The contract was awarded to Neos following a competitive tender and represents another phase in the ongoing overhaul of Jisc’s Janet Network across 15 UK regions.
The Northern Ireland commission follows Neos delivering a dark fibre network for Jisc across the Northwest England. The two contracts form part of an ongoing review and upgrading of the Janet Network, designed to boost the capacity, speed and efficiency of its regional centres.
Sarah Mills, managing director for wholesale and smart infrastructure at Neos Networks, said, “We are immensely proud of our 20-year relationship with Jisc. This latest contract win is another significant milestone. The new network will deliver operational efficiencies for Jisc and enable it to continue to improve the services it offers to its members in the education and research arena.”
Neil Shewry, deputy director, network delivery at Jisc, added, “We need to continually improve and enhance the connectivity options for the institutions we serve. This new network will give us the bandwidth, the capability and the reliability we need to deliver on that goal. This network will provide future-proof connectivity to Jisc’s members and help to meet increasing demand created by the ongoing shift to the hybrid learning environment.”
The new gigabit-capable dark fibre network benefits from improved resilience thanks to two separate back-up routes to mainland UK via submarine cables to the company’s unbundled exchanges in Glasgow and Southport. Deployment of the new network is already underway as part of the initial seven-year contract.