INDUSTRY

The Municipal Institute for Health Assistance (IMAS), based in Barcelona is deploying Internet Protocol (IP) convergence solutions from Nortel Networks to upgrade its communication network at the Hospital del Mar and Hospital de la Esperanza. These solutions will make it possible for IMAS to increase network reliability and expand bandwidth for voice, data and video medical applications at the two health centres while decreasing operating costs. The project, awarded by public tender, is being installed and engineered by systems integrator Landata Ingenieria. Nortel Networks solutions will converge multiple networks serving the two health centres into a single, packetized network, increasing bandwidth without system downtime for critical image and video applications important to the delivery of medical care. Packet technologies like IP save on infrastructure costs by converting voice, video and data into tiny packets that can be transmitted together over a single, high-speed network, eliminating the need for separate networks. "Nortel Networks IP convergence solutions allow us to run a single, high-performance network to decrease our operating costs and support voice, data, video and image traffic at the same time," said Ignasi Planas, IT director for IMAS. "We chose Nortel Networks solutions because the reliability of our network is critical to provide the connectivity and bandwidth for our health applications in a consistent, safe and reliable way without any network time delays." IMAS is deploying Nortel Networks Passport 8600 Routing Switch, a highly-reliable, highly-secure and intelligent core network routing solution, for converged applications and Nortel Networks BayStack 470 Ethernet switches for high-speed, high availability desktop delivery of new applications like providing electronic medical records to nursing workstations. "Our close relationships with customers and integrators together with our experience in the healthcare sector help us better understand IMAS requirements for its medical professionals and the network support they need to deliver the highest quality patient and family care," said Arturo Pradana, director, Business and Marketing Development, Iberia, Nortel Networks. "Information technology is a critical tool for the healthcare sector and Nortel Networks has the right solutions in place to ensure healthcare providers benefit from the new advanced technologies." The Municipal Institute for Health Assistance (IMAS) was created in Barcelona in the year 1983, integrating municipal health assistance services pertaining to the Town Hall of Barcelona. The IMAS includes hospital centres such as the Hospital del Mar and the Hospital de la Esperanza, the Psychiatric Institute, the Peracamps Emergency Centre, the Geriatric Centre and a complete series of Primary Assistance Centres (CAPs) and Family Planning and Counselling Centres (COPEs), apart from teaching and investigation centres such as the Municipal Institute for Medical Investigation (IMIM), the IMAS Teaching Unit (in trade-agreement with the University of Barcelona) and the Bonanova College for Professional Training. For more information, visit IMAS on the Web at www.imasbcn.com. As a global innovation leader, Nortel Networks enriches consumer and business communications worldwide by offering converged multimedia networks that eliminate the boundaries among voice, data and video. These networks use innovative packet, wireless, voice and optical technologies and are underpinned by high standards of security and reliability. For both carriers and enterprises, these networks help to drive increased profitability and productivity by reducing costs and enabling new business and consumer services opportunities. Nortel Networks does business in more than 150 countries.