dwdm at center of Bell Atlantic upgrade

By STEPHEN HARDY

Bell Atlantic (New York, NY) may have started the anticipated metropolitan dense wavelength-division multiplexing (dwdm) rush when it tapped ciena (Linthicum, MD) and Lucent Technologies (Murray Hill, NJ) to provide dwdm equipment as part of a $1.5 billion upgrade of its in-region fiber-optic network.

Besides the dwdm gear, Bell Atlantic will also buy Synchronous Optical Network (sonet) transmission equipment and crossconnect systems over a five-year period. In addition to the ciena/Lucent split for the dwdm equipment, Lucent and Fujitsu Network Communications Inc. (Richardson, TX) will share the sonet equipment portion of the upgrade, while dsc Communications (Dallas, TX) and Tellabs (Lisle, IL) will divide the crossconnect work. Lucent also will provide overall network management via its itm software-based system.

The dwdm awards are the most eye-catching. ciena will supply its MultiWave Firefly and MultiWave 1600 systems and Lucent will deliver its WaveStar ols 40G 16-channel equipment to meet Bell Atlantic`s dwdm requirements. According to Bell Atlantic`s VP of network planning, Chuck Dunsey, the systems will eventually find their way into metropolitan areas, but he declines to predict when this will occur.

"It really depends on the cost of reinforcing the existing fiber," he explains. "Generally speaking, it lends itself towards the longer spans, obviously. But in other situations--like in a metropolitan area where you may have conduit congestion, you may have duct congestion--then it certainly would benefit us to use wave-division multiplexing on some of the shorter routes."

"Initially, we`re going to be looking at metropolitan areas for this technology," adds Ells Edwards, a Bell Atlantic spokesman. "Not to say that at some point in the future the economics will change and we`ll be deploying it elsewhere. But right now you`re looking at a business case scenario where it makes sense for Bell Atlantic to do this in a metropolitan area."

The two vendors will split one of the smallest portions of Bell Atlantic`s planned $1.5 billion outlay. "We have some ranges that we`ve developed," says Edwards. "We`re talking about a range of 12 to 15 million dollars in dwdm equipment for Lucent and for ciena. That`s each, so a total of 25 to 30 million dollars is what we`re looking at today."

Award split 50/50

The contracts are designed to let the two competitors share the wealth equally. "These two vendors are on an equal footing as far as Bell Atlantic is concerned. We consider both of them to be very viable suppliers for this technology, and I don`t think any one has the upper hand," Edwards explains.

However, the 50/50 split could change if a vendor slips up. "The 50/50 market share is guaranteed if in fact they maintain their performance levels with Bell Atlantic," warns Dunsey. "The performance levels are based on product availability, feature availability, and cost data, obviously. And we have standards that we set for all of the suppliers, and if in fact they don`t live up to a particular standard that was set for them, then there is the potential for them to lose market share downstream."

The dwdm systems of both companies are currently undergoing lab evaluation, with the ciena equipment slightly farther down the road to deployment. When the equipment does reach Bell Atlantic`s network, it will put the regional holding company (rhc) in a unique position, according to Kathy Szelag, director of strategy at Lucent`s Optical Networking Business.

"All the rhcs have a little bit of that going on. But as far as we know, this is the first time that any rhc has signed a commitment contract to go WDM in any large measure," she says.

On the sonet end of the upgrade, Lucent will provide its ddm-2000 and FT-2000 equipment. Bell Atlantic also has the option of purchasing Lucent`s recently announced WaveStar Bandwidth Manager product, according to Szelag. Meanwhile, Fujitsu will deliver its flm 150, flm 600, and flm 2400 add/drop sonet multiplexers and its flash-192 system. Combined, the equipment will provide OC-1, -3, -12, -48, and -192 transmission capacity (52 Mbits/sec to 10 Gbits/sec).

Despite the huge total price tag for the upgrade, buying the new sonet equipment "in bulk" provided Bell Atlantic with significant cost savings, says Dunsey. Thanks to the relatively low cost of the new equipment, the company will be able to provide benefits to customers beyond those now enjoying sonet service. "The reduction in the prices is going to permit us to take sonet deployment to areas where we haven`t had the economic incentive to go before," Dunsey says. "The intent obviously at some point in time is to have the entire network be sonet-based across the 2400 central offices that we have at Bell Atlantic."

With the exception of the OC-192 equipment (Lucent`s Bandwidth Manager and Fujitsu`s flash-192), Bell Atlantic already has examples of its new sonet equipment in the network. Thus, rolling out the systems should happen quickly. Where the equipment will go and when depends on Bell Atlantic`s needs. "The first priority is growth in those areas where we have an exhaust situation. And then after that, we would look at the modernization program. And then beyond that, obviously, introducing the sonet network into areas that we haven`t installed it in the past. The second and third priority aren`t necessarily in order," Dunsey explains.

Tying it together

Bell Atlantic`s new cache of crossconnect systems will include the wideband sonet-based titan 5500 from Tellabs and the dexcs narrowband and imtn broadband systems from dsc Communications. While the dsc equipment will come with its own element management system, the NM2100, Lucent`s itm network management software will provide overall network element management. Lucent has worked with all of its Bell Atlantic cohorts before in a network management situation, except ciena. Szelag reports that the necessary negotiations between the two dwdm rivals has already occurred, and incorporating management of the ciena systems should not prove problematic, despite the unique nature of the application.

"I think it will probably be the first time in the world where you have that many vendors in particular spanning into dwdm under a common network management structure," she says. "Which I think is very wise for Bell Atlantic to do because operationally, that is always a cost center--network management can suck up money real quickly. And this should streamline their network a lot."

According to Edwards, the upgrade aims to make Bell Atlantic better able to meet the expanding data networking needs of its customers. "If you look at where we are in terms of providing customers with what they need, you`re seeing a huge demand for data services, both in business and the residential area," he says. "At the same time, we`re seeing increased competition for data services. So it`s imperative that we build a bigger, faster, stronger, more reliable network to meet the needs of our customers--and at the same time to be more competitive."

While the company has plans to expand into other service areas--both within its home region and outside--the upgrades will initially boost voice and data delivery. "I think it`s more Internet and online types of applications, as opposed to something like video," Edwards says. "I mean, sure, we do have plans to eventually get into the video and the whole entertainment area. But I think that those, frankly, are priorities that are a little lower than, for example, providing capability for our customers who want to use data-intensive applications like the Internet."

Bell Atlantic recently merged with fellow rhc Nynex to create a network extending from Maine to Virginia. Both Dunsey and Edwards say the new equipment will be deployed to all areas of the network, but decline to provide schedules or information on exactly where individual equipment types would be deployed. q