Spotlight on PCCW Global: Console Connect’s IXaaS Now Available at NJFX CLS

Enables new levels of flexibility and agility with remote peering

August 16, 2022

Long time NJFX partner, PCCW Global continues to drive value and increased capabilities to the NJFX ecosystem and beyond. After launching its Console Connect platform at NJFX last year, which enabled global on-demand connectivity, PCCW Global is now offering its new IX-as-a-Service (IXaaS) to global carriers and enterprises through Console Connect.

This new capability is available to customers at NJFX’s CLS colocation campus and offers access to leading IX platforms including DE-CIX, LINX, HKIX, SGIX, KINX and JPNAP. IXaaS offers easy, fast and flexible ways to order, provision and pay for IX services from some of the world’s largest Internet Exchanges (IXs).

“There are no limits to what NJFX customers and partners can do, and that dynamic is exemplified by Console Connect’s new IXaaS. Through the company’s unique MeetingPlace, users can connect, buy, and sell a variety of services including cloud, SaaS, UCaaS and IoT. This creates tremendous optionality and further enhances our unique CLS ecosystem by meeting increased demand for rapid provisioning of on-demand, superior interconnection services.” – Felix Seda, General Manager of NJFX

IXaaS: Real-time, on-demand access to IXs worldwide

Directly order IX services and pay for connections to leading IX platforms in real-time
Experience high-performance remote peering with multiple exchanges across the world
Manage IX services and connections through a user-friendly web portal
Self-provision and pay for IX services and virtual connections in a few clicks
Multiple virtual connections can be provisioned via a single port
Directly interconnect with major cloud, SaaS and NaaS platforms including AWS, Alibaba Cloud, Cloudflare, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, RingCentral and more.

“We are excited to be introducing NJFX customers to our new IXaaS, transforming how they experience and access Internet Exchanges worldwide. What differentiates our remote peering solution is that it includes the dedicated layer 2 interconnection and the cost of the Partner Peering platform, enabling NJFX customers to seamlessly manage both their IX services and their connectivity from wherever they are located. And, of course, interconnections are on-demand and delivered across PCCW Global’s high-performance network.” – Michael Glynn, Vice President of Digital Automated Innovation, Console Connect

NJFX’s carrier-neutral CLS is THE place for your global connectivity needs. With four subsea cable systems and over 20 carriers, you have direct access to highly robust and resilient networking options – all in one place.

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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.

NJFX Founder and CEO Gil Santaliz Speaks at Subsea World Panel

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NJFX Founder and CEO Gil Santaliz Speaks at Subsea World Panel

The future of the subsea industry was a main topic of Subsea World 2021. The week-long virtual conferences focused on highlighting upcoming trends in the next year, as well as how rapidly transforming technology and connectivity is affecting the industry.

August 3, 2021

One highlight of the event was a panel discussion titled “Americas Spotlight”. Moderated by Andrew Lipman, the panelists included Gil Santaliz, Founder & CEO, NJFX, Andy Bax, COO, Seaborn, Buddy Bayer, Chief Network Officer, Windstream, Mike Cunningham, CEO, Crosslake Fiber, and Paul Scott, President and CEO, Confluence Networks.

With the Covid-19 pandemic greatly accelerating the need for more deployments of cables in new areas, the discussion of specific geographic locations and the reasoning behind them quickly became the topic of discussion. “Way back when we started, we picked this region because we saw it as one with a huge development opportunity, huge growth capabilities, underserved in terms of both capacity and competition,” commented Bax, speaking of connectivity between LATAM and the U.S.

“We have critical mass now in terms of carriers that are here, economies of scale. When we do this all of my customers benefit, they all benefit from being in a better, more secure place, and getting the latest and greatest of what we do best. If I start expanding beyond what I do best, I’m not going to be as good as what I’m supposed to be doing, and that’s just housing the network, interconnecting, providing them smart hands for their equipment to lower their costs, provide marine protection services, and do what you do best. That’s what we believe in.”

Gil Santaliz, Founder and CEO, NJFX

“I think more cables need to land across the US, but New Jersey has been home to cables for 100 years. It’s a proven area, we’ve got density of population, we’ve got a thriving business community, we have financial exchanges, we can’t afford a lack of interconnection,” stated Santaliz.

