NJFX Blog

NJFX – Unlocking a Gateway to AsiaPac with PCCW

October 26, 2020

We recently shared a closer look at how New Jersey connects the world through the state’s long history in telecommunications going back to Bell Labs and the world’s first cell phone call in 1973, well before the internet was born. Today, smart phones are ubiquitous and more users are accessing the internet on their phones than ever. New Jersey, along with companies such as NJFX, are still playing an important role in shaping the telecom industry. Having developed a global Cable Landing Station ecosystem, connecting four subsea cables and seven independent U.S. fiber based backhaul providers, NJFX is also a strategic meet point for global carriers. NJFX CLS recently welcomed PCCW Global to our CLS ecosystem. Establishing direct access to PCCW Global’s MPLS network and its award-winning Software-Defined Interconnection® platform, Console Connect, this new PoP brings NJFX customers direct connectivity to a global ecosystem of leading cloud, data center, SaaS, UCaaS, IX and IoT partners.

It is encouraging to see that despite the challenges with the global pandemic, with many lives and businesses severely impacted, along with strained business climates across many regions, that there are many signs of positivity and growth. In the midst of all these unknowns, NJFX is staying true to its mission of truly enabling its clients’ success along with increased collaboration and capabilities for all.

“What we have learned through a very challenging couple of quarters, is that the internet did not break. With millions of people more dependent on staying virtually connected than ever before, we were able to rise to the occasion, providing a robust eco-system with many options for our partners and customers,” states Sarah Kurtz, Business Development Manager for NJFX. “And we quickly learned that building on this ecosystem is the best way to stay connected, reduce latency, increase security and provide the most diverse options we can to our community. PCCW Global’s network has also been especially attractive to U.S. financials who have embraced its reach to AsiaPac. And now, combined with their suite of cloud services, PCCW Global becomes a critical component of global communications.”

Global Interconnection On-Demand

Let’s take a closer look at PCCW Global, a world leader in communications that also has a long history of delivering leading telecoms solutions. The company has built a digital platform called Console Connect that delivers agility and control to customers so they can manage their network and communications services on-demand. Console Connect uses Software-Defined Network technology to make the interconnection of cloud-based services and business-critical applications simple, predictable and secure. It enables users to self-provision connections across a secure MPLS network that delivers significant economies of scale, high-speed performance and flexibility.

“Using the Console Connect platform, NJFX customers can now interconnect in a much smarter and more efficient way, while also managing and delivering their services in real-time,” says Michael Glynn, Vice President of Digital Automated Innovation, PCCW Global. “What sets Console Connect apart is that the digital platform runs on one of the world’s largest MPLS networks that combines the flexibility of on-demand cloud with the security, reliability and performance of high-quality, owned infrastructure, physically separate to the public internet. This makes the platform a particularly strong fit for the stringent security requirements of financial organizations located in and around the NJFX colocation campus.”

Console Connect’s wholesale NNI solution is advantageous for carriers and addresses their unique technical and commercial requirements as part of a digital supply-chain. Providing instant provisioning for carriers, the NNI solution allows organizations to leverage the full range of network automation and connectivity capabilities of Console Connect.

PCCW Global’s Next Generation Network supports a wide portfolio of international voice and data solutions, cost-effective value-added managed services and a range of network monitoring services.

PCCW Global has a strong network reach from the U.S. to Asia offering one of the largest fully-meshed IP backbone networks in the Asia-Pacific region, reaching more than 400 cities with MPLS VPN.

With an extensive and resilient network infrastructure across the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, PCCW Global currently meets the international connectivity needs of enterprise, financials and wholesale customers in more than 3,000 cities.

To learn more about PCCW, go to www.pccwglobal.com. To connect with PCCW Global at NJFX, please contact emily @njfx.net.

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About NJFX:

NJFX is a Tier 3 Carrier Neutral Cable Landing Station campus. Our colocation ecosystem has expanded to over 35 network operators offering flexibility, reliability, and security. Our Wall, NJ location provides direct access to multiple subsea cable systems giving our carriers diverse connectivity solutions and offers direct interconnection without recurring cross-connect fees.

