September 13, 2005 Morristown, NJ -- Tyco Telecommunications has begun undersea network construction under terms of a multi-million dollar turnkey contract with Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC). The Bahamas Domestic Submarine Network (BDSNi) system will link the Bahamian islands of Andros, New Providence, Eleuthera, Exuma, Long Island, Ragged Island, Inagua, Mayaguana, Crooked Island, Rum Cay, San Salvador, Cat Island, Abaco, and Grand Bahama in a self healing, fiber-optic ring architecture.
Under the contract's terms, Tyco will supply all aspects of the project including network design, manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and testing. The company says the high-capacity, repeaterless undersea fiber-optic cable system will span more than 2,800 km in length and will be capable of carrying up to 1.92 Tbit/sec of transmission capacity when fully upgraded.
The system will be deployed in two phases, with the western half of the ring planned for initial service at the end of 2005, and the eastern half ready for service by mid-2006, according to the company. The company says the system is designed to satisfy increasing demands for voice, data, and Internet bandwidth and accelerating use of broadband services in the Bahamas.
"BTC's vision is to bring high-speed communications technology to our major islands. Tyco Telecommunications' turnkey undersea system solution, based on industry-leading technology is key to realizing our goal," comments Leon Williams, acting president and CEO of BTC. "Upon completion of the project, businesses and consumers in Bahamas will be able to take advantage of the leading edge of voice, data, and Internet technologies."
"Our ability to rapidly deliver a turnkey undersea solution enables BTC to provide their customers with the benefits of a high capacity network infrastructure, and directly facilitates connectivity to their international gateways," concludes Michael Rieger, vice president of sales and marketing for Tyco Telecommunications. "The unique geography of the Bahamas archipelago presents significant opportunities and challenges for the development of critical network infrastructure, and Tyco Telecommunications is committed to developing innovative solutions to support the unique needs of regional projects like BSDNi."