Another important topic of discussion was Confluence-1, a 24 fiber pair submarine cable along the eastern seaboard of the United States. Paul Scott, President and CEO of Confluence Networks explained that his reasoning for deploying the new cable system was due to the need to enhance connectivity while still balancing latency and high performance. This cable is providing more secure linkages through existing terrestrial routes from Miami to New York.

While the other panelists agreed on focusing on their own expertise, they acknowledged that the pandemic is acting as a catalyst for digital transformation, forcing many to work together to discover solutions that can help best aid their customers.

Santaliz concluded by stating, “We happen to be sitting in probably one of the hottest markets ever for telecommunications, in terms of investments…it’s a fascinating time.”

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About NJFX:

Global Connectivity Reimagined: ITW Subsea Stream

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Global Connectivity Reimagined: ITW Subsea Stream

July 26, 2021

It goes without saying that we are all ready to get back into telecom event season! ITW2021 is one of the first in-person industry events of the year and is looking forward to welcoming attendees back at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, MD (near Washington, DC) August 29 – September 1, 2021. New for this year, the ITW agenda will be split into eight different streams, bringing participants a complete overview of the ever-changing and evolving ICT infrastructure and its latest developments.

As founder of the first carrier-neutral Tier 3 Cable Landing Station colocation campus in the U.S, NJFX CEO Gil Santaliz is uniquely qualified to weigh in on the special Subsea Connect stream. NJFX is home to four subsea cable systems including Havfrue/AEC2, Seabras, TGN1 & TGN2 subsea cable systems, along with 20+ route-independent terrestrial carriers. NJFX’s facility operationally supports high and low-density colocation solutions with 24/7 support.

Santaliz is excited to participate on the ‘Global Subsea Trends’ panel to be held at 10am ET on September 1st and moderated by respected industry journalist, Natalie Bannerman. Gil will join others in the subsea community to discuss the latest developments. The subsea community across the globe was vital to #KeepingTheWorldConnected this past year. With a number of new and exciting projects in the pipeline as well as ongoing innovation in the subsea sector, 2021 is set to be an equally exciting time. From new projects, emerging regions, the shift from interconnected cities to interconnected data centers, the push for more diversity, and more, the ITW subsea streams will tackle the trends driving the industry for the year ahead.

There will also be a virtual Subsea Networking Hour where participants will have the opportunity to make new connections in the subsea community. To take advantage of this opportunity, register for ITW2021, join the session, share who you are and what you’re looking to discuss.

Be sure to register to attend ITW2021 HERE.

To meet with the NJFX team at the event or to set up a virtual meeting, please contact [email protected]. Check out NJFX’s Tier 3 transcontinental ecosystem map HERE.

Happy connecting!

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About NJFX:

NJFX Plays Role in Global Connectivity Awareness as Member of the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union

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NJFX Plays Role in Global Connectivity Awareness as Member of the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union

July 19, 2021

Always focused on expanding horizons and learning how to best serve our industry, NJFX is proud to become a new member of the International Telecommunications Union Development sector (ITU-D). As an advocate for the important role the telecommunications industry and private sector play in the work of information and communication technology (ICT), NJFX Founder and CEO Gil Santaliz was asked to speak at the organization’s Industry Advisory Group for Development Issues and the Private Sector Chief Regulatory Officers (IAGDI-CRO) meeting which took place virtually on June 22, 2021.

The IAGDI-CRO brings together policymakers, ICT Regulators, private sector entities, academia, and the international community, along with thought leaders from across the industry. The esteemed group met to discuss policy, regulatory and market approaches and incentives to foster investment and business opportunities for meaningful connectivity across the globe.

During this meeting, members of the IAGDI-CRO discussed the importance of having flexible regulation and explored ways that industry and regulators could work together to build a robust, reliable, and resilient digital ecosystem while emphasizing the importance of partnerships that extend to non-traditional stakeholders.

Collaboration is (Still) the Name of the Game

The ITU-D panel also focused on the group’s Connecting the Unconnected initiative, which aims to work with governments to bring internet access to 75% of the global population by 2025. The initiative also aims to achieve universal, affordable access by 2030. In order to make meaningful connectivity a reality, everyone needs access to higher quality broadband.