NEW JERSEY CONNECTS THE WORLD

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

NEW JERSEY CONNECTS THE WORLD

Garden State’s Tech Landscape is Rich and Storied

October 6, 2020

From the beginning of the telecommunications story, New Jersey has played a crucial chapter. The state is home to the storied Bell Laboratories, where fiber optic cables came to life and the first cellular phone was invented. Today, New Jersey plays an important role in connecting the world, as the landing site of numerous subsea cables and a multitude of terrestrial fiber routes.

Traditionally the cable landing site was just that, a place for subsea cables to make landfall. The cable landing station (CLS) served one purpose: house cable endpoints to be connected to terrestrial routes. Then came the colocation campus, where land and sea cables could meet, along with options for data center services. But even that model is changing very rapidly. Today, the CLS campus is a thriving hub, connecting terrestrial and subsea routes, along with interconnections of all types: major carriers, regional IPs, other subsea systems – all housed in the same place.

NJFX is serving as the North American model for the new CLS hub. And it benefits customers in many ways. Not only are the interconnection points varied and diverse, the site can also serve customers that want to take their data storage offsite. Enterprises are looking to streamline their day-to-day business operations and leave data center and colocation services to the experts, such as NJFX. Recently, a large, New Jersey-based healthcare consulting company decided to move patient data offsite to the NJFX facility. By doing so, the company has access to convenient, low-cost, resilient, diverse connectivity options, in a secure building, located in a suburban area. NJFX is disaster resistant and set away from congested metro areas that could be difficult to access in a crisis, such as the pandemic lockdown. This secure facility is also located 64 feet above sea level, which provides further protection for weather related issues.

At the forefront of the effort to reach out to enterprises, is VP of Business Development Sarah Kurtz. Sarah leads NJFX’s enterprise efforts by providing awareness of unique interconnectivity options and the global reach at the Cable Landing Station campus. As soon as she joined the team last year, she began traveling extensively to introduce NJFX and its capabilities and offerings to the marketplace. In a few short months, those travel efforts were forced to end. Being a digital native who easily adapts to ever-changing technology, Sarah was able to embrace a new way of building virtual relationships.

Sarah, along with NJFX General Manager, Felix Seda – both millennials – are working to engage a younger, more diverse group of professionals to join the telecommunications workforce. After spearheading the Millennials in Telecom reception at PTC 2020, Seda sought to expand the initiative and focus it on the subsea space, leading him to work on initiatives within the Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (“DIB”) working group of the SubOptic Association. As a part of the DIB Working group, Felix and Sarah are working alongside the rest of the members to create opportunities for the younger generation to explore the various avenues afforded within the industry.

Members of the leadership team at NJFX have established themselves as thought leaders in the space, and are sought after speakers. This adds a high level of expertise for NJFX, which has cemented itself as a leading carrier-neutral CLS colocation facility, providing international connectivity just a single cross-connect away and generating a high-resilience, low-latency network with direct interconnection options for service providers, enterprises, carrier-neutral operators and cable companies.

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About NJFX:

Fortify Your Network Reach – DE-CIX New York is Now Available At NJFX

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

Fortify Your Network Reach – DE-CIX New York is Now Available At NJFX

September 22, 2020

Want to reach the leading ISPs, content providers, cloud providers and global carriers all at one location? Now, you can have direct access to all of these and more at NJFX. Fortifying its network interconnection capabilities to support its customers’ requirements for resilient and reliable peering and connectivity options, NJFX proudly welcomes the DE-CIX New York Internet Exchange (IX).

We first announced DE-CIX coming to NJFX earlier this year and this latest development expands access for NJFX customers to now have direct connectivity to DE-CIX New York, one of the top five IX’s in North America.

“Our collaborative approach in working with the world’s leading carriers, subsea cable providers and Internet Exchanges, has made NJFX an essential interconnection hub,” commented Felix Seda, Partner and General Manager of NJFX. “The direct and local access to DE-CIX New York is a huge benefit for our customers and will offer increased access to low-latency capabilities that enable local peering and network connectivity.” NJFX customers can directly reach DE-CIX from a number of subsea systems and network routes without traversing through congested New York metro area routes.

