KINBER And OFS Announce The Deployment Of TrueWave REACH Optical Fiber In Support Of The Pennsylvania Research And Education Network (PennREN)
Norcross, GA - OFS, a leading designer, manufacturer and supplier of innovative fiber optic network products, and KINBER (Keystone Initiative for Network Based Education and Research) announce that OFS TrueWave REACH optical fiber has been selected for the construction of the Pennsylvania Research and Education Network (PennREN).
KINBER is the recipient of a Federal NTIA BTOP grant of $99.7 million to implement PennREN. The project involves the deployment of almost 1600 miles of fiber optic cable through thirty-nine Pennsylvania counties with a direct connection to over sixty critical community anchor institutions. Once complete, the network will serve as an artery of healthcare information across the Commonwealth; enable the expansion of university distance learning programs; and facilitate collaboration between research institutions.
"PennREN is unique in that it serves a wide range of institutions with a relatively small number of fibers," said Jeff Reel, Executive Director of KINBER. "So, we needed a single fiber type that would be cost-effective for the widest possible variety of technologies and applications. After a great deal of research, we settled on an ITU-G.656 medium-dispersion solution. OFS' TrueWave® REACH fiber had the most proven track record in that category and it was offered at a fair price. We are glad to have OFS onboard."
"OFS is proud to support the bandwidth needs of Pennsylvania's education systems, health care networks, and other public institutions," said Patrice Dubois, Senior Vice-President for OFS. "The G.656 standard was a great fit for the distances and technologies that PennREN needs to support. TrueWave REACH fiber can cost-effectively accommodate all available wavelengths using conventional DWDM while providing a clear migration path to next-generation 40 Gb/s and 100 Gb/s transmission technologies."
The PennREN deployment will use a 48-fiber OFS' Fortex DT all-dry cable with TrueWave REACH fiber.
SOURCE: OFS