VHA picks Ericsson for nationwide mobile backhaul network upgrade

Stuart Corner
Monday, 19 July 2010 10:25

IT Industry - Deals

Vodafone Hutchison Australia (VHA) has appointed Ericsson to build a new Australia-wide network that, it says, will greatly increased capacity of the Vodafone mobile network.

"We're taking the opportunity to migrate our mobile backhaul to an all-IP network," said Andy Reeves, Chief Technology Officer at VHA. "This allows us to greatly increase our network capacity and end-user speeds at a fraction of the cost of older backhaul technologies."

Migration to all IP is also an essential precursor to the introduction of LTE services: the all IP Evolved Packet Core is a key component of the overall LTE network architecture.

VHA says that Ericsson will operate as turnkey project manager to upgrade and build the transmission network by deploying "thousands of upgraded microwave radio and optical fibre links throughout Australia." The contract comprises the supply, rollout and integration of Ericsson optical and microwave transmission equipment.

VHA adds: "An important part of the contract is the provision of Ericsson's services, including design, installation and integration, field support and project management. Ericsson also has responsibility for the integration of the new transmission elements with existing equipment including products from other vendors.

The network will be based on the Ericsson MHL 3000 DWDM platform, OMS 1400 series of optical transport products and the Mini-Link TN microwave products