Through a single port with DE-CIX at NJFX, networks can peer with DE-CIX New York networks and connect to DE-CIX European Exchanges with VLAN access to reach over 2000 networks globally. DE-CIX New York is operated by the world’s largest carrier and data center neutral IX in the world and offers:

Access from 16 unique data centers
Reach to 230+ networks
Reach to over 2000 global networks
Improved performance
Reduced Costs

At NJFX’s Tier III carrier-neutral Cable Landing Station and data center, you can also reach four subsea cable systems, 80% of U.S. carriers, and over 270 ASN’s locally with additional access to over 1,800 unique ASN’s globally. Offering access to multiple backhaul providers for direct and diverse connectivity to Ashburn, Chicago, Philadelphia, North Carolina, Dallas and other cities around the US, NJFX eliminates New York City as a single point of failure.

Check out our robust interconnection services suite HERE. To learn more, please email [email protected].

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About NJFX:

SUMMER 2020: ONE FOR THE BOOKS!

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

SUMMER 2020: ONE FOR THE BOOKS!

September 9, 2022

Summer 2020 was no usual summer. But summer at the shore is always welcome, and here at NJFX, that meant business as usual. We remained committed to our customers and continued building our ecosystem, at a time when international connectivity takes on increased urgency and importance.

Summer became a period of transition for many businesses beginning to look beyond the pandemic. At NJFX, we announced three new additions to our ecosystem, with three Points of Presence (PoP) at NJFX. In May, we welcomed Cogent Communications, one of the world’s largest internet service providers. As a multinational, Tier-1 facilities-based ISP, Cogent Communications is consistently ranked as one of the top five backbone networks in the world.

Also in May, NetIX, a European based interconnected internet exchange made its first foray in North America right here at NJFX. NetIX has a unique reach into Eastern Europe. The internet exchange is now bringing together NJFX tenants and its own global network, including its full portfolio of solutions, of more than 30 IXPs with 140+ members.

NJFX Happy Hour — Most recently, team NJFX hosted an outdoor happy hour for a small group of colleagues and partners, including representatives from multinational financial institutions, OTTs and carriers. NJFX is continuing to build the (socially distant!) relationships that bring a robust ecosystem to NJFX as it works to serve its community.

In June, we were pleased to onboard CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL), a global communications service provider. The connection to CenturyLink’s terrestrial fiber network provides access to the service provider’s routes across North America.

As it supports massive shifts in traffic, the telecommunications infrastructure industry is also working to take steps that address its environmental impact. To that end, NJFX is very proud to announce that its facility is now carbon neutral.

The leadership team at NJFX embraced the brave new world of virtual events this summer. Starting with a virtual career presentation to STEM Academy students at Matawan Regional High School. The presentation included discussions about career opportunities in telecommunications infrastructure from NJFX’s Business Development Manager Sarah Kurtz. Also on the panel was NJFX’s first fully virtual intern and Virginia Tech student Amanda Kadunce.

The team attended the first ever virtual ITW. Founder and CEO Gil Santaliz participated in a virtual session entitled “Community: Subsea.” The focus was on the latest transatlantic cable projects, now entering a renewal phase. In July, Gil virtually attended Capacity Media’s Subsea World and spoke on a panel entitled “Subsea Resilience in Times of Crisis,” highlighting the role of the subsea industry on the interconnections that power global communications even during unprecedented challenges.

FLASHBACK: Pre-COVID, NJFX’s CLS campus served as an international model for subsea connectivity. A delegation of officials from Chile and Ecuador visited the campus earlier this year as part of a reverse trade mission, to learn more about achieving an optimal model of interconnection for future projects. The mission was part of a feasibility study for a planned project to connect the west coast of South America to Asia via subsea cable, dubbed the “Asia South America Digital Gateway”.

Recognizing NJFX’s leadership in the New Jersey business community, General Manager Felix Seda was honored with the NJBiz “40 Under 40” award. The award honors young business leaders in New Jersey who are making their mark.

Felix also attended the virtual Content Delivery Summit in June. The event addressed the increase in virtual school, work and even doctor visits plus the increase in demand of entertainment services, gaming, streaming, and the like. due to stay home directives. Felix participated in a panel called “Energy, Submarine, Fiber Carrier Interconnect”, focusing on the infrastructure needed to enable the massive digital shift.

