Networking service provider, Visionstream, remote management product manufacturer, AccessTel Kentrox Australia (AKA), and internet service provider, Primus, are the beneficiaries of three NBN Co deals signed this week.
NBN Co has awarded Visionstream Australia a $19 million contract to build the first stage of its transit network following a tender process. The transit network comprises of rings of backbone fibre-optic cables that will connect NBN Co's central hub to fibre access nodes (FANs).
NBN Co head of construction, Dan Flemming, said in a statement that in the first stage of the build, it plans to construct 149 transit links connecting 168 FANs, of which 30 are also points of interconnect (PoI).
“The project involving 121 PoI is targeted for completion over the next three years, at which point the network management layer back to the network service operation centre [NSOC] is also expected to be completed,” he said. Initial first stage sites are being made ready with Visionstream due to commence construction later this month.
Visionstream was one of several companies, including Telstra, who placed construction tender bids for the National Broadband Network (NBN) but had this bid scrapped in April after NBN Co informed them the tender process for construction beyond the second set of mainland release sites had been “suspended” indefinitely over concerns the prices offered were unacceptable.
AKA has been selected to provide site management offerings for the NBN including the Remote suite of products, Optima management system and other associated services.
According to AKA executive vice president of sales and marketing, John Ryan, Optima provides a view of the infrastructure status at PoI and FAN sites along with real-time data relevant to NBN’s infrastructure.
“The Remote suite of products provides site monitoring including site power, environmental conditions, and out-of-band access to network equipment for diagnostics and remote configuration,” he said.
The main applications NBN Co will be using the AKA products for include site management to notify technicians of operational issues and environmental management to monitor conditions such as temperature and humidity.
Primus Australia has gained full accreditation to deliver fixed-line telephone services to customers on the NBN. Along with its broadband plans, Primus will now develop new voice-only plans together with a selection of voice and broadband bundles for fibre customers.
Primus chief executive, Tom Mazerski, said in a statement that it would continue to work closely with NBN Co to develop an affordable NBN voice-only product that would be rolled out across Australia to consumers who only want a voice service.
“This may include pensioners and lower income earners who can’t afford or don’t want an NBN fibre broadband service,” said Mazerski. The company plans to begin trialling its voice services through the NBN UNI-V Voice ports in December 2011.
Primus was also recently selected for the Australian Government Information Management Office’s (AGIMO) Data Centre Facilities Panel.
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