Bringing Submarine Cable Landing Facilities to the New Jersey Shore

April 28, 2016

New Jersey Fiber Exchange (NJFX) has launched a U.S.-based, carrier-neutral Meet-Me Room (MMR) inside Tata Communications’ international cable landing station (CLS), located in Wall Township, New Jersey. Telecom Review recently met with Gil Santaliz is the Founder and Managing Member of NJFX. Mr. Santaliz developed the vision for NJFX as one of the most unique locations possible for secure global connectivity with the lowest latency between three continents.

Gil was previously the CEO, Founder and Managing Member of 4Connections LLC, a metro fiber network provider which he founded in 2001. Under Mr. Santaliz’s leadership, 4Connections pioneered New Jersey regulatory issues as the leader in the deployment of a carrier-neutral dark fiber services for New Jersey and New York City.

As the exclusive, carrier-neutral MMR operator at the Tata Communications Cable Landing station (CLS), NJFX is responsible for managing the physical interconnections between customers of the NJFX data center and customers of the Tata Communications CLS, as well as providing MMR customers with reliable, diverse physical points of entry into the CLS via NJFX-assigned manholes, conduits and ducts. All current Tata Communications customers have access the (NJFX); carrier-neutral MMR at the CLS. Tata Communications will receive its own fiber to the MMR. These interconnection cables were delivered to the Tata Communications customer cabinets and cages for their use.

“The NJFX carrier-neutral MMR offers customers a high level of connectivity to leading service providers that already maintain an established presence within the Tata Communications CLS,” says Gil. “Leveraging a Network-to-Network Interconnection (NNI), NJFX data center customers also gain direct access to Tata Communications’ industry-leading Wavelength, Ethernet, MPLS, DIA and Cloud Services.”

“NJFX is supporting diverse dark fiber deployments to the Tata Communications Wall Township, New Jersey landing station under the NJFX carrier-neutral model, allowing for free market interconnections,” states Hunter Newby, a member of the executive and ownership team at NJFX. “These interconnections will propagate to thousands of new connections throughout the world to support the growing needs of carrier-neutral operators, service providers, enterprises, and federal and state government entities.”

NJFX is also building the first Tier III carrier-neutral colocation facility that intersects where subsea cables from the U.S. and Europe meet at the eastern most edge of the United States. The first express submarine cable between the U.S. and Sao Paulo is expected be ready in 2016 and land at this facility. Anticipated to go live in 2016, the network interconnection point provides service providers, enterprises, carrier-neutral operators and cable companies with direct interconnection options at the cable-head without recurring costs on cross-connects. The new edge allows service providers and enterprise companies to have more control of their networks rather than rely on traditional backhaul solutions. Service providers and enterprises using the NJFX location will also have access to Tata Communications’ global connectivity, built on one of the world’s largest and most advanced global subsea fiber networks. Over 24% of the world’s Internet traffic uses Tata Communications’ network.

“This new offering by NJFX will provide financial market data and trading platform customers with direct access to Tata Communications’ subsea cable network enabling them to reach 99.7% of the world’s GDP, with connectivity to more than 240 countries and territories in a secure Tier III colocation facility,” said Dave Ryan, Executive Vice President and Americas Regional Head, Tata Communications.

The company also broke ground on its 64,800-square-foot, Tier 3 carrier-neutral data center, which is adjacent to the Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) substation.

Both of these developments should have a positive effect on Monmouth County residents, said Gil Santaliz, founder and managing member of NJFX. Santaliz is also the founder and former CEO and managing member of 4Connections, a metro dark fiber network provider that he started in 2001 and sold to Cablevision in 2008.

One reason why the new data center and Meet-Me Room could revitalize the Jersey Shore is that JCP&L is providing the electricity for both. “We have made a commitment to make sure that JCP&L continues to invest in this infrastructure,” said Santaliz. “By working with JCP&L, we are helping Monmouth County have the most reliable infrastructure available. We are tied to that infrastructure.”

In addition, “our new facility and the Meet-Me Room are going to encourage many carriers to invest in additional infrastructure and bring more fiber down towards the Monmouth County area,” he said.

New Providers

New Jersey Fiber Exchange (NJFX), and Windstream (NASDAQ: WIN recently announced the expansion of Windstream’s 100G long-haul express network from the company’s 21715 Filigree Court, Ashburn, Virginia, Point of Presence (PoP) to NJFX’s carrier-neutral data center in Wall Township, New Jersey. The expansion will create the first direct network connection between NJFX’s Meet-Me Room (MMR) at the Tata Communications’ Cable Landing Station (CLS) and Ashburn.

The newly-established express fiber route offers customers four main benefits:

• 70 percent of the world’s Internet traffic travels through Northern Virginia, and Windstream is the only carrier that has four separate paths in and out of the area. The network connection also bypasses New York, Northern New Jersey, and other congested routes based on legacy infrastructure, ensuring low latency and secure connectivity.

• NJFX customers gain access to Windstream’s enterprise-class cloud communications, advanced data and voice solutions, and reliable 100 Gigabit Ethernet services delivered over the company’s extensive nationwide fiber and IP network.

• Windstream offers connectivity to and from 9 million square feet of data center, including ten major third-party data centers and data center campuses in the Washington D.C., area, which includes facilities in Ashburn, Reston and McLean, Virginia.

• Tata Communications continues to invest in its IP infrastructure with plans to offer its full portfolio of services and solutions at the Wall Township facility in March 2016, including carrier-grade MPLS, Wavelength options and, ultimately, 100 Gigabit Internet hand-offs.