As a member of SubOptic, Felix is taking an integral role as part of this industry association working hard to establish a pipeline to reinvigorate the subsea/telecom industry. The goal is to enable strategic internship and mentorship programs, to allow for the new wave of leaders pushing the industry forward.

As if we were not already dealing with unprecedented changes, NJFX also had to ramp up disaster recovery (DR) planning as Tropical Storm Isaias barreled through the state. More than 2.8M people in the tri-state area lost power. NJFX continued operations on backup generator under its Covid-19/hurricane preparedness protocols. Working in lockstep with local officials, and having the technical expertise, NJFX remained a priority as part of the restoration efforts.

This summer, NJFX proved the company is agile and ready to shift priorities to make sure its ecosystem is supported, no matter what challenges arise.

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About NJFX:

NJFX General Manager Felix Seda Named to NJBiz “40 Under 40” List

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

NJFX General Manager Felix Seda Named to NJBiz “40 Under 40” List

Recognized among New Jersey’s Young Movers and Shakers in Business

August 18, 2020

Felix Seda, the General Manager at NJFX, has been recognized by NJBiz as one of New Jersey’s “40 Under 40”. This program recognizes New Jersey business leaders, under the age of 40, who share a commitment to business growth, professional excellence and their community.

The annual 40 Under 40 Awards honor the movers and shakers making their mark in New Jersey business. These young, noteworthy business people represent a wide range of industries. They prove much can be accomplished before your 40th birthday with determination, passion and drive.

Felix came to NJFX by way of the financial field, holding a management position at Barclay’s Wealth. Now, after only five years as NJFX General Manager, he has played a key role in accomplishing NJFX’s unique mission: to create an avenue for carriers and networks to get as close to the edge as possible, bridging the gap between the subsea cable landing station and landline fiber routes. He has played a major role in the success of this mission, which has made New Jersey a major player in the tech and telecom industry, putting it on the map as a global hub of communications.

Felix’s impact on the industry as a whole is also demonstrated beyond his work with NJFX. He is dedicated to bringing young talent into the telecom industry by spearheading a number of millennial-focused initiatives to encourage the education and engagement of young professionals. He created the Millennial Reception at PTC 2020, aimed at bringing new telecom employees together to network and engage with select industry veterans to further their careers. He is also working closely with SubOptic, a global organization invested in the long-term success of the fiber optic subsea communications industry, on its Diversity and Inclusion initiative.

He sees the value of recruiting young professionals, many of which are digital natives, and the unique perspective they may bring to an industry that is often so dominated by veterans involved from the beginning of the modern internet. The hiring and involvement of these fresh, young professionals will do a great deal to propel the industry into the future. Felix was also recently named on the Capacity Media Power 100 List for his professional accomplishments.

NJBiz is New Jersey’s leading business journal. The “40 Under 40” awards will be presented virtually on October 28th.

You can see the complete “40 Under 40” list here.

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About NJFX:

Rising Through the Ranks: Developing a Newly Blossoming Career During a Pandemic

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

Rising Through the Ranks: Developing a Newly Blossoming Career During a Pandemic

August 11, 2020

Our world came to a screeching halt in mid-March. Businesses scrambled to make accommodations for entire workforces that shifted to remote work. Schools were shuttered. Travel was banned. In short, the world as we knew it changed drastically in the blink of an eye.

At NJFX, our business development model relies on building relationships, attending industry conferences and speaking on expert panels around the world. But that all changed earlier this year. While leisure travel is important to maintaining sectors of the economy, even more important is business travel that is crucial to developing and maintaining relationships between companies.

Late last year, Sarah Kurtz joined the NJFX team as Business Development Manager. Sarah has led NJFX’s enterprise efforts by providing awareness of unique interconnectivity options and the global reach at the Cable Landing Station campus. To that end, she began traveling extensively to introduce NJFX and its capabilities and offerings to the marketplace. In a few short months, those travel efforts were forced to end.

Now, executives at NJFX and many other companies and industries are re-evaluating how to conduct all business remotely. For NJFX, this transition was challenging but not impossible. Because the services that NJFX provides are part of the infrastructure that is powering the world’s newly remote workforce, some of the efforts were naturally enhanced. Being a digital native who easily adapts to ever-changing technology, Sarah was able to embrace a new way of building virtual relationships. At a time in Sarah’s career when learning the ins and outs of business development are key, she has had to shift building those relationships over a computer screen. Fortunately, the initial face-to-face meetings set Sarah up for success in the current environment.

