Israeli Ministry of Defense selects ECI Telecom's XDM for deployment in Israel Defense Forces' optical network
9 October 2003 Petah Tikva, Israel Lightwave -- ECI Telecom today announced that the Israeli Ministry of Defense has chosen its XDM converged optical networking equipment for the upgrade and expansion of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) existing communications network. The three-year agreement follows the successful installation of the IDF's first high-capacity, high-performance telecommunications infrastructure last year, based on ECI's equipment.
Per the new agreement, several hundred XDM platforms will be deployed to create a new optical backbone, based on SDH and DWDM technologies, for IDF's strategic transmission network. This development will satisfy IDF's increasing demand for higher bandwidth and advanced communications capabilities between headquarters, camps, bases, and operational sites.
"The IDF is launching a program to build a state-of-the-art, multi-layer communications backbone network to meet the challenge of delivering reliable independent broadband data services to its headquarters, bases, sites, and units," explains Br. Gen. Yehu Even-Zahav, head of the communication and information technology unit. "One of the cornerstones of this program is to upgrade and expand the existing transmission network in order to meet the high demand for capacity."
"We currently have a sophisticated transmission network based on legacy SDH equipment and network management technology from ECI," he adds. "Our decision to build on this foundation utilizing the functionality of the XDM family, as a converged SDH and DWDM system, is a natural step forward. ECI continues to exceed our expectations since the completion of the first project last year. Its ability to customize its technology for our specific requirements has revolutionized the end-to-end control and management of the IDF network."
The versatility of the XDM will enable IDF to accommodate increasing bandwidth demands and deliver a variety of next-generation services--including voice, data, and video--to different regions.
According to ECI Telecom representatives, one of the main reasons the IDF chose ECI's solution was its Network Management System (NMS), eNM LightSoft. eNM LightSoft is a multi-functional Network Management System, incorporating fully integrated, end-to-end provisioning, performance monitoring, maintenance operation from remote site, and alarm control all provided under one integrated platform with a user-friendly graphic user interface.
Moreover, eNMILightSoft's standardized interfaces were customized to be fully integrated with IDF's own manager of managers (umbrella network management I system) along with the existing transmission network management system. This integration simplifies the overall operation of the network, saving on human resources and training requirements.
"We are honored that the Israeli Ministry of Defense has, once again, selected ECI as its preferred supplier of optical transmission equipment," asserts Erez Yarden, associate vice president, Defense Market, ECI's Optical Networks Division. "The XDM is a highly flexible, resilient, high performance platform that meets the most stringent requirements, making it an ideal solution for the defense sector."