OCTOBER 3, 2006 -- The city of Bellevue is retiring its 450-MHz coaxial cable TV plant in favor of a FTTP network, while Crawfordsville Electric Light and Power is building an FTTP network that will pass 9,500 homes and businesses by the fourth quarter of 2007.
Bellevue, IA
Wave7 Optics Inc., in conjunction with Black & Veatch, today that the city of Bellevue, Iowa, will install its Trident7 Optical Access Platform for a new fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network that will provide voice, video, and data services to more than 1,500 homes in the area.
The new network, which replaces the city's existing 450-MHz coaxial cable TV system, also is part of the city's plan to have unified billing for utility and telecommunications services. Bellevue will offer services such as the option of more than 200 video and music channels, including HDTV-delivered via IPTV, high-speed Internet, and a future offering of telephone service. Businesses in the city will receive the same services, with the addition of 10/100 Ethernet Base-T and similar "business class" connections.
"When it came to the decision between upgrading our system or installing FTTP, Black & Veatch presented some very compelling figures in favor of FTTP, in terms of capital expenditure, total cost of ownership, and services capability now and in the future," recalls Loras Herrig, Bellevue City Administrator. "Furthermore, with regards to our video offering and convenience for our customers, we found that the combination of theWave7 FTTP platform and Scientific Atlanta/Cisco's set top boxes could not be beat."
"After a thorough analysis of Bellevue's needs and objectives, replacing their existing analog system with a passive optical network proved the best option to meet the demand of advanced services desired at the necessary price point per subscriber," adds Dean Siegrist, project manager for consulting and engineering firm Black & Veatch.
Crawfordsville, IN
Crawfordsville Electric Light & Power (CELP), meanwhile, will install the Trident7 Optical Access Platform for a new municipal network slated to begin service in January
2007. CELP is a community-owned electric utility serving approximately 10,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Crawfordsville, IN, and the
surrounding area.
CELP will deploy the Trident7 configured for EPON (the IEEE 802.3ah Ethernet in the First Mile standard)-based services. According to Wave7 representatives, the Trident7 is the industry's most advanced and flexible FTTP platform, as it delivers standards-based EPON and GPON technologies in the same platform, which allows service providers to cost-effectively deliver a much broader array of services compared with other access network technologies. A typical residential service package comprises over 150 channels of IP television, 40 music channels, and a data service up to 8 Mbits/sec symmetrical.
"We are pleased to begin construction of our FTTP network with the Trident7 equipment, which will help us set the pace in our region for broadband services," contends Roy E. Kaser, manager of CELP. "This network represents our effort to boost Crawfordsville nationally in terms of economic development, improve the reliability and availability of communication services, and give the residents of the area a choice of service
providers."
Spectrum Engineering Corp. of Auburn, IN, provided feasibility, business planning, and vendor bid evaluation to CELP and provides ongoing consulting support. Integrated Broadband Services Incorporated of Narragansett, RI, provided network design.
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