Weeks of lockdowns turned into months, and NJFX had to make a decision about our annual internship opportunities. In May, NJFX welcomed Amanda Kadunce to the team as NJFX’s first 100% virtual intern. Amanda also rose to the challenge, learning important business and marketing skills while safely working from home over 200 miles away.

As the economy changes course, we will continue to see different trends emerge. Careers that were attractive pre-pandemic may not be as enticing today. Many kids in high school and post secondary schools are shifting their focus to jobs that withstand economic uncertainty. But one thing we have learned is that the ‘new’ economy definitely includes jobs within our industry. The data and voice connections that NJFX’s ecosystem powers have been keeping all of us online and connected. We look forward to a day when we can return to meeting face-to-face. Until then, we are remaining ever-vigilant in helping our subsea and telecom customers fortify their networks with more capacity, resilience and diversity. It’s the human connection and training up the next generation within the telecom industry that pulls us all forward to even greater things ahead.

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About NJFX:

The New Age CLS: Prepared for the Unexpected

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

The New Age CLS: Prepared for the Unexpected

Expect the unexpected. It’s a lesson learned from past natural and manmade disasters and one that we have all been forced to contend with during the COVID-19 pandemic.

*Photo Credit of CNN – Utility poles were felled Tuesday by Tropical Storm Isaias as it hit Guttenberg, New Jersey.

August 6, 2020

This week, Tropical Storm Isaias compounded an already stressful and challenging situation by battering the U.S. east coast, landing in North Carolina on Monday and powering up through New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. Devastation was widespread as fallen trees smashed houses, buildings, cars and blocked roads. Hurricane force winds also contributed to the mayhem by downing power lines and blowing out transformers – leaving over 2.8M people in the tri-state area without power. Isaias is being compared to the devastation left by Superstorm Sandy and has utility crews working to restore power, along with emergency response teams clearing debris and helping those in need.

It goes without saying that the loss of life and personal property damage has been devastating to the region this week. For many businesses, this was terrible timing as they have already been working hard to recover from forced closures, having to operate under limited capacities and increased restrictions due to COVID-19. However, if your business is located near a power sub-station or near the backbone of the power grid, then you will probably be included in the priority restoration efforts as utility crews work to fix the highest-use areas first.

A closer look at one such business.

Located 30-feet from a power substation, NJFX, as a carrier-neutral Cable Landing Station (CLS) in Wall, New Jersey, continues operations on generator power under its Covid-19 Hurricane preparedness protocols. New Jersey electric utilities are assessing and prioritizing power restoration efforts and have crews working continuously. Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L), which serves over 1M customers in central and northern NJ, also reported that an additional 1,300 workers will be arriving today, joining nearly 4,000 resources already engaged in the restoration effort. NJFX has experienced no service-affecting impact to customers and will provide full updates when electric utility is restored. This essential CLS, is operating on generator power now, which can last for ten days. Assessing the fuel consumption levels multiple times per day, NJFX can easily resupply its fuel load with the fuel trucks that are on standby to replenish when and if needed.

“When NJFX turned to us for consultation on power protocols during the facility’s construction, we noted that the location was superior because of the proximity to an existing utility substation. During outages, utilities will prioritize restoration efforts to substations in an effort to restore power,” commented Will Steffens, Principal, Sugarloaf Associates. “As an extra layer of security, a switch was installed on the utility distribution systems just outside the facility to isolate NJFX from impacts on the distribution system in the surrounding area. Even if there is extensive damage to the utility system in the area and the substation is energized, NJFX will be up and running.”

The NJFX team has forged strong partnerships with utility companies and local officials and is maintaining open lines of communication. Working in lock-step with local officials, and having the technical expertise needed to analyze the situation, further helps ensure NJFX retains priority as part of the restoration efforts. Thankfully, there is not the wide-spread flooding that came with Hurricane Sandy, and the roads coming into NJFX’s facility are clear. Customers, vendors and carriers are able to reach the colocation campus, which is back to operating under its Code Orange, COVID-19 hurricane preparedness procedures and requirements. In addition, since NJFX doesn’t require water to operate as do other data centers, it is not impacted by the inability that power outages cause to treat sewage.