As Gil noted, collaboration between the telecom industry and local governments is key. He added that it’s important to look at how the private sector communicates as well as examine the infrastructure behind it. “The ITU-D initiative clearly relies on physical infrastructure. The infrastructure needs to have support and needs to have a fair marketplace to work within it, which the regulators in each country have to manage. The initiative also has to allow private dollars to be predictable in terms of how they extend their costs,” Santaliz added. “As we look at this $480B spend left for Connecting the Unconnected initiative, we need to have some sort of expectation of how those investment dollars will be treated. Regulations are expected and necessary. They should also be consistent and fairly static. What puts investment at risk is sudden and unexpected policy changes that are done unilaterally. The ITU provides a platform for that conversation to begin. Regulators play an important role in creating barriers or guardrails and how to work in a marketplace in a predictable manner.”

Pioneering Spirit

The panelists underscored the importance of the work at ITU-D as a critical platform for discussing collaborative approaches to bridging the digital divide.

As Gil noted, “We are truly pioneers. The rate of change that we have seen in the last 20 years, has exceeded the last 50-100 years. And the expectation for the next five years is that we will exceed the last 20 years. So, all in all, the rate of change will be extreme and it’s important for all of us to pay attention and try to carve out the future, as best we can.”

But how do organizations develop the relationships that are needed to map out a predictable business and get a good return for the investors and stakeholders? Gil believes that will come in time by having sessions like the one at ITU-D and having a strong focus on sharing and collaborating challenges. He believes that “We must all learn and further understand why certain markets make sense to invest in and what the barriers are that are left. The U.S., for instance, has a very open marketplace in terms of allowing international carriers to thrive. At NJFX’s facility, we host several subsea cables and are the interconnection point for the northeast in North America. NJFX takes the time to socialize with all of our customers, which we consider part of our network and family.”

The panelists also discussed other post-pandemic perspectives about promoting broadband adoption including:

How to best finance infrastructure buildouts
Continuing to work with governments and other partners to help stimulate the demand side of the equation
Digital skills development for underserved communities
Making locally relevant content and services available online
Providing more access to devices and virtual learning
And the need for reform in many regions to expand broadband networks and programs that would dedicate spectrum proceeds to low-income subsidy programs

The NJFX team looks forward to being a part of the conversation going forward and helping us all get to a better place, more connected place.

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About NJFX:

Pandemic Proves Connectivity is Mission Critical

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Pandemic Proves Connectivity is Mission Critical

NJFX’s Diverse Ecosystem Offers Disaster Recovery & Network Resiliency

July 12, 2021

Downtime can translate into substantial losses for enterprises – making disaster recovery plans critical for business continuity. The topic was the focus of this month’s JSA Virtual Round Table featuring a panel of experts as they discussed how to respond in times of crisis, and how to be sure organizations are prepared for any eventuality.

Moderated by João Marques Lima, speakers included Gil Santaliz, CEO, NJFX, Paul Scott, CEO, Confluence Networks, Ishaq Mian, VP, Sales & Support Engineering, Redline Communications, Warren Reyburn, SVP Sales & Marketing, Comstar Technologies, and Sean Farney, Director of Data Center Marketing, Kohler.

As Santaliz highlighted, the internet is our go to place for news and information. During the past year, it also enabled an entirely homebound society. Our internet infrastructure must be able to withstand any eventuality.

“If you think about disasters, and we are still in a disaster, we have employees that aren’t in office buildings today, we are asking traders to trade from home. There was never a game plan for this. We have to have data centers repurpose their data and access the internet. The internet became mission critical. We would not even be having this conversion if it wasn’t for the quality of the internet today,” commented Santaliz.

Consider the issues that have affected connectivity this year alone: below-freezing temperatures, ice storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, floods, the bombing of a major metro area and a global pandemic.

Paul Scott of Confluence Networks pointed out that what might appear to be resilient, multipath environments is not necessarily the case. “It’s one thing to have 4-5 multiple paths to your data center, but to move on-premise and spin up virtual servers, you have to feel good about your core network architecture. When it fails you need your disaster recovery plans and they need to be vetted and tested. That includes cycling generators and working with the teams to test and tighten up action plans,” he added.

