February 28, 2001 -- Cisco Systems announced that Electric Lightwave has deployed Cisco's Dynamic Packet Transport (DPT) technology to enhance the scalability and reliability of its metropolitan area networks (MAN) in multiple markets across the U.S. Electric Lightwave also uses Cisco's 7500 and 12000 series routers to power its high-speed IP network serving business customers and long-distance carriers around the country.

DPT is a resilient packet ring technology which, drawing upon Cisco's IP+Optical expertise, combines the intelligence of IP routing with the bandwidth efficiencies of optical rings. DPT should deliver scalable Internet service, reliable IP-aware optical transport, and simplified network operations.

"DPT enables us to respond very quickly to our customers' requirements for additional bandwidth without having to risk the quality and reliability of the services we offer them," said Randy Lis, vice president of marketing at Electric Lightwave. "Without DPT from Cisco, it would be very time-consuming, expensive and even potentially disruptive for us to keep scaling up our network."

With older point-to-point systems, adding a new piece of equipment would require multiple new connections to other network elements as well as taking the system down during the installation. Some expansions could even require a network redesign. But with DPT, Electric Lightwave says it is able to respond almost instantly to a customer with increased bandwidth needs.

DPT may remove the need for multiple connections and interfaces. A new DPT element can be added simply by installing one node, which feeds many additional nodes without having to create any new connections. Also, the network does not have to be reconfigured or redesigned each time it is expanded.

DPT may also help Electric Lightwave ensure its network is extremely reliable. Fewer connections may mean fewer possible points of failure and less equipment to manage. DPT should enable Electric Lightwave to grow its network without interrupting the services its customers have come to rely on. And even in the event of a power failure, the DPT network should be be able to recover in less than 50 milliseconds, thus minimizing any potential impact on Electric Lightwave's customers.