“We are not out of the woods yet,” commented Gil Santaliz, NJFX CEO and Founder. “But NJFX customers can rest assured that every consideration has been well-thought out and accounted for. Because of our strategic location 64-feet above sea level and outside the NY/NJ metro areas, NJFX is buffered from some of the other issues plaguing urban areas. Expect the unexpected is a motto that the NJFX was founded upon and we continue to live by that today.”

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About NJFX:

NETIX CASE STUDY – NJFX

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

NETIX CASE STUDY – NJFX

July 22, 2022

WHO IS NJFX?

As a carrier-neutral Cable Landing Station (CLS), NJFX has a robust ecosystem of carriers, subsea cable providers, telecommunications companies and enterprises. The NJFX team has a very collaborative approach in working with a wide variety of organizations to offer access to new geographies, enable increased capabilities, drive advancements, solve IT challenges and overall, create new opportunities for its clients.

HOW DID YOU HEAR OF NETIX?

NetIX really captured our attention after winning ‘Best Internet Exchange’ at the 2018 Global Carrier Awards hosted by Capacity Media. Earning this coveted award and achieving that recognition really spoke volumes. We were honored to be considered as the hub for NetIX’s first entry in the U.S. market in 2019. At NJFX, we have a responsibility to our customers to source and partner with the best networks that can offer high-quality services and solutions, and NetIX fits that criteria.

THE CHALLENGES:

NJFX is home to 80% of U.S. carriers, more than 270 ASNs, and four subsea cables providing independent direct routes to North America, South America, Europe and the Caribbean. NetIX offers additional opportunities to our clients who want to access global solutions and a global network simply, quickly and through one cross connect from one location. With the NetIX Point of Presence (PoP) in the NJFX CLS, our customers have another reliable partner to help distribute their [email protected] www.netix.net ASN: 57463 traffic globally. Our U.S.-based ASNs want to exchange traffic directly with other peers globally quickly, easily with minimal hassle and service disruption and NetIX enables all of this. As a leading player in the marketplace, NetIX helps U.S. East Coast-located networks improve their reach across Europe.

THE SOLUTION:

There are two NetIX services that stand out the most to our customers; the GIX (Global Internet Exchange) solution and the global Point-to-Point service. Both of these services are provided through one cross-connect and one contract, keeping things as simple as possible.GIX is a unique service that enables tenants to access all the major Internet Exchanges and directly exchange traffic with them. Offering GIX means NJFX can connect to over 6,000 networks and can help distribute traffic to more than 30 Internet Exchanges like AMS-IX (in Amsterdam), DE-CIX (in Germany), LINX (in London), MSK-IX (in Moscow) and many more.Since NetIX’s network has over 150 PoPs (Points of Presence), our customers can connect to any one of them, be it in Tokyo, Los Angeles, Milan, or even Buenos Aires – all locations can handle any type of bandwidth with immediate upgrades if required.

THE RESULT:

We partnered with NetIX because we knew the broad range of services and the type of solutions it provided would be of interest to our customers and could benefit them greatly. NetIX has an excellent reputation in providing exceptional services, and we are confident their team will deliver that same level of service to our customers.Through this partnership we have enabled new capabilities for our customers creating more value and options for them. We’ve also been able to further solidify our position as a global telecommunications ecosystem. Our partnership with NetIX offers many opportunities to our tenants who want to access global solutions and a global network simply, quickly and through one cross connect from one location allowing for rapid deployments and enabling cost-effective access to European Internet Exchanges.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO GROW, EXTEND, AND IMPROVE YOUR NETWORK?

ENJOY ALL THE BENEFITS FROM WORKING WITH NETIX AND GET IN TOUCH WITH OUR TEAM TODAY:

Website- www.netix.net

Email- [email protected]

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About NJFX

Re-Imagining Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

Re-Imagining Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

NJFX General Manager dedication to bringing young talent to the industry

July 28, 2020

COVID-19 has presented significant obstacles for many aspects of life, and for young people it has also created a lot of uncertainty when it comes to employment options and opportunities. For this reason, the SubOptic Association is working hard to establish a pipeline to reinvigorate the subsea/telecom industry and enable strategic internship and mentorship programs allowing for the new wave of leaders pushing the industry forward. NJFX applauds this group and its efforts to strengthen the industry as a whole.

