NetLab, a state-of-the-art networking laboratory at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), has acquired a Cisco solution from Spescom DataFusion to enhance its post-graduate students' technical hands-on experience.
Spescom DataFusion is Cisco Systems' leading Advanced Technology Partner in SA and delivers intelligent networking solutions based on Cisco's AVVID (Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data) technology. Spescom DataFusion also won a prestigious Cisco award at the Las Vegas Partner summit 2001 as a Cisco "New World Partner of the Year".
Bill Tucker, NetLab, Computer Science Centre of Excellence and post-graduate co-ordinator at UWC, says the solution implemented by Spescom is known as NetLab's 'baby Next Generation Networks' project.
"With funding and participation from Telkom and Siemens, the university's Computer Science department, of which NetLab forms part, has set up a Centre of Excellence to research broadband switching and transmission networks and their applications," he says.
In this environment, NetLab's aim is to implement and test key product sets in voice technology on its existing networking equipment, which encompasses technologies and products from multiple vendors.
Tucker says NetLab decided on Spescom to provide the Cisco networking solution for a number of reasons.
"The Cisco solution offered by Spescom came closest to satisfying the laboratory's research requirements.
"This included an Internet Protocol (IP) and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) kit to add onto NetLab's existing ATM core and various Ethernet devices to collect quality of service (QOS)-related statistics."
Tucker says Spescom's professional and timely service ensured that the solution would integrate into NetLab's existing environment to effectively address the research to be carried out.
"Spescom actively engaged with the researchers to determine the system's actual requirements. The company even offered a series of solutions and quotes for Cisco equipment as NetLab learned more about its own needs, based on equipment capabilities."
Tucker says one of NetLab's goals is to establish relationships with industry partners.
"In this regard, Spescom moved beyond the buyer-supplier relationship to become keenly involved in NetLab's activities by offering the research group collaboration and partnership opportunities."
Tim Pryce, director of Spescom DataFusion and manager of the Intelligent Networks Business Unit, says the company currently shares its research facility with NetLab students to expose them to real-world networking concerns.
"Spescom will also become involved in a host of other NetLab projects, helping to equip students with the expertise to take on challenging jobs in the telecommunications and networking industries," he concludes.
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Spescom Limited is an information and communications technology (ICT) company with operations in US, UK and SA.
The group is active in two main areas of the world IT market, namely offering product and solutions to connect to the networked economy, and the provision of software solutions to manage information and knowledge.
The strategic focus is on the convergence of knowledge, document, configuration and voice transaction management technologies.
Spescom holds the controlling interest in US-based Altris Software Inc, a NASDAQ-, OTCBB-listed company, and the developers of the award-winning eB software.
In SA, Spescom, in alliance with world-leading companies such as Cisco and Avaya, formerly known as Lucent Technologies, provides a range of customer contact and intelligent network solutions to its blue-chip customer base.
The company is a leading supplier of communications solutions and products to network operators and service providers on the African continent.
Spescom, through a joint venture with Siemens, is a world-leading supplier of revenue management solutions with installations in 42 countries, focusing on the prepayment of electricity services.
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