New installation sets the stage for 10Gbit/s capabilities

NORCROSS, Ga., and MARTINSRIED/MUNICH, Germany, Dec. 16 -- Texas A&M University is laying the groundwork to meet its future networking needs with the installation of a new Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) built on ADVA Optical Networking's FSP 3000 platform.

The ADVA Optical Networking platform replaces defunct Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing (CWDM) equipment previously operated by the university. The new Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) deployment is immediately capable of supporting 40 wavelengths and is expandable to 80 wavelengths. It can support 10Gbit/s, 40Gbit/s and 100Gbit/s transponders as well as Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (ROADM) up to 8 degrees when needed.

The ADVA Optical Networking equipment will serve as the building blocks for Texas A&M's future network expansion, providing increased flexibility and capability to support a full 10Gbit/s network upgrade the university hopes to complete in the coming year.

"You have to put the plumbing in place first," said Matthew Almand, chief network engineer for Texas A&M University. "We needed to support 10Gbit/s capabilities, and this ADVA Optical Networking installation is setting the stage for that move."

Texas A&M's MAN provides voice, video and data transmission in support of the university's administration along with research-related activities on and around the main campus at College Station, Texas. This includes Internet access and core campus applications.

The MAN is also used to provide connectivity for partner organizations including local government agencies, school districts and other educational entities associated with the university.

The MAN includes four nodes deployed in a ring connecting locations on the Texas A&M campus, within the university's datacenters and elsewhere within the city. Off the ring, there are two independent spurs reaching other remote offices in the College Station area. Portions of the fiber making up the network are owned by the university while other sections belong to the city of College Station.

Installation of the new network was completed in October. Texas A&M recently finished its full migration from the old network to the new MAN featuring ADVA Optical Networking equipment.

"We've had no hiccups," Almand said. "We've had wonderful support from ADVA Optical Networking with installation and the follow-ups. We haven't seen any issues."

"As the oldest public institution of higher learning in the state of Texas, Texas A&M University is an organization steeped in history and rich with tradition," said Stephan Rettenberger, vice president of marketing for ADVA Optical Networking. "But as a major research institution, Texas A&M is firmly focused on the future. This is a university that realizes the importance of fast, reliable and scalable optical transport networks to its continued success. We're pleased Texas A&M University chose our FSP 3000 platform as a building block to its network of tomorrow."

About ADVA Optical Networking

ADVA Optical Networking (FSE: ADV) is a global provider of telecommunications equipment. With innovative Optical+Ethernet transport solutions, ADVA builds the foundation for high-speed, next-generation networks. The company's FSP product family adds scalability and intelligence to its customers' networks while removing complexity and cost. With a flexible and fast-moving organization, ADVA forges close partnerships with its customers to meet growing demand for data, storage, voice and video services. Thanks to reliable performance for more than 15 years, ADVA has become a trusted partner for more than 200 carriers and 10,000 enterprises across the globe. For more information, visit www.advaoptical.com.

About Texas A&M University

Opened in 1876 as Texas' first public institution of higher learning, Texas A&M University is a research-intensive flagship university with 38,000-plus undergraduates and more than 9,000 graduate students studying in over 250 degree programs in 10 colleges. For more information, visit www.tamu.edu.

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Source: ADVA Optical Networking