Looks like LU took some more business out of CSCO:
Nov. 5, 1998-- Lucent To Deploy Advanced, Full-Scale, Nationwide Network
Ocean, the communications business of the Electricity Supply Board of Ireland (ESB) and BT, today announced a $108 million (Irish pounds 72m) agreement with
Lucent Technologies to provide a nation-wide network for businesses and residential consumers in Ireland. The network will link Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Limerick,
Galway and Waterford.
Ocean was established in June 1998 to provide communications services for Irish business and consumer markets.
With the Irish telecommunications market fully deregulated in December 1998, the five-year agreement will allow Ocean to provide a comprehensive, competitive
range of data and voice services.
Under the terms of the agreement Lucent will deploy a leading edge, nationwide network based on a high-speed data and optical transmission solution that will
provide Ocean's customers with a high degree of reliability, service differentiation and flexibility for their data-intensive and voice applications.
Speaking at the signing of the agreement George McGrath, chief executive, Ocean, said ''This agreement represents a significant milestone in the development of
Ocean. This agreement with Lucent demonstrates that we are very serious about providing a well-managed, high-quality network for our customers that is also
value for money.''
Ocean will offer business customers a full range of services such as leased lines, ATM, business voice and in early 1999, managed IP services.
Under the unique agreement, Lucent will be Ocean's primary solutions partner, serving as systems integrator on the project, working closely with Ocean to provide
end-to-end project management support and implementation on network design and planning. A team of 30 employees from Lucent has been working with Ocean
since July 1998, providing technical support, new service definition and marketing.
''This is a significant collaboration for Lucent,'' Eric van Amerongen, president and CEO of Lucent's Europe, Middle East and Africa region. ''We're very pleased
to be working with this very important new operator in Ireland, one of Europe's fastest growing economies. Ocean represents the new breed of service providers
taking advantage of deregulation and embracing a data-centric approach to the design and planning of their networks. Our offer portfolio lets Ocean offer the Irish
business community a solution that will serve current and future communication needs, rapidly and flexibly.''
Lucent will establish a final assembly and testing of its data equipment at its existing manufacturing facility in Bray, Ireland. The facility will also serve Lucent's
customers throughout the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Lucent Technologies is currently expanding its operations in Ireland, with the addition of 550 new jobs over the next four years. As part of an US$18 (Irish Pounds
12) million investment program, the new jobs will be divided between Lucent's manufacturing facility in Bray, its software development center in Dublin, and new
final hardware assembly, shared financial services and customer support operations, also in Dublin.
The Ocean network, of which the first phase is slated for completion in early 1999, is based on an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Synchronous Digital
Hierarchy (SDH) infrastructure, using Lucent's PacketStar(TM); Lucent's Multiservice ATM Switch 1000 (MX 1000(TM)); and SDH transport technology.
Lucent's OneVision(TM) Network Management system will deliver end-to-end service management.
Ocean, based in Dublin, currently employs 100 people and is planning to increase the number to 200 over the coming 12 months. Ocean was established as a result
of a joint venture agreement between the ESB and BT. Visit its web site at ocean.ie.
Lucent Technologies designs, builds and delivers a wide range of public and private networks, communications systems and software, data networking systems,
business telephone systems and microelectronic components. Bell Laboratories is the research and development arm of the company. For more information about
Lucent Technologies, visit the company's web site at lucent.com. |
