Tech Mahindra, a leading provider of digital transformation, consulting, and business re-engineering services and solutions, today announces that it has been working with Telefónica Germany to digitally transform its microwave network with open software defined networking (SDN).

Telefónica is working to standardise its management interface by collaborating with multiple vendors and partners. Tech Mahindra is helping Telefónica achieve this by bringing its domain expertise and continuous integration capabilities to the partnership. Tech Mahindra has been working with the telco to implement new standards for its DevOps model including enhancing its processes and requirements. This includes the continuous management support of service operations for the organisation’s overall SDN Architectures. The project involves the deployment of microwave transmission automation aimed at elevating service delivery and network operations. All microwave devices in Telefónica Germany’s mobile backhaul network are accessible via a single harmonised Network API which supports an open microservice framework. 

Vikram Nair, President, EMEA Business at Tech Mahindra, comments: “We have been actively collaborating with Telefónica on this project. We made an important contribution to the integration results and have driven us to continuously broaden our capabilities. This reflects our commitment to invest in open source technologies and scaling out networks within just weeks. Telefónica is able to accelerate its digital transformation efforts to provide a more efficient and future-proof service to its customers.”

Telefónica has been able to integrate 30,000 microwave links from multiple vendors into the OpenDaylight Controller using ONF TR-532 interface standard. This also reflects Tech Mahindra’s commitment to invest in open source technologies to accelerate scaling out networks. The move to SDN will enable Telefónica to adopt automation functionality in the future more easily.

"Together with our partners like Tech Mahindra, we are pioneering SDN within the microwave domain. The technological requirements for the mobile network of the future are continuously increasing. Software-based approaches such as SDN are helping us to reduce the complexity of our network architectures and to drive our network expansion even faster and with higher quality through a greater degree of automation. For example, our Telefónica technology team is already continuously developing new applications that can be made available across manufacturers within a matter of weeks," says Mallik Rao, Chief Technology & Information Officer at Telefónica Deutschland