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Appendix A: Network Description

Phase 1: Initial Network Build

The initial network uses OC-3 microwave radio and leased Bell Atlantic services to provide a redundant network, as graphically shown in the attached figures. The network has following main properties:

General:

  • The design provides a redundant in-county network and a redundant egress network.
  • The primary transport mode for the network is OC-3 microwave technology and leased DS3 circuits from Bell Atlantic. The leased fiber needs of the network are very limited, and, with the exception of a short 200’ aerial build, no fiber builds are required. As such, it is expected that this network is fully realizable and can be implemented in the very near term without technical or physical limitations.
  • The network is based on ATM cell technology as compared to traditional TDM (Time Division Multiplex) technology thereby providing the following advantages:

1. Ability to concentrate and compress traffic to provide more effective utilization network bandwidth

2. The ability to reroute traffic in the event of a failure over diverse media (fiber or copper)

3. The availability of enhanced end-user services including native LAN services.

  • The leased DS3 circuits are bottlenecks of the backbone network. With the use of ATM technology, the DS3 links can be over-subscribed to a 10:1 ratio. The traffic models used here use a conservative estimate of 6:1 over-subscription on links prior to implementing network bandwidth enhancements (e.g., fiber builds or leased fiber). The actual throughput depends on the mix of end customer traffic and the types of services carried.

 

Hub Sites:

  • An important component of the Phase 1 network is the establishment of hub sites at each main town within the in-county network. Each hub provides a telecom equipment room that is approximately 2000 sq ft with appropriate power, generator, UPS, and HVAC. These hub sites provides convenient and optimized locations for customers and service providers to collocate with Berkshire Connect to gain access to the Berkshire Connect network.
  • The existence of service providers within Berkshire Connect hubs will foster the proliferation of enhanced and basic telecom services within the county. These services could include ISP services, video conferencing services, data storage services, enhanced voice mail services, and access to long distance carriers and top tier ISPs.

In-County Network:

  • The in-county backbone network is a ring consisting of an OC-3 radio link between N. Adams and G. Barrington (via Mt. Greylock) and leased DS3 facilities (via Bell Atlantic) between G. Barrington and Pittsfield and between Pittsfield and N. Adams.
  • Within the in-county network, the network uses virtual collocation at Bell Atlantic central offices (COs) to minimize the costs associated with DS3 transport and also to reduce the costs associated with local access to end-customers via Bell Atlantic local loops (i.e., dedicated DS1s to end-customer through Bell Atlantic).
  • Virtual collocation will exist in Bell Atlantic COs in N. Adams, Pittsfield, and G. Barrington.
  • SONET transport equipment will be used to link Berkshire Connect hub locations to the BA Central Offices.

Egress Network:

  • The egress backbone network is a ring consisting of an OC-3 link between N. Adams and Springfield and a leased DS3 from Pittsfield to Springfield. Connectivity between Pittsfield and N. Adams is provided as part of the in-county network. The N. Adams to Springfield span consists of microwave radio links to Mt. Tom in Holyoke and leased dark fiber from Bell Atlantic into Springfield.
  • Within Springfield, it is suggested that Berkshire Connect use physical collocation at the Bell Atlantic central offices. The reasons are:

1. Physical collocation will minimize the transport costs associated with the DS3 circuit from Pittsfield and the costs associated with the leased fiber strands between Mt. Tom and Springfield.

2. Physical collocation will minimize the costs of interconnecting with other carriers for those carriers currently collocated with Bell Atlantic in this office.

3. The alternative, which is for Berkshire Connect to establish an equipment facility with a third party, it is not expected to provide lower rates nor provide increased flexibility for interconnection with other carriers.

Local Access

  • The primary means for providing local access within the county will be through the use of Bell Atlantic local loops and through collocation of end-users at Berkshire Connect hub sites.
  • There may be an opportunity as part of Phase 1 to provide fiber connectivity to "cluster areas", such as office parks or dense business locations, if fiber is available to do so.

Phase 2: Fiber Upgrades

Phase 2 is actually three independent fiber upgrades that will be implemented independently to replace DS3 leased capacity from Bell Atlantic with OC-3 transport. Graphical views of the fiber upgrades are provided in the attached figures.

The upgrades are:

  • Upgrade #1: Bike Path Upgrade: The DS3 link from Pittsfield to N. Adams will be replaced with a fiber span along the soon-to-be constructed bike path from the Lanesborough/Pittsfield line to Adams center. Given that the construction of the bike path will be done in 1999, it is suggested that the fiber build also be implemented in this timeframe to reduce costs.
  • Upgrade #2: Fiber Upgrade G. Barrington to Pittsfield: This fiber upgrade would provide for a buried fiber cable along existing rights-of-way between Great Barrington and Pittsfield. This upgrade is not required within the six-year view of the business plan due to lower penetration figures for this portion of the network. Cost figures are provided for future needs.
  • Upgrade #3: Leased Fiber Capacity to Springfield: The DS3 link between Pittsfield and Springfield will become a capacity bottleneck in year 3. To alleviate the bottleneck, a leased fiber agreement is recommended over a fiber build scenario due to the complexity and cost of the proposed build. Potential providers of leased dark fiber for this portion of the network are

1. El Paso Energy – with planned construction in Year 2000,

2. Williams – with planned construction in Year 2000,

3. NEON – a likely developer in the area, but no formal plans to date,

4. Bell Atlantic – has fiber, however, may not have spare fiber in all required segments of the route, and

5. Qwest – currently has fiber through Pittsfield but is unable to provide fiber access or transport services to Springfield at this time.

With the use of ATM technology, over-subscription is used to maximize available bandwidth enabling the network to transport up to 10 times the actual bit rate running across the fiber, which in this case is 155 Mb/s (an OC-3). As with the phase 1 network, the network uses a conservative 6:1 over-subscription ratio. The actual throughput depends on the mix of end customer traffic and the types of services carried.

Phase 3: Enhanced Services

It is worthwhile to note that after the completion of Phase 2 upgrades, the Berkshire Connect network is a network with substantial assets. These assets include:

  • A 48-fiber buried fiber cable route extending the length of the county from north to south.
  • An expandable OC-3 microwave network that can grow to accommodate additional OC-3 spans.
  • A long-term fiber lease agreement with a third party fiber provider to provide an expandable and a robust egress network.
  • A core ATM switch network capable of offering traditional as well as packet and cell based service offerings.
  • Three full-function and expandable hub sites designed specifically to address the collocation needs of end-users, service providers, and enhanced service providers.
  • Virtual and physical collocation facilities at key Bell Atlantic central offices providing for economic interconnection with Bell Atlantic.
  • A solid base of regional enterprise customers and regional municipal and educational users.

These assets will enable Berkshire Connect to expand and grow into many lines of service as future needs dictate. Some options for enhanced service offerings from Berkshire Connect include:

  • High-bandwidth data services for enterprise customers including 10 and 100 Mb/s Ethernet services and IP services.
  • Video Conferencing services.
  • Fiber-based private LAN services for enterprise customers.
  • Lease of capacity to other service providers
  • Lease of dark fiber to enterprise customers and to service providers.
  • Enhanced service offerings including fiber-based data storage applications.
  • Collocation services including space lease and technical support services.
  • Resale of Bell Atlantic services