As part of that focus, NJFX General Manager, Felix Seda and Business Development Manager, Sarah Kurtz – both millennials – are assisting in SubOptic’s efforts to encourage young talent to join the telecommunications workforce, specifically in the subsea space. After spearheading the Millennials in Telecom reception at PTC 2020, Seda sought to expand the initiative and focus it on the subsea space, leading him to work on initiatives within the Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (“DIB”) working group of the SubOptic Association. As a part of the DIB Working group, Mr. Seda and Ms. Kurtz are working alongside the rest of the members to create opportunities for the younger generation to explore the various avenues afforded within the industry.

“We are working with the many talented people in the SubOptic Association to rebuild these programs in a way that will help broaden our outreach and expand the pool of young leaders exploring our rewarding and unique industry,” says Seda. “Internships are a great way for people still in college to find their career path post-grad, and we do not want the state of the world to get in the way of that.” The SubOptic Association is also working on building and launching their mentorship program, which connects young professionals with more experienced mentors to guide them in the beginning stages of their careers.

“We value the work being done by the entire SubOptic membership and working groups to raise awareness on the importance of bringing more people to the industry and attracting new organizations,” commented Erick Contag, Executive Chairman of GlobeNet and President of the Executive Committee of SubOptic. “We are fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated team of people working on these important and worthy initiatives.”

“Felix and Sarah are very dedicated to this cause and their insights have been extremely valuable to not only NJFX’s success, but in guiding millennials to the industry,” commented Gil Santaliz, CEO of NJFX. “They are clearly dedicated to building out the subsea workforce, and we look forward to their efforts, along with others in the industry to garner even more participation and success going forward.”

Seda has also been working with SubOptic’s DIB working group to expand its network of partner companies for the internship and mentorship programs. The DIB team recently held a well-attended session at the Subsea World online conference to encourage more companies to get involved. “When I was in college, I was a part of the Posse Foundation program, which is a well-known organization in the education landscape. They have a large network of “Posse Partners”, companies who encourage their employees to volunteer to mentor students and provide internship opportunities to the Posse scholars. My goal is to create an extensive network like that for SubOptic, and maybe even blend these initiatives in the future,” Seda remarks.

This is not the only time Seda and Kurtz have shown their dedication to bringing young talent to the industry. They both worked closely with PTC earlier this year to organize a reception aimed at bringing millennials together to network with each other and with established industry veterans. The dynamic twosome also conducted a virtual career presentation at Matawan Regional High School in New Jersey to inform college-bound students about the opportunities in telecom infrastructure. Their work with SubOptic is the next step in collective efforts to revitalize the industry with fresh perspectives, from the Digital Native generation.

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About NJFX:

Why the Cable Landing Station Matters

NJFX Blog / Sarah Kurtz

Why the Cable Landing Station Matters

As a Carrier-Neutral Ecosystem, NJFX Brings Together a Variety of Carriers and Service Providers That Enable So Much More For End-Users

July 7, 2020

Wall Township, NJ – A Cable Landing Station (CLS) colocation campus in the U.S., offering Tier 3, carrier-neutral data center capabilities — providing direct access to multiple independent subsea cable systems connecting North and South America, Europe and the Caribbean — is an entirely unique facility in the world of information and communications technology (ICT) with singular attributes and capabilities. Especially as content and application requirements continue to push the need for data to be closer to the edge, such a CLS colocation campus is essential in providing strong interconnections between customers, partners and transcontinental subsea cable systems.

“For global enterprises, ISPs, CDNs and network operators, having access to diverse terrestrial and subsea options for connectivity is the foundation of their ability to reach new customers and penetrate new and emerging markets,” commented Gil Santaliz, CEO for NJFX. “Moreover, by establishing a presence at the NJFX CLS colocation campus, customers can leverage direct over 12 terrestrial routes to major North American destinations and avoid unnecessary legacy network bottlenecks. In addition, NJFX customers can also gain access to four subsea cable systems between continents for the best intercontinental data exchange, including critical transatlantic connectivity to Europe & South America.”

