2003. Equipment was installed within 48 hours and first customers were connected to the new infrastructure less than two weeks after the initial deployment decision has been made.
About IRISnet
IRISnet (www.irisnet.be) is the name of the broadband telecommunications network of the Brussels Region. It is designed to simplify telecommunications between the various administrations in the region. IRISnet is managed by the CIRB (Computer Centre for the Brussels Region), a government organisation created in 1987.
The IRISnet network was launched in March 2001. It has been installed and is now managed by a partnership between France Télécom/Mobistar and Telindus. The consortium is responsible for operating the IRISnet network, and also for reselling telecommunications services.
IRISnet's customers include most of the Ministerial cabinets and administrations of the Brussels-capital government, the Brussels parliament, many regional organisations as well as most of the hospitals and city halls of the Brussels Region.
Cirpack
Cirpack develops next generation telephony platforms for telecom operators infrastructures: Local Exchange and Transit switches with native support for TDM, ATM and IP networks and protocols simultaneously. Cirpack deployed what it calls the world's largest SoftSwitch-based TDM/Packet PSTN with more than 30 Class-5 SoftSwitches and 150 Media/Signalling Gateways, as early as 1998.
The company's carrier-class solutions can be used to build and/or extend TDM networks at a very low cost as well as to introduce a wide range of revenue generating applications: VoDSL, VoIP, VoWLL, VoCable, ISDN PRI/BRI, POTS, exchanging voice traffic, etc.
For more information visit www.cirpack.com