Depending on your generation, they are either the Liz Taylor-and-Richard Burton or the Ross-and-Rachel of the telecommunications industry. The Telecommunications Industry Association (www.tiaonline.org) and the United States Telecom Association (USTelecom; www.ustelecom.org), which previously co-produced SuperComm before splitting after the 2005 event and going their separate ways with their own events, announced last month that they are teaming up once again next year.
From June 18 to 21, 2007, the associations will jointly host NXTcomm (www.nxtcommshow.com) in Chicago, which they describe as a single venue focused on the converged future. The event will replace both GlobalComm (TIA’s event) and TelecomNext (USTA’s event) in 2007; the dates and location are those originally scheduled for GlobalComm 2007.
The event will be a 50-50 ownership venture held in an independent company and overseen by a board of directors from equal representation from the two trade associations.
“The two associations have joined together to create a single, much-needed industry venue that will serve as a gathering for where information technology and entertainment meet,” the two organizations said jointly in a statement.
“TIA is pleased to join forces once again with USTelecom to create NXTcomm,” says Matt Flanigan, TIA president. “Our organizations’ members want one premier show. GlobalComm and TelecomNext exhibitors want one premier show. The industry wants one premier show. By pooling our resources, our leadership, and our individual strengths into one collective force for the good of the industry, we can build on the successful legacies of SuperComm, GlobalComm, and TelecomNext, and deliver the next generation show for our customers.”
“NXTcomm will be about doing business-about advancing an industry of central importance to the modern information economy-and showcasing what’s next across the colliding worlds of information, communications, and entertainment,” says Walter McCormick, Jr., president of USTelecom. “It is a new venue for a new world in communications, and like our TIA counterparts, we at USTelecom are looking forward to a successful relationship.”Short runs…
WATERTOWN, CT-Daniel Mullin, Siemon Labs’ (www.siemon.com) research and development director, has been awarded the “1906 Award” by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), commemorating the IEC’s centennial and presented for recent major achievement related to the commission’s technical work. As a project leader in IEC SC48B for the development of several cabling connector standards for commercial and industrial data transmission, Mullin completed two critical IEC interface projects: IEC 61076-3-104, characterizing the Category 7/7A connector to 1,000 MHz; and IEC 61076-3-106, the industrial RJ-45 interface specification. Mullin has also been recently appointed to a second four-year term as technical advisor to IEC Technical Committee 48, which is tasked with the standardization of telecommunications and other electric connectors, connecting devices, and mechanical structures that include mechanical housings for connectors, printed circuit boards, and backbone assemblies.
CORNING, NY-Corning Inc. (www.corning.com) recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its historic Wilmington, NC manufacturing facility, which was the world’s first optical-fiber manufacturing center and today, according to the company, has the largest optical-fiber manufacturing capacity in the industry. Corning built the plant in 1966 to manufacture resistors, then installed the first optical-fiber manufacturing equipment in Wilmington in 1978 (the resistor business was relocated to Bradford, PA). The Wilmington facility began manufacturing optical fiber in 1979, and underwent several expansions in the 1980s and 1990s. In 2001 and 2002, Corning consolidated its worldwide optical-fiber manufacturing in North Carolina.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA-Ethernet Alliance (www.ethernetalliance.org) members recently conducted successful multi-vendor interoperability testing of 10GBase-LRM optical interfaces in support of IEEE 802.3aq. The testing, involving Excelight/Sumitomo, Fiberxon, Finisar, Fujitsu, Intel, Opnext, and Picolight, evaluated various optical transceiver form factors over 220 meters of 0M1 (62.5-µm) multimode fiber, and 260 meters of OM2 (50-µm) fiber. The 10GBase-LRM/IEEE standard was developed to offer a cost-effective and small-form-factor compatible 10-Gigabit Ethernet optical link for extended reach applications on legacy multimode fiber. “LRM is an important solution that will enable the industry to accelerate 10-Gigabit Ethernet deployments, particularly for wiring closet applications,” says Ethernet Alliance president Brad Booth.
HAVERHILL, MA-Wireless multi-service mesh technology developer Firetide (www.firetide.com) and network video developer Axis Communications (www.axis.com) have developed a public safety deployment for the city of Haverhill, MA. Mesh networks, which allow integration of network cameras, video servers, and video management software, both indoors and outdoors, are being used by a number of municipalities for wireless video surveillance. Haverhill’s police department, working with local integrator iAffari Inc., recently installed Firetide HotPort outdoor and indoor wireless mesh nodes, along with Axis 214 PTZ and 211 fixed cameras in a small, high-crime area downtown. The cameras offer remote viewing and enable 10 days of recorded digital video. According to the companies, the system was up and running in about an hour. Coverage areas will grow; one police cruiser already has a mesh node, with additional cruiser nodes planned shortly. Firetide’s mesh nodes automatically connect to each other to form multiple wireless links to each node. These redundant paths are designed to increase the network’s coverage and reliability, even around tall buildings or large vehicles.
SUNNYVALE, CA-Wireless infrastructure developer Meru Networks (www.merunetworks.com) has deployed its WLAN system throughout the Hilton, NY Central School District. The district had previously deployed a wireless network but found that as more users were added, or more users simultaneously accessed the network in classroom situations, its network performance suffered. The Meru system is now delivering pervasive coverage in the highest density environments, and offers built-in support for data, toll quality voice, and video. “We’ve been able to increase the computer to student ratio, purchasing mobile labs that immediately put computers into the hands of our students without the cost of building and cabling a room,” says Hilton network administrator Joshua Ennis. With Meru’s WLAN system, Ennis adds, “we’ve reduced the number of access points that need to be deployed, further lowering our costs.” The school district is also noe using its WLAN to let faculty and administrators who have laptops stay connected as they roam, providing access to all documents, calendar, and e-mail applications. Once it has completed district-wide coverage, the school district will evaluate adding a wireless VoIP, which it believes could save significantly on cell phone costs. “Since most cell phone usage occurs between district employees who are roaming throughout our district,” says Ennis, “providing them with wireless VoIP coiuld create a much more productive, mobile work environment and simultaneously save our district a lot of money.”
SAN FRANCISCO, CA-Colocation and managed service provider ColoServe (www.coloserve.com) has upgraded its facility to Category 6 cabling, part of a major capital project to install a new main distribution frame and rewiring the company’s entire data center. The company says the upgrade will let San Francisco collocation customers connect directly to the dedicated servers offered by parent company ServePath, and request up to 10-Gbits/sec Internet connectivity without having to buy or install specialized equipment. The facility also includes improved power and cooling designed to ensure 24/7 operation for customers with mission-critical requirements. “This is a huge advantage to customers because it allows us to quickly configure and deploy, sometimes in a day or two, solutions that might take other providers months to prepare,” says John Keagy, ColoServe president.