Center of excellence

INS consultancy hub focuses on internetworking environments While telecommunications equipment engineers are cranking out new wide area network access products, network consulting firm International Network Services will be collecting data from a network of labs on how best to use them.

INS is establishing what it calls a "center of excellence" in Dallas to test equipment in different networking configurations and to pass the information along to its consultants and clients.

The center will become the core of INS' network of regional technology labs (see figure).

INS decided to establish the Dallas center to meet the demand for frame relay, asynchronous transfer mode switching and other WAN technologies. The center will focus initially on implementing WAN technologies in the Cisco internetworking environments.

"The center will be used to train INS personnel, test vendor equipment, develop efficient service methodology and help telcos and end-users adopt, utilize and manage [new systems]," said Jeff Kaplan, INS' strategic marketing director. INS already has selected the specific site for the center, and it should be fully operational "within the next quarter or so," he said.

The lab will aid Cisco by helping to incorporate new equipment into networks, said Kevin DeNuccio, vice president of worldwide field operations at Cisco.

An important factor in the success of new technology is the "absorption rate," or how quickly customers can integrate products into their networks, DeNuccio said.

"INS is focusing their resources on Cisco technology to make WAN access successful," he said. By accumulating a bank of knowledge, INS will boost absorption rates. "That way, we can grow faster," he said.

Other consulting operations expect to benefit from the new center as well. MCI Systemhouse often works with INS to fill niches where MCI lacks expertise.

"They'll now franchise the education process for consultants," said Mark Swartz, network and professional services senior manager for MCI Systemhouse. "In turn, we'll be able to transfer [that education] along to our customers."

The new lab positions INS to offer an advantage to end users and equipment providers: a neutral assessment of what equipment works best for a particular solution, said Ellen Carney, principal analyst for network integration support services at Dataquest.

"The jury's still out on ATM and frame relay [for WAN access]," Carney said. "With INS, you get a vendor-neutral position."

With the Networld+Interop debut of its SpeedPort digital subscriber line solution, co-developed with Orckit Communications, Fujitsu Network Communications became the first of the big name equipment providers to roll out its DSL offering.

SpeedPort "allows Fujitsu to offer an end-to-end DSL solution," said a Fujitsu spokesman.

The multiplexers, modems and concentrators that make up the SpeedPort line move asynchronous transfer mode cells onto Sonet rings, incorporating Fujitsu's strength--its Sonet products--with its new venture. And the company plans to strengthen that tie-in.

"Within a couple of years, SpeedPort will be integrated as a set of plug-ins to the FACTR access transport module," the spokesman said, referring to Fujitsu's digital loop carrier product. "You won't have to hit a SpeedPort multiplexer before you hit the Sonet backbone."

While Fujitsu's entry into DSL precedes its competitors, smaller firms already are hawking their DSL offerings, and the rest of the large companies shouldn't be far behind.

"[SpeedPort] will now join the other products out there competing for a relatively small market," said Joel Jakubson, vice president of consulting firm Ryan Hankin Kent. But Fujitsu now has a slight advantage over those that haven't introduced DSL products.

"They essentially leapfrogged an entire development cycle," he said. "Orckit now has a distribution channel into the Bell companies," he said.

Fujitsu's approach to the DSL market--allying with a smaller company with the technology--may set a precedent, said Mark Lutkowitz, president of Trans-Formation Inc. "I wouldn't be surprised if we see a lot of partnering," he said.