Marconi (NASDAQ and London: MONI), a global provider of advanced communications solutions, has been selected by IP1, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amcom Telecommunications Limited (ASX:AMM), as its sole supplier to provide Australia's third high-speed optical fibre network link between the West and East Coast of Australia.
Under the agreement, Marconi will provide IP1 with its SmartPhotoniX Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) optical networking equipment for the 3,875 km link between Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. IP1 will be able to manage the entire network through Marconi's ServiceOn network management system. This will enable end-to-end service activation and assurance for services provided to IP1 customers.
IP1 (Australia) Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Amcom Telecommunications Limited ("Amcom") is in the first stage of its fibre network link build from Perth to Melbourne via Adelaide. The intercapital network will incorporate a high capacity transmission system which is scalable up to 4 Terabits as required. The Telstra infrastructure arm Network Design and Construction is completing the build and Marconi will be supplying, installing and commissioning the DWDM equipment.
The key technical and physical features of the IP1(tm) east-west broadband
link are:
* a high physical network security over a total route distance of 3,700 km;
* maximum separation from other carrier's long haul optic fibre networks, thus providing surety of service and redundancy to those networks;
* DWDM transmission technology of 40 channels x 10Gbits/s per channel;
* planning and design en-route, cable and shelters and equipment have ensured that IP1 fibre link meets the most stringent standards of network offered on terrestrial service; and;
The project will be completed in two stages with cable construction being undertaken by Network Design and Construction (NDC) and installation and commissioning by Marconi. The first stage of the project from Melbourne to Adelaide is nearing completion and is scheduled to be fully operational by late May 2001. The second stage of the build is expected to commence immediately and has a target completion of June 2002. In addition, it will enhance Amcom's last mile networks and revenues for its local loop business. Once in operation, Amcom's IP1(tm) east west fibre link using Marconi's DWDM solution will have the greatest capacity of any long haul network deployed in Australia.
This is Marconi's latest major optical networking win. It has already announced agreements with BT for the sole supply of DWDM equipment, which will be used to build Europe's most advanced all-optical network, as well as orders from Fibernet (Germany), Telfort (Netherlands), Belgacom (Belgium) and Finnet Group of Finland.
About Marconi plc:
Marconi plc is a global communications and IT company that supplies advanced communications solutions and key technologies and services for the Internet. For more information, visit www.marconi.com.
About Amcom Telecommunications Ltd.:
Amcom Pty Ltd commenced its fibre rollout in 1999 and has since deployed over 450 km of high-speed metropolitan networks in Perth, Darwin Adelaide, and Hobart, accessing over 250 buildings. The Company targets "last mile" networks servicing other carriers, and corporate and government customers in strategic uncontested regional metropolitan centres. Additionally, Amcom owns Rescue Technology as a subsidiary and, through them, delivers network management services across Local Area Networks (LAN's), Wide Area Networks (WAN's) or Metropolitan Area Networks (MAN's) by either browser and/or WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) interfaces. Amcom's major offering remains a service focused scalable broadband solution with an emphasis on the wholesale market and the local loop business.