“In 2015, Windstream focused on expanding its network. This latest 230-plus-mile, 100G long-haul network extension reflects our commitment to meeting the rapidly expanding data needs of our customers,” remarks Joe Scattareggia, Senior Vice President of Sales for Windstream Carrier Solutions. “We built out our network to NJFX’s meet-me room in New Jersey as an additional termination point since this is a prime meeting hub for subsea cables connecting two continents.”

Construction

NJFX’s 64,800-square-foot, Tier 3 facility where subsea cables from the U.S. and Europe meet at the United States’ easternmost edge, will offer service providers, enterprises, carrier-neutral operators and cable companies direct interconnection options at the cable head-end without recurring cross-connect fees. The facility will encompass the latest in Tier 3 computing infrastructure design, featuring over 1,000 cabinets for carrier-neutral colocation and greater capacity, with densities ranging from 2kW to 16kW per cabinet to address high-density power needs.

“Partnering with Windstream fortifies NJFX with additional reliable, low latency 100G connectivity for our data center and meet-me room customers,” comments Gil Santaliz, Founder and Managing Member of NJFX. “With multiple subsea systems coming into our facility, our goal is to provide customers with reliable, diverse connectivity options in a highly-secure, fortified facility as close to the edge as a network operator could get.”

“Given the challenging economic conditions, fast, secure and reliable connectivity is crucial for businesses. The direct extension of our network and access to additional routes to Ashburn will ultimately enable organizations to reach global audiences faster, expand into new territories, and drive better collaboration worldwide in today’s hyper-connected marketplace,” states John Hayduk, President and Corporate Operations Officer at Tata Communications.

The NJFX data center will provide global connectivity to more than 240 countries and territories as well as 99.7% of the world’s GDP by way of Tata Communications’ global subsea fiber network, one of the largest and most advanced in the world. As the exclusive, carrier-neutral meet-me room operator inside Tata’s CLS, NJFX tenants benefit from a high level of connectivity to leading service providers within the CLS.

NJFX has already started construction on the 64,800-square-foot, Tier 3 carrier-neutral data center in Wall, New Jersey. The facility intersects where subsea cables from the U.S., South America and Europe meet at the United States’ easternmost edge, offering service providers, enterprises, carrier-neutral operators and cable companies direct interconnection options at the cable head-end without recurring cross-connect fees.

The first phase of the data center is anticipated to become operational by 2016, and will be marked by the first express submarine cable between the U.S, South America and Europe landing at the TATA facility. When complete, the facility will encompass the latest in Tier 3 computing infrastructure design, featuring over 1,000 cabinets for carrier-neutral colocation and greater capacity to address high-density power needs.

“NJFX has asked Bala Consulting Engineers to design a technology-centered facility that will provide flexibility, scalability, robust system reliability and is energy efficient. Bala’s design meets NJFX’s core principle; to provide its clients with an adaptable and concurrently maintainable Tier 3 mission critical facility,” says Bret H. Crossland, New York Managing Partner at Bala Consulting Engineers.

“Direct Access to an existing on-site Jersey Central Power & Light substation provides NJFX with an additional 9MW of reserved capacity, allowing tenants the flexibility of power densities ranging from 2kW to 16kW per cabinet,” adds Frank Farrugia, Director of Operations for NJFX.

The newly commissioned NJFX data center will also provide global connectivity to more than 240 countries and territories as well as 99.7% of the world’s GDP by way of Tata Communications’ global subsea fiber network, one of the largest and most advanced in the world. Furthermore, as the exclusive, carrier-neutral Meet-Me Room (MMR) operator inside Tata Communications’ Wall, NJ international Cable Landing Station (CLS), NJFX tenants will benefit from a high level of connectivity to leading service providers within the CLS, as well as access to Tata Communications’ industry-leading Wavelength, Ethernet, MPLS, DIA and Cloud Services.

“We are now securing express routes with several facilities-based carriers such as Sunesys, who delivers dark fiber connections to NJFX from the U.S.’s busiest telecom hubs, including Ashburn, VA, 401 North Broad St. in Philadelphia, PA, and Piscataway, NJ, as well as all of New Jersey’s prominent financial exchanges,” remarks Gil Santaliz, NJFX Founder and Managing Member. “These industry-leading carrier partnerships allow our customers direct access to NJFX’s robust international capacity.”

“As you get more fiber, you get more price competition, and the incentive for innovation increases. The lower fiber prices will help our local schools and hospitals as well. The price point for Internet will probably be 10 percent of what you would pay a local Internet provider because there will be wholesale rates at this building.”

Traditionally, all data traveling overseas from New Jersey had to go to a point in lower Manhattan first, where interconnections with overseas cables existed. This is somewhat ironic, given that the transatlantic cables terminate in New Jersey and on Long Island.

Santaliz said that the tradition of overseas interconnections happening in New York is a legacy from the days when AT&T was a monopoly.

However, “in our industry proximity means security,” he said. “The fewer hops I have to make between where the international cables actually land and where I pick them up is of value.” It makes sense that companies operating out of New Jersey data centers (as well as other data center hubs in Chicago and Ashburn, Va.) would choose to go directly to the cable landing and then go back out internationally from there, Santaliz said.

Santaliz noted that in recent years New Jersey has become home to a disproportionate number of data centers, and is probably second only to Ashburn in terms of total data center floor space available. Most of New Jersey’s data centers are in the Piscataway, Carteret and Mahwah areas because of the industrial-strength PSE&G service there.