MATTHEW PEACH NGON PREVIEW
BIGGEST and BROADEST NGON & DCI Europe
within a high-paced and ever evolving ecosystem.
OC: What is new at the 20th anniversary edition? MB-F: This year the main conference topics include: investigating long-haul and submarine optical networks; metro optical network needs; and making transport SDN a reality. Then we have the service provider transport SDN experience; delivering optical network evolution and differentiation; evolving towards 400G and 1 Tbs; optimising capacity and reach with ROADMS. There will also be sessions on flexgrid and super channels; packet optical integration and convergence; and evolving next- generation optical access technologies – including 5G, backhaul, fronthaul and next-gen PONs. On the data centre side, the hot topics in the industry which will be under discussion in Nice include: optical data centre interconnect market opportunities; network infrastructure and applications; capacity and connectivity scenarios; an optical DCI component and module focus; plus a debate on intra data centre technologies and photonic integration. Specific exhibitors and their events and launches will include: an exclusive workshop from the Optical Internetworking Forum looking at setting standards based on a three-year research programme they have conducted. There will be product launches and significant announcements from Deutsche Telekom, Corning, Ovum and the OIF. There will also be an “Innovation Stand”, where companies will be giving short pitches about the latest innovative products and solutions they are working on for the market, not forgetting three full days of keynotes, as well as case study panels. These are expert-led sessions exploring the challenges of leading projects from start to finish and consisting of all stakeholders within that certain project. In conclusion, NGON 2018 is