Ciena today announced that VERNet Pty Ltd has completed a successful trial of Ciena’s 40G and 100G optical networking solutions on its live DWDM network. Spanning two separate fiber routes, the trial demonstrated VERNet’s ability to seamlessly integrate cutting-edge optical transport technology into its Victorian Education and Research Network (VERN).

“VERNet’s high performance network must keep pace with the increasingly large volumes of data traffic generated by Victoria's advanced research and education facilities such as the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and leading higher education institutions,” said Roger Tanton, Chief Executive Officer at VERNet. “Our successful trial with Ciena demonstrated that the dynamic, high capacity network requirements of tomorrow can be met right now with minimal cost and without disruption to existing services, maximizing the potential of our existing infrastructure.”

VERNet’s network spans 1872 km across Victoria. The VERN currently delivers more than 180 network services to its ten member institutions, which rely on the very fast and highly reliable connectivity that is critical for leading research and higher education.

Conducted over two weeks in April 2010, the trial leveraged VERNet’s existing network based on Ciena’s Optical Multiservice Edge (OME) 6500 and Common Photonic Layer (CPL) platforms and added 40G and 100G wavelengths alongside existing live 10G wavelength services. The trial successfully demonstrated the ability to upgrade to 40G and 100G transport speeds with no interruption of existing services. Once inserted into the system, the use of advanced electronic digital signal processing and coherent technology meant that no re-engineering of VERNet’s existing fiber routes was needed and the new 40G and 100G wavelength services were active and working immediately.

“This trial validates the original selection of Ciena’s photonic layer as the underlying infrastructure for VERNet. As a platform with a long-term economic lifecycle, bolstered by the ability to instantly add 40G and 100G capabilities to existing line systems, Ciena’s solutions enable research networks to respond immediately to unpredictable capacity demands and deliver services unforeseen when the network was originally constructed,” said Anthony Mclachlan, Ciena's Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific.

Ciena is the leader in the use of next-generation 40G/100G optical technologies like coherent technology, DP QPSK modulation and advanced electronic digital signal processing techniques, all of which Ciena is the first and only vendor to successfully productize to date.

Ciena has a long standing commitment to the research and education sector and powers several of the world's largest research networks including Internet2, CANARIE, JANET, SURFnet and others. For additional information on Ciena’s collaboration with the R&E community, please visit http://www.ciena.com/researchandeducation.