“By establishing a presence at the NJFX CLS colocation campus, customers are now able to leverage direct, low latency routes to major U.S. business hubs in New York and Ashburn that avoid legacy chokepoints,” stated Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX International. “We are also seeing the LATAM market as one of the focus regions for networks we want to connect from NJFX to DE-CIX New York.”

Why are these connectivity and interconnection capabilities now more important than ever?

If the recent months have taught us anything, it’s that a surge in digital services usage places tremendous pressure on the internet to be able to handle the rise in traffic volumes and shifting patterns of demand that can potentially affect the end-user experience. To give but one example of how this has affected communications providers, in March, as internet users began staying home to work, study and self-entertain, one major carrier saw a 20 percent increase in web traffic in a single week. Virtual Private Network (VPN) usage went up 49 percent, while video rose by 36 percent, and online gaming increased 115 percent.

CenturyLink, which offers an extensive global fiber network, including approximately 450,000 route miles of fiber and a network serving customers around the world, recently established a point-of-presence (PoP) at NJFX. The carrier provides an underground terrestrial fiber network, linking key routes across North America. This is just one more example of the advantages of a CLS colocation campus with carrier-neutral data center capabilities that brings together a variety of communications and service providers that enable so much more for end-users

“Establishing a point of presence at NJFX allows CenturyLink customers close proximity to data, decreasing network latency, along with delivering smart options to further diversify and plan their international connections with clarity and accuracy,” commented Warren Greenberg, vice president and general manager for CenturyLink in NYC, NJ and CT. “We look forward to offering our services suite at the NJFX campus and to our enterprise customers.”

Rather than a gradual evolution, COVID-19 has accelerated the digital transformation efforts of many enterprises virtually overnight. Moreover, with IDC predicting that global data traffic will increase 61 percent by 2025 to reach 175 zettabytes, up from 33 ZB last year, we can reasonably anticipate that the demand for networking, compute, and storage capacity will remain high, especially as more and more next-generation technologies such as AI, IoT, and AR/VR applications become mainstreamed, and 5G sees wider adoption.

Faced with these current and future challenges, a CLS colocation campus that serves as a network interconnection point at the easternmost edge of North America enables companies to design and construct the most efficient network for their business and ensure the delivery of high-bandwidth content and applications to serve end-customers. NJFX offers an ecosystem rich with fiber networks and platforms providing multiple options for route diversity, availability, reliability and security.

Because of its location on the edge of domestic and international networks and subsea cables, this enables enterprises, financial services organizations and carriers to utilize direct routing, eliminate single points of failure and avoid typical network congestion points.

Recently, Epsilon connected its network backbone to NJFX’s facility, extending its software-defined networking (SDN) platform, Infiny, to offer the ability to bypass New York entirely. Epsilon customers can connect directly to Europe from NJFX via the Transatlantic Bridge, including the TGN cable as well as the Havfrue (AEC2) cable when it becomes ready for service.

“NJFX is a pivotal data centre for transatlantic traffic,” said former Epsilon CEO Jerzy Szlosarek. “With multiple transatlantic cables coming directly into the NJFX facility, connectivity can happen right at the edge, without legacy bottlenecks, and can then continue across North America via the complete Epsilon network.”

Via Epsilon, as well as several other network providers such as Altice, NJEdge, TATA Communications, Windstream and Zayo, companies can readily access major cloud service providers (CSPs) to launch public and private cloud deployments from NJFX, including Alibaba Cloud, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Azure, Google Cloud Platform, IBM Cloud, and Oracle.

The Flexera 2020 State of the Cloud Report recently revealed that the most common multi-cloud approach among enterprises is a mix of multiple public and private clouds. NJFX’s ability to offer streamlined access to CSPs is especially significant in view of the fact that cloud-first policies and cloud migration are top-of-mind among enterprises, which are rapidly increasing cloud spend and workload volumes, according to the report.

You can check out the other articles in the Why CLS Matter series in the links below:

https://njfx.net/njfx-blog/terra-firma-why-terrestrial-connectivity-matters-to-the-cable-landing-station/

https://njfx.net/blog/why-the-cable-landing-station-matters/

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