| Acterna, USA, the world�s largest provider of test and management solutions for optical transport, access and cable networks, has recently announced that Eurotunnel, the operator of the Channel Tunnel, has completed the installation of Acterna's Optical Network Management System (ONMS). The system will provide 24-hour network monitoring of 300 miles of optical cable across the English Channel. The Acterna ONMS enables reduced costs throughout the network while ensuring Eurotunnel's customers benefit from a significant improvement in the level and quality of service.
The Acterna ONMS allows Eurotunnel to identify and locate problems in the network quickly and accurately. As Eurotunnel's network spans the English Channel, Acterna�s ONMS provides the network transparency essential to quickly identifying and repairing faults on submerged cables so that revenue is not lost. �Acterna�s ONMS plays a critical role in our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of network reliability, If the fibre breaks, or suffers degradation of some kind, the problem is flagged on the central server, and the network operations centre is alerted at once. Traffic is immediately rerouted through another part of the network, and local maintenance teams are dispatched to correct the problem�, explained Mr Dave Pointon, Eurotunnel technical services director.
The Acterna ONMS facilitates pro-active preventative maintenance. If signal degradation reaches an alarm level that the customer defines, the problem is identified and investigated before it starts to affect users of the network. The ONMS server is based at Eurotunnel�s network operations centre in Coquelle, near Calais, France, with client stations located throughout the UK and France. The test units are deployed at strategic points throughout the backbone and metropolitan networks. Each integrated unit is capable of testing cables within a 100-mile radius and locating faults to within one foot and reporting back to the central server. A Web-client feature allows access to data and test analysis functions via a secure intranet link from a standard PC Web browser. Technicians across the region can access all functions without additional training or software. Security is ensured by a series of codes and passwords. Eurotunnel can assign degrees of access, from �view-only� to full access, from the server.
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