Nortel goes next gen

(Telephony) Nortel Networks is forging ahead in the optical network space. At the OFC show in Anaheim this week, the company unveiled its 40 Gb/s and 80Gb/s platforms, a software solution and tunable lasers.

“I really consider this the next generation,” said Greg Mumford, president of Nortel’s optical Internet group. “We led the 10 Gb transition, and we’re leading the work on 40 and 80 Gb.”

The company announced 40 Gb/s and 80 Gb/s interfaces for its OPTera Long Haul 5000 optical line system. The dense wave division multiplexing platform will support 160 wavelengths at 40 Gb/s for 1000 km without regeneration, but initially it will operate best at 104 wavelengths at 40 Gb/s.

Nortel also displayed the OPTera Connect HDX. The HDX, Mumford said, “is an optical switch with electrical interfaces. It’s 40 Gb-ready and can go up to 80 Gb…Our infrastructure is architected to go up to 80 Gb/s, so we can evolve the network, [taking carriers] from 10 Gb/s to 40 and up to 80.”

The HDX will begin trials this summer and volume shipments are expected by year end.

In addition, Nortel introduced OPTera Smart, a software suite that includes the Smart OS and the Smart Agent. Both feed into the Smart Management System for OPTera, which ties into the company’s Preside management software.

“OPTera Smart gives intelligence to carriers so they can create new high-bandwidth services,” Mumford said.

The Smart OS is embedded software that is distributed across network elements. It has a dynamic control plane and can reach across multiple network layers to autodiscover equipment. It offers carriers planning and engineering tools and wavelength optimization, dynamic class of service and flexible restoration capabilities.

“We support open standards, the Automatic Switched Transport Network [ASTN], and protocols like [generalized] MPLS from the packet world,” Mumford said

The Smart Agent attaches to third-party network equipment enabling them to be clients on the network. It is used to invoke a service, allowing for real-time bandwidth, he said. “The analogy is the dial [pad] on your telephone. It sits at the edge to tap into the network intelligence.”

Nortel’s announcements indicate the company is focusing more intently on enabling carriers to create revenue-generating services, a move that is coincidental to the economic downturn, Mumford said, noting that the company is on track with its internal development and these products were in the works long before the market trouble.

“The bandwidth demands still exist. We’ve driven the cost out of bandwidth,” he said. “Bandwidth on demand is the next level.”