Santaliz concluded by stating, “The internet is how we are going to be communicating for the foreseeable future. We have to make sure as leaders in the industry, this works. It’s a collaborative effort – integrating your customers, vendors and partners with checks and balances in place.”

Watch the panel in its entirety here. To learn more about JSA Virtual Round Tables, click here. And learn more about NJFX here.

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About NJFX:

Dismantling Barriers & Accelerating Equity & Opportunity

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Dismantling Barriers & Accelerating Equity & Opportunity

June 26, 2021

Organizations globally have been investing in corporate diversity and inclusion initiatives, and recently PTC held a tech and telecom event to take a closer look. As a member of the PTC Membership Committee, our very own Felix Seda joined the panel, “Dismantling Barriers and Accelerating Equity and Opportunity” along with other industry leaders including:

Moderator: Tara Giunta, Partner, Paul Hastings; Legal Counsel, PTC, USA

Panelists:

Tara Kristick, Head of Wholesale & Satellite Sales, Americas, Telstra, USA
Sonal Patel, Vice President of Marketing, Verizon Partner Solutions, USA
Nico Roehrich, Manager Network Investment, APAC, Facebook, Singapore
Felix Seda, General Manager, NJFX, USA

The panelists discussed corporate commitments and their company’s efforts to embrace various strategies and approaches for addressing challenges, as well as how best to leverage opportunities to build truly diverse workforces and inclusive cultures.

What does Diversity mean for your company?

Tara Giunta answered this question by emphasizing that diversity is a representation of the world around us. It’s not just ticking a box and there is no one size fits all. Diversity is more than we see on the surface, for it to become alive, there needs to be a culture to support it and a management team that adheres to it and tracks it across the company.Other perspectives included:

Diversity and inclusion have been an ongoing evolution and journey over time.
Having a measurement system in place helps record progress and move the needle.
A common challenge is still how best to integrate diversity of thought into the realm.

Seda believes, ”Diversity is about fostering innovation and empowering new ideas and fresh thought into the workplace. NJFX is focused on cultivating and empowering young people with diverse backgrounds and allowing that next wave of people to take on more leadership roles.”The Moderator, Giunta also focused on the need for innovation in tech, and how telecom is key to the progress and further development of the industry.When asked about those expectations and how NJFX tries to address them, Seda responded:

“The world is changing quickly – we need to keep up with all the millennials, Gen Z’ers, and young people entering the workforce. Flexibility these days is just as important as salary and benefits. Now, flexibility is the name of the game. I’ve been fortunate that NJFX has allowed me to find my own voice, speak at conferences and forge my own path.For example, I was able to attend PTC over the past few years and engage with other thought leaders in the industry.

I began to see that there are a lot of young people in the industry, and many haven’t gotten the chance to go to major conferences to engage directly with industry executives, build up their knowledge base and forge industry relationships that can last a lifetime. The only way they can grow in the industry- and STAY in the industry is for companies to allow that to happen.

Diversity isn’t just about attracting talent, but fostering and keeping that talent in the workplace – keeping them engaged and allowing them to grow and become vocal leaders.”NJFX has backed up that philosophy by encouraging its team to get involved and help make a difference. Felix helped launch a Millennials in Telecom event at PTC2020. The group had a huge response from people who wanted a social setting to talk with others in the industry.

Felix noted, “We also had a lot of veterans in the industry who wanted to mentor and share their thoughts. The event was a balance of young people and veterans who wanted to bring this younger generation along. Diversity is also about fostering innovation – empowering new ideas and fresh thought into the workplace.”Seda is also part of SubOptic’s Diversity, Inclusions and Belonging mentoring program. One of the group’s goals is to establish new ways of cultivating young talent in the industry and allowing them to grow and become leaders in their respective fields.

There is clearly a bright future ahead for our industry and ample opportunities for young people to plug in, learn, build key relationships, and launch what could be a very rewarding and long-lasting career.On behalf of NJFX, Cheers and Good Luck!

