Ohio State university wins again with optical ethernet solution from Nortel

Fiber Optics Weekly Update, March 21, 2003

Ohio State will deploy a Nortel Networks Optical Ethernet solution, through a Nortel Networks "channel partner," to create a high-speed, converged campus network for faster and more convenient delivery of distance learning, course "content-on-demand" and other services to university students and educators. Nortel Networks Optical Ethernet solution is increasingly becoming a key tool for universities that intend to leverage the Internet and new educational applications to enhance the learning process and decrease telecommunications costs.

Expected to be deployed in April 2003, this solution will allow Ohio State to simply and cost-effectively deliver voice, data, and video on one, streamlined campus network. It will also provide Ohio State with the bandwidth and enhanced network performance required to enable learning applications previously too expensive or too difficult to implement over legacy networking infrastructures.

As one of the nation's preeminent research universities, Ohio State requires an extremely fast, reliable, and secure network that meets the university's growing bandwidth demands. Ohio State plans to deploy OPTera Metro 3500 Multiservice Platform - Nortel Networks next generation SONET solution - with Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) technology to build a highly-reliable network backbone that will connect the university's more than 40 multidisciplinary research centers on campus. The added protection of RPR technology will enable Ohio State to create a dual path for network traffic, and enable 'instant' switchover in the event of a fiber cut or equipment failure. Ohio State also plans to upgrade its existing legacy "huband-spoke" network to a resilient OC-48 SONET ring that will support voice, Gigabit Ethernet, and Fibre Channel.

One of the first applications will be to connect four Nortel Networks Meridian SL-100 remote line control modules to Ohio State's existing Nortel Networks Meridian SL-100 host switch. Each Meridian SL-100 remote will connect through Ohio State's SONET ring, providing voice services for the university's more than 80,000 students, faculty and staff. Ohio State was the fifth Big Ten campus to deploy Meridian SL-100, which is known for its carrier-grade reliability, full system redundancy, and powerful networking capabilities.