Foundry Networks(r), Inc. (Nasdaq:FDRY), a performance and total
solutions leader for end-to-end switching and routing, has announced
that Florida's Turnpike Enterprise, part of the Florida Department
of Transportation (FDOT), has selected Foundry's(tm) NetIron(r) MLX
Series MPLS metro routers and the FastIron(r) Family of Layer 2/3
switches for their extensive network redesign. Florida's Turnpike
will leverage the approximately 100 new switches and routers to improve
customer service, facilitate the deployment of new toll collection
systems and support disaster recovery operations.
With approximately 1.8 million motorists traveling across more than
460 miles of toll highways each day, Florida's Turnpike required a
massive upgrade to their Toll Operations network infrastructure to save
motorists' time, ensure efficient flow of traffic and maintain
instantaneous access to multiple geographically distributed internal
database systems. The FDOT purchase of NetIron MLX metro routers and
FastIron switches supports a statewide network that is being deployed at
all Turnpike owned and operated toll facilities within Florida. This
network supports all facets of Toll Operations including the highly
successful SunPass(r) electronic toll collection system. In addition to
helping provide motorists a better experience, the new NetIron MLX
Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) based routers allow FDOT to deploy
high availability and low latency systems at locations dispersed
statewide, something that was not possible with their legacy solution.
MPLS is a widely supported method for speeding up data
communication over IP, Asynchronous Tranfser Mode (ATM), and frame relay
networks; it improves the speed of packet processing and enhances
overall network performance translating to a superior experience.
Typically, this technology is used in advanced service provider networks
to support the delivery of triple-play services (VoIP, video, data) over
a converged infrastructure because of the applications' sensitivity
to delay. However, Florida's Turnpike Enterprise is a unique
example of a forward-looking organization; the enterprise implemented
MPLS technology on their privately owned fiber network to maximize
performance levels and provide long-term scalability. Ultimately, this
will improve their customers' user experience while allowing for
growth and supporting the ever-growing demand on Florida's toll
roads.
"Florida's Turnpike Enterprise is the second largest
revenue generator for the State of Florida so it is vital we have a
proven and innovative solution that is completely scalable, has
industry-leading performance and allow for network growth for the long
road ahead," said Bob Hartmann, director for the Tolls Data Center.
"Our extensive legacy network infrastructure is aging and has
reached a point where it is not able to perform the tasks needed for us
to remain highly efficient and cost-effective. Foundry's NetIron
MLX Series meets all our requirements through a sophisticated 10 gigabit
Ethernet MPLS network infrastructure designed from the ground up to
deliver the highest performance available today. After evaluating all
the top router and switching vendors' solutions, it was clear
Foundry had the best combination of ultra-high performance, scalability,
support and low total cost of ownership."
"We are very pleased that Florida's Turnpike Enterprise
selected Foundry's leading routers and switches to bring
high-performance to their statewide Toll Operations network," said
Ken Cheng, vice president and general manager for Foundry's
High-End and Service Provider Systems Business Unit. "As one of the
nation's leading toll road operators, they are responsible for
providing a world-class network of roads and toll operations for more
than 1.8 million motorists daily. Foundry was able to deliver a
high-performance, cost effective, scalable and robust 10 gigabit
Ethernet MPLS routing and switching solution that allows Florida's
Turnpike to provide local and visiting motorists safe and pleasant
travels."
Designed to enable reliable converged infrastructures and support
mission-critical applications for large enterprises and service
providers, the NetIron MLX Series of metro routers feature advanced N+1
redundant switch fabric architecture for high availability. The
architecture ensures that the system continues to operate at peak
performance even in the unlikely event of a switch fabric card failure.
The redundant fabric architecture is complemented by comprehensive
hardware redundancy for the management modules, power supplies and
cooling system. In addition, the Multi-Service IronWare(tm) operating
system, powering the NetIron MLX Series, offers hitless management
failover with Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) and OSPF graceful restart
capabilities, as well as hitless (in-service) software upgrades to
further enhance system availability and overall network availability. By
leveraging an MPLS infrastructure for their services, Florida's
Turnpike can ensure the highest level of Quality of Service (QoS) and
build greater resiliency into their network. Additionally, a common
infrastructure can be used for the delivery of multiple services, thus
lowering operational and capital costs. The ability to do sub-50
millisecond failure recovery with MPLS Fast Re-Route (FRR) on the
NetIron MLX Series allows minimal disruption to traffic being
transported through the network.
For more information about Florida's Turnpike, visit
http://www.floridasturnpike.com.
About Foundry Networks
Foundry Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq:FDRY) is a leading provider of
high-performance enterprise and service provider switching, routing,
security and Web traffic management solutions, including Layer 2/3 LAN
switches, Layer 3 Backbone switches, Layer 4-7 application switches,
wireless LAN and access points, metro and core routers. Foundry's
customers include the world's premier ISPs, metro service
providers, and enterprises, including e-commerce sites, universities,
entertainment, health and wellness, government, financial and
manufacturing companies.
For more information, call 1.888.TURBOLAN or visit
http://www.foundrynet.com.
About Florida's Turnpike Enterprise
An innovative experiment combining the best of both the government
and business worlds, Florida's Turnpike Enterprise utilizes the
best practices of the private sector while operating in the public
interest. Operating as a separate business unit of the Florida
Department of Transportation (FDOT), Florida's Turnpike has
expanded and increased revenue, while continuing to protect bondholders
and improve customer service across the board. The results have been
improved efficiency, cost-effectiveness and timely project delivery.
Over the past 12 years, Florida's Turnpike has made
substantial improvements to the existing road system, acquired and
assumed responsibility for a project completed by a local expressway
authority, delivered six expansion projects, contracted most in-house
functions to the private sector, promoted customer service, maintained
financial stability and improved bond ratings.
Florida's Turnpike is now responsible for all operations on
every FDOT-owned and operated toll road and bridge. This represents
about 600 miles of roadway and 80 percent of all toll facilities in
Florida. Florida's Turnpike strives to ensure every customer who
travels these toll roads and bridges receives first class service on
every trip.
For more information, call 408/207-1332 or 954/934.1289.
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