MAY 27, 2009 -- Harmonic Inc. (search Lightwave for Harmonic) has announced that its SUPRALink 1,550-nm DWDM transport system has been selected by the province of Salzburg, Austria, for an upgrade to its hybrid fiber coax (HFC) cable infrastructure. The new deployment, the first of its kind in the region, will be implemented by Normann Engineering GmbH, a longstanding Harmonic partner and reseller in the region.
Salzburg is in the process of segmenting the HFC network to increase bandwidth to the home for DOCSIS 3.0 data and video services. The SUPRALink transmitters and amplifiers are said to significantly increase reach and eliminate the need for additional fiber and active devices in the network. Harmonic says the full-band 1,550-nm directly modulated system is the industry's first to support up to eight wavelengths at a distance of up to 40 km with optical amplification, for up to 1 GHz of both digital and analog content per wavelength.
"Harmonic has been providing Salzburg with reliable and high-quality HFC optics for well over a decade," says Reinhold Ratzinger, chief executive officer for telecommunications, Salzburg AG. "The exciting new SUPRALink 1,550-nm DWDM system makes it possible to significantly increase bandwidth without laying new fiber. This saves us a substantial amount of time and money, in addition to being a technically superior solution."
"The distances involved and number of wavelengths needed for this upgrade required latest generation technology, since the limited reach of 1,310-nm DWDM solutions posed technical challenges," says Helmut Normann, chief executive officer of Normann Engineering GmbH. "Other solutions, such as externally modulated lasers or optical combining of broadcast and narrowcast signals, were operationally complex or cost prohibitive. The scalability and unique capabilities of Harmonic's SUPRALink solution provide Salzburg with a competitive advantage by enabling higher-speed data services without a significant increase in capital expenditures."
Harmonic's new technology enables cost-effective DWDM segmentation for the majority of installed HFC networks to extend the capacity and longevity of existing HFC infrastructures.
"The SUPRALink solution is ideal for node segmentation, particularly in scenarios where operators have limited fiber availability. It utilizes advanced patent-pending technology to deliver up to a four-fold increase in fiber reach over 1,310-nm DWDM or CWDM systems, overcoming limitations of alternative downstream solutions," claims Nimrod Ben-Natan, vice president of product marketing, solutions and strategy for Harmonic.
Harmonic's new SUPRALink family is being featured at the ANGA Cable 2009 exhibition, stand #H.21, in Cologne, Germany from May 26-28, 2009.
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