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About NJFX:

Connectivity Ecosystems, the Evolution of the Cable Landing Station and Nurturing Next-Gen Telecom Pros

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Connectivity Ecosystems, the Evolution of the Cable Landing Station and Nurturing Next-Gen Telecom Pros

June 16, 2021

NJFX’s Gil Santaliz recently joined JSA’s Jaymie Scotto Cutaia and tech influencer Evan Kirstel to talk about bringing a new generation of telecom pros into the industry, what motivates him and how he envisions his company will innovate for the future.

Gil’s story starts with an idea sparked more than two decades ago, about making New Jersey a true disaster recovery site for Lower Manhattan.

“OTT’s like Facebook and Google have realized the shortcomings of what to do when landing a cable. In the past, everything landed in Long Island, New Jersey and all went back to a central location in lower Manhattan. We learned quickly in 2012 after Superstorm Sandy that’s a disaster waiting to happen. The OTTs have made investments like the one in our building and they have an open policy. We have future-proofed how communications work.” – Gil Santaliz, Founder/CEO, NJFX

There’s no question that Gil likes to get creative with solutions. He knows technology is changing every day and it’s the industry’s job to just keep up. It’s why he empowers his team to grow, learn and try innovative things. And it’s why his team at NJFX is built on trust and a get-it-done attitude. Gil chooses colleagues that he knows will do what it takes to make the business successful, both by working across the team and alongside their peers. If a potential team member has those qualities, Gil says he can always teach them the business. Core values that define NJFX cannot be taught and must be inherent in whoever he brings on board.

Gil says that is one of the reasons he likes to nurture young talent. While Gil understands, NJFX may be one of the many stepping stones in a young person’s career, he finds satisfaction in being a part of their learning and journey. While under his wing, he expects his team to give it their all, learn from the ground up, and innovate new solutions for customers.

To learn more about NJFX, and its carrier-neutral offerings, watch the full interview here or listen to the podcast now.

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About NJFX:

The Fourth Utility

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The Fourth Utility

Telecommunications, and the infrastructure that supports the idea of being connected, has almost become as important as utilities such as electricity.

June 10, 2021

If electricity fails, there are plans for backup power. But, if you lose your IT network, then operating a business becomes impossible. If your connectivity is based on only two or three traditional carriers, then it is time to ensure your understanding of whether or not those carrier assets are actually physically diverse.

Today, many scenarios allow common points or what we call “overlaps” in interconnection that create the potential disaster of a single point of failure. The facilities that house these interconnection points are not always purposefully built. Too often they are located in urban environments with unprotected manholes, which make them susceptible to manmade and natural disasters.

As we move into the IoT world, we need the connectivity to be reliably available everywhere. We need devices enabled to coordinate financial transactions, based on real-time information. We need security and life-saving healthcare monitoring applications. And, we need enterprises to be able to offer customers access to goods and services. The luxury of access, what was once simply nice to have, is now a must-have. Just a little more than a decade ago, smartphones were nonexistent. Today’s phones are more powerful than any computer you may have had in your home or at work before. They are becoming the network hub for our daily routines of work productivity, transportation, banking, family connection and daily recreation.

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About NJFX:

Windstream Wholesale Boosts Bandwidth Capabilities with Point-of-Presence at NJFX

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Windstream Wholesale Boosts Bandwidth Capabilities with Point-of-Presence at NJFX

Unique Colocation CLS Campus Enables Windstream’s ‘Fast and Flexible’ Offerings

June 7, 2021

Bandwidth is crucial for live online interactions that are more prevalent today than ever. Windstream Wholesale is making sure that its network can serve those increasing bandwidth needs in several ways. In this customer spotlight, NJFX would like to highlight the long-standing relationship between Windstream Wholesale and NJFX.

More Americans spent the last year at home and online, than any other time in history. There has never been a greater demand for bandwidth allowing high-speed and high capacity connectivity. Windstream Wholesale is prepared to meet and exceed those expectations. Gaming, streaming services and remote education are just a few of the online activities that require speeds that allow users to experience these platforms in real time.

