Astral Point's ON 7000 SONET Node, Now Running OC192 Traffic, Can Simplify Metro Network Build-Out.

Business/Technology Editors

CHELMSFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 25, 2001

Patent-Pending Innovations and Advances in Optics Enable ON 7000

Node to Deliver 400 Kilometers of DWDM Traffic at OC192 Speeds

Astral Point Communications, Inc. said today its recently announced ON 7000 SONET transport node is now running 400 kilometers of DWDM traffic at OC192 speeds over SMF28 optical fiber. The ability to run OC192 traffic at such distances is significant because it enables carriers to realize enormous cost savings by using a single product, rather than several, when building out metropolitan SONET rings or regional inter-office networks.

Fueled by recent improvements in optics and patent-pending innovations on its OC192 line cards, Astral Point said its new ON 7000 SONET-based platform will allow carriers to expand their metro core and regional inter-office networks more easily than is possible today. For example, as ILECs pursue opportunities to deliver in-region long distance services, their ability to use a single product greatly reduces the cost and complexity of adding such services.

"All major carriers are planning upgrades of their Metro Optical Core infrastructure to OC192 and beyond. They need a solution that can handle bandwidth scaling from `SONET to Wavelengths' technology as well as expansion into new CAPEX investments such as in-region distance services. Astral Point's announcement offers carriers the high degree of investment protection required for deployment of existing as well as future applications throughout the Metro network," said Frank Dzubeck, president of Communications Network Architects, Inc. "Astral Point's ON 7000 flexibility greatly simplifies network design and reduces the cost of expansion, thereby making it economically feasible for the major carriers to build out their existing metro SONET rings as well as new regional inter-office networks."

Metro core spans typically run 60 kilometers and regional inter-office spans can be 300 kilometers or more, forcing carriers to look at several sets of equipment when building such networks. The use of a single product slashes equipment costs, eliminates the need for multi-vendor interoperability, reduces OSS integration complexity and speeds the deployment and provisioning of new services.

In addition to supporting 400 kilometers distances over SMF28 fiber, the ON 7000 node has also demonstrated transmission distances of up to 1000 kilometers on higher quality fiber such as Corning's MetroCore and LEAF. The company has filed a patent application for the inventions incorporated in its ON 7000 OC192 line card. These innovations provide cost and performance advantages over more traditional OC192 DWDM implementations, the company said.

About Astral Point

Privately held Astral Point Communications, Inc., of Chelmsford, MA, develops best-in-class equipment to manage optical bandwidth for existing and new services in SONET-based metropolitan optical networks. The company's high-ROI network elements enable carriers to reduce capital equipment, operating, service and support costs by up to 80 percent in many applications. Astral Point's ON 7000 Integrated Optical Transport Node combines OC192 SONET transport with dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) in a single platform that is one-sixth the size and less than half the cost of the elements it replaces. The company's ON 5000 Optical Services Node provides low-cost, low-speed traffic aggregation that maximizes the use of existing optical bandwidth and simplifies service deployments and upgrades in metro applications. Astral Point is a leader among metro equipment vendors in ensuring that its entire product family is certified OSMINE compliant for integration with ILECs' existing OSS infrastructures.