SUNET harnesses Adtran’s ALM fibre monitoring solution for national backbone network

STOCKHOLM -- Adtran today announced that the Swedish University Computer Network (SUNET) has deployed its ALM in-service fiber monitoring solution to enhance network resilience and operational efficiency. The technology equips SUNET’s maintenance teams with real-time insight into the quality of its nationwide backbone infrastructure and identifies the precise location of any fiber issues. As Sweden’s research and education (R&E) network, SUNET empowers academics and scientists across the country to access learning resources, conduct research and collaborate internationally. With the deployment of ALM, the Nordics’ R&E community has additional assurance of uninterrupted, high-quality services. NetNordic, a key technology partner of SUNET, was also involved in the deployment.

“SUNET is a world-class high-capacity optical transport network connecting over 110 organizations and serving a community of 750,000 students, teachers and researchers across Sweden and beyond. The deployment of our ALM platform, with its passive fiber monitoring capabilities, has built even more resilience into this crucially important infrastructure, rendering services more reliable and streamlining operations,” said Stuart Broome, GM of EMEA sales at Adtran. “Finding the exact location of faults is a huge challenge for any operator. But now, with the ability to monitor the integrity of its fiber plant passively and proactively, SUNET’s maintenance teams no longer have to engage in costly and complicated post-failure analysis. ALM enables them to address issues before they impact the high-bandwidth, low-latency services Sweden’s R&E community relies on.”

The deployment of Adtran’s 16-port ALM fiber assurance solution across SUNET’s extensive fiber 8,000km backbone network enables rapid identification and resolution of failures, enhancing network resilience. This is a crucial advantage for a user community involved in data-heavy scientific research. The technology also helps improve efficiency by enabling proactive maintenance. Through an intuitive graphical user interface, SUNET can leverage ALM to monitor a vast national infrastructure containing RAMAN-amplified optical links. The platform detects abnormal attenuation, fiber breaks, tapping attempts and other issues that have the potential to impact connection quality and service availability. ALM also boosts sustainability by cutting down on truck rolls, while its low power use and fanless design ensure a greener, less resource-heavy network.

“From climate science to engineering to medicine, SUNET supports a wide range of important data-intensive projects. That’s why its infrastructure needs to be both fast and highly reliable. Our ALM technology guarantees peak network efficiency and resilience against unpredictable challenges like excavation damage or severe storms. With 24/7 monitoring capabilities, it enables SUNET’s maintenance teams to quickly identify and rectify any issues, ensuring uninterrupted, high-quality service,” commented Sander Jansen, GM of infrastructure monitoring at Adtran. “Moreover, our technology enhances environmental sustainability by reducing unnecessary site visits and lowering carbon footprint. This creates a network that benefits not just today’s users but also future generations.”