Ciena Supplies PBB-TE Wireless Backhaul in South Africa

iBurst, a wireless broadband service provider in South Africa, has deployed Ciena's Carrier Ethernet Service Delivery (CESD) platforms for supporting wireless backhaul for 3G and 4G wireless networks.

Specifically, iBurst has replaced its existing Layer 2 infrastructure with Ciena's wireless backhaul solution, which leverages connection-oriented Ethernet, to provide higher performance service levels in its radio cell collection network.
The deployment uses PBB-TE to provide predictable path management and replaces a Spanning Tree-based architecture.

After evaluating several options, iBurst selected Ciena's solution for its enhanced implementation of Provider Backbone Bridging -- Traffic Engineering (PBB-TE) technology, which provides the reliability, scalability and efficiency the service provider required to support its transport network.

The Ciena CESD platforms, including the CN 5305 Service Aggregation Switch and LE 311v Service Delivery Switch, operate seamlessly within iBurst's Layer 2 environment and manage the switchover of dual microwave radio links without delays or failures.

In addition to the wireless backhaul platforms, iBurst has also deployed Ciena's CN 4200® FlexSelect® Advanced Services Platform to connect its primary and back-up data centers. The initial deployment includes multiple GbE and 2G Fibre Channel connections over DWDM carrying traffic from iBurst's Internet, VoIP, Metro Ethernet and network monitoring services. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Ciena worked with its South African systems integration partner, Telecom 180, to trial and deploy the Carrier Ethernet and optical transport platforms with iBurst.
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