Three main pillars mark Windstream Wholesale’s superior offerings: optical technology leadership, flexible partnerships and network expansion. Windstream Wholesale has been at the forefront of connecting strategic Tier 1, 2 and 3 markets across the U.S. with its new Intelligent Converged Optical Network. By partnering with innovative companies such as NJFX, Windstream can further increase capabilities. And by expanding its network, Windstream solidifies its reach across its nationwide network.

“The NJFX ecosystem truly helps to enable more capacity, more routes and move diversity for our customers,” states Joe Scattareggia, Executive Vice President of Windstream Wholesale. “As NJFX continues to build out this already vast ecosystem and provide networks like Windstream access to those subsea routes, we can pass those numerous, resilient and reliable connectivity options on to our customers. And we can do this in a very fast and flexible way. Our customers are amazed at our speed to market capabilities.”

For its part, NJFX provides multiple routes without multiple hops, which helps eliminate points of failure and keeps high-speed traffic flowing. NJFX also allows for alternate routes in case of any contingency in congested or legacy areas.

“As we see an increase on the importance of secure routes, we are able to offer diversity to our partners. If a legacy connection hub like New York City is compromised, NJFX can enable internet traffic to continue uninterrupted via our diverse ecosystem,” comments NJFX General Manager, Felix Seda. “That includes terrestrial and an ever-growing subsea cable network.”

“At Windstream, we value our partnerships. We want to take the time to build that trust and credibility. We nurture our customers long term, not just at the outset of our relationship. We feel that way about our providers as well. We appreciate the partnership between NJFX and Windstream Wholesale,” continued Scattareggia.

To learn more about Windstream Wholesale, visit the company website here.

Hear more from Gil Santaliz, NJFX CEO and Windstream’s Joe Scattareggia on the Connect the Dots podcast HERE.

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About NJFX:

Latest News & Updates

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Telecommunications During Crisis: New Models for Rising to the Challenge

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Telecommunications During Crisis: New Models for Rising to the Challenge

By Gil Santaliz. Originally published by Disaster Recovery Journal in May 2021.

June 1, 2021

Disasters cause thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in damage worldwide each year. In the aftermath of a disaster, in addition to immediate and direct assistance to victims, communication is crucial. In fact, communication and access to information have become as important as water and electricity as a basic necessity. This is even more important at a time of crisis. Events that have the potential to cause connectivity interruptions can be predictable or completely unexpected. In either case, continuity of communication must be a priority.

The Internet is Essential

The internet becomes our go to place for news and information. During the past year, it also enabled an entirely homebound society. From access to learning, work, entertainment, banking and more, organizations around the world rose to the challenge of increased traffic and demand. Our internet infrastructure must be able to withstand any eventuality. Consider the issues that have affected connectivity this year alone: below-freezing temperatures, ice storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, floods, the bombing of a major metro area and a global pandemic. You may have not noticed any major or permanent disruption to your internet connection. You may not have realized that your bank was down momentarily. Maybe you were wondering why you couldn’t make a cell phone call for a few hours. While disruption was minimized, in today’s instant on-demand society, a few hours can seem like an eternity. What’s worse, even limited interruption can infuriate customers and put your brand at risk. During such an emergency, telecommunications professionals at every level are scrambling behind the scenes to keep those connections up and running.

The Dawn of Communications

North American telecommunications originated in New York, with the first transatlantic cable. The first of the legacy carriers, “Ma” Bell, AT&T and others being headquartered at the source of those very first international communications, led to a centralization of communications in the better part of the last century. Even as connectivity branched out from that origination point, those legacy routes and origination points remained the same. One U.S. route that has become chronically congested and dilapidated is the Northeast Coast Corridor. Major tax incentives have led to a clustering of massive data centers in Virginia and the Carolinas. Northern Virginia alone is flush with 4.7 million square feet of commissioned data center space, according to market research from datacenterHawk. Carrier consolidation led to many long-haul networks being used for local distribution, which made record keeping impossible during the many integrations. Institutions historically engineered multiple paths but were beholden to what was offered by carriers as to routes and diversity. Telecom is as collaborative as it is competitive. Fiber providers often lease access from one another. In addition, it’s very difficult to ascertain the underground routes that these fiber links take in the last mile. In the always on, always available climate, network design must get smarter for both the steady state and when systems are disrupted. Flexibility to control and redirect the network needs to be the new norm. The ability to do so comes back to having access to hubs that can maintain connectivity, as well as offer alternate pathways.

