/> According to Livingston’s Inventory Manager, Geoff Kempster, “With the 100G Ethernet standard finally ratified in June 2010, the widespread rollout of high-speed fibre optic networks will soon be underway.”

“It will bolster the capacity of metropolitan area networks and start to replace the SDH technology currently used in backhaul networks,” he continues, “thus allowing far more efficient end-to-end IP-based communication with greater quantities of data being transported down the pipes.”

40G and 100G Ethernet networks will bring about a marked increase in the broadband speeds experienced by both enterprise and domestic users, permitting greater uptake of triple-play services, as well as considerably lowering the running costs for network operators/carriers. It does, however call for a major upgrade in the test equipment being employed. The high value items of test hardware needed represent a heavy upfront investment, something which companies are not keen to make in the current economic climate. However an alternative solution is to rent equipment instead, thereby avoiding all the unseen costs associated with ownership (insurance, maintenance, downtime cover, recalibration, etc). This also means the companies are not exposed to the risk of being unable to recoup the outlay they have made because equipment is underutilised.

There is a wide array of rental/leasing options offered by Livingston, permitting cutting-edge equipment to be quickly and easily sourced. The products available include:

* The ONT-100G from JDSU, which enables the testing and verification of new high-speed network elements for both 40G and 100G Ethernet. Supporting 10.3Gbps bit rates, it allows the evaluation of the optical interfaces within the physical layer, PCS/MAC layers, and Quality-of-Service (QoS) testing of high-speed network elements. It can handle up to 256 fully independent streams.
* The FTB-85100G Packet Blazer from EXFO, which is a rugged, portable 100G Ethernet tester, designed to streamline lab testing, field trials and initial deployment activities. It supports multiple transceiver interfaces and high full-line-rate testing of the PCS. Users can also generate and analyze 40G and100G Ethernet and IP packets, as well as undertaking comprehensive EtherBERT™ tests.