To: Lalit Jain who wrote (60 ) 1/14/1999 10:34:00 AM From: Lalit Jain Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 856
NHC Communications Revolutionizes Telephone Provisioning New Automatic Cross Connect Switch for Local and Remote xDSL and PBX Line Management Applications Eliminates Manual Cable Changes for Voice and Data MONTREAL, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- NHC Communications Inc. (Toronto: NHC - news), the pioneer in physical layer switch products, has introduced a groundbreaking new voice and data cross connect matrix switch called Switchex/DVS that allows changes to phone lines remotely from an administrator's console. This eliminates the costly manual connects and disconnects now required to move, add or change service, dramatically reducing network downtime and labor costs. As the first physical layer switch to combine both voice and data and to support up to 5,400 lines, the Switchex/DVS primarily targets Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs), inter-exchange carriers and RBOCs, particularly those interested in adding faster Internet access through xDSL type services. By permitting electronic testing, provisioning and management of xDSL lines, the switch frees carriers from the expense and time needed to manually connect test equipment and hook individual lines into DSLAMs or other devices. It also supports analog voice, ISDN, Basic Rate, X.25, Frame Relay, Fractional T-1, T1 and E1 lines, permitting instant connects and disconnects even to remote locations. The Switchex/DVS is also designed for PBX line management, offering the ability to dynamically connect individual phones to a PBX line without dispatching a technician. This capability is especially useful in remote sites without full-time technicians and in convention centers, hotels and other applications with an ongoing need to reallocate individual telephony lines to specific phones. Huge market: The new switch arrives at a time when the Gartner Group is projecting an annual growth rate in the North American DSL market of more than 300 percent, with more than 1 million DSL lines to be installed by the year 2001. Providers will be under pressure to offer faster new ''a la carte'' type menu options to bandwidth-hungry corporate and residential Internet users, producing a crushing workload at the central office as subscribers sign on for new services and technologies. As the only solution available to ease the burden, the Switchex/DVS is expected to be rapidly embraced by providers. ''Since we introduced our first physical layer solutions 15 years ago, we have enabled network managers at thousands of companies to automate the hundreds of physical cabling changes needed every year to maintain corporate PCs and LANs,'' said Sylvain Abitbol, President of NHC Communications. ''With the combined voice and data capabilities of this new switch, we offer the same automation capability to providers overwhelmed by the cost of the manual labor required both to maintain existing services and add new services like xDSL. ''For telecommunications providers as well as network managers in other settings, this is a sea change that will improve the bottom line by making it possible to make better use of human resources and minimize network downtime,'' Abitbol said. Cutting-edge product: Replacing the traditional patch panel where manual moves, adds and changes typically take place, the Switchex/DVS allows service providers to electronically control the provisioning and management of their digital and analog voice and data circuits either locally or remotely. The switch resides at the central office, is transparent to a network system's protocol, and in its largest configuration is housed in a 23-inch rackmount chassis, giving it a small footprint ideal for telecommunication applications where space is at a premium. The product supports up to 5,400 paired circuits, transparently connecting loop-side pairs to corresponding equipment side pairs at the physical layer. It also allows pairs to be grouped for special line applications, and it has a built-in test port for quick and easy connection of diagnostic test equipment to any line. Testing can now be done remotely, eliminating the need to dispatch a highly trained and expensive technician to the site. The product includes versatile GUI-based SNMP Connection Management software that allows for unattended local or remote operation. An unlimited number of switches can be managed by one master VCCS 32 Operating System Software residing on a PC platform. The software also supports both pre-configured and user-defined scenarios that allow complex changes to be accumulated and initiated after normal business hours. For more information, contact NHC Communications at 800-361-1965 or 514-735-2741 or visit nhc.com . SOURCE: NHC Communications Inc.