The Key Lies in Operational Independence

There are a few ways to ensure internet traffic does not come to a standstill. The first is network diversity. Sometimes, diversity and redundancy are used interchangeably. But they are completely different, and both must be in place. There may be a false sense of security, as organizations misinterpret diversity vs. redundancy. For example, a redundant system will help if one path goes down. But there may be several carriers in the same ductwork. Even if an organization buys capacity from three or four different carriers, the flow of data could still be impacted. It’s a false sense of security. There also needs to be a physically diverse path. And even if there are diverse physical routes, those routes might go through the same building at some point in the path. If the building has issues, you’re in the same situation. So the best way to handle network security is a mesh solution, where you have redundant routes, resilient routes AND physically diverse routes. In other words, a plan A, B, and C. This is considered operational independence.

One way to ensure operational independence is with an interconnectivity hub. A carrier-neutral location with access to multiple terrestrial and subsea routes is an ideal situation. With this model, organizations can control the network. The right way forward is to provide this operational independence to orchestrate how networks function. If there is a hard cut, (a fiber optic cable is damaged) traffic can be redirected. If there is a soft cut, such as a hacker, the organization can also redirect traffic. In the past, networks were hard coded, it was difficult to turn paths on and off. If a large circuit went down, it stayed down. With advances such as SD-WAN and network function virtualization (NFV), institutions can react quickly and redirect data traffic. Organizations should have the flexibility to control and redirect the network whenever needed. But in order to do this, a hub environment is required.

As more advances in telecommunications develop – such as 5G, Edge computing, blockchain and more – data needs to be as close to the end-user as possible. Getting close to the edge means bringing the interconnection point to the source. When it comes to a global business, that includes subsea systems. A new model of connectivity also includes bringing the data center to the landing point of subsea cables. This creates a low-latency connection. In addition, organizations should consider disaster recovery sites that are away from a major metro hub. At the time of the September 11th attacks, lower Manhattan was not only the epicenter of the terrorists’ targets, it was also where most of the major network hubs were housed. Since then, we have learned to have backup locations that are far enough away from strategic sites to be secure, but close enough to provide an alternate route, quickly.

Expect the Unexpected

As we have seen with many natural, manmade and even biological events, preparation is key to keeping connectivity up and information flowing. For the infrastructure sector, this means plan and prepare. Consider uncertainties before they become a reality. No one could have predicted a global pandemic that stretched on for more than a year would change the way most of us live and work. At the heart of this disruption was our connectivity. If the pandemic hit just a decade ago, it would not be possible to remotely do very much of anything for an extended period of time. Increased capacity this past year put a demand on global networks, and those networks and their operators rose to the challenge. While it was certainly stretched thin, the internet did not break. One reason for this is the behind-the-scenes efforts to provide increased capacity and connectivity to organizations. In order to do this, essential workers remained on site at data centers, cable landing stations and IT departments around the world. To have that team in place, operations-based preparedness measures are critical to avoiding any and all downtime for customers. For a predictable event like a storm, those measures should include:

Daily operations team meetings. This could include things like reviewing an impending storm’s status, and the potential impact it could have.
Inventory of the supplies on hand across key areas of the facility
Supply enough food to last a minimum of 72 hours for two people
Ensure there are supplies available in case of emergency, such as ropes, sandbags, tarps, flashlights, batteries, ratchets, etc.
Assess diesel fuel levels to make sure there is sufficient reserve to ensure the facility doesn’t lose power.
Determine what current building load is and how long the fuel will last.
Closely coordinate with critical vendors such as those that maintain generators and switchgear in the building.
Maintain clear lines of communication with vendors to ensure support.
Arrange to have satellite phones for one person on-site and one person off-site in case phone lines are impacted.
Walk the grounds, perimeter and rooftop to make sure everything is secure and bring items inside as needed.

This high level of preparedness has become imperative. Extreme weather is no longer limited to the coasts. This year we saw a deep freeze in Texas, wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, and flooding. 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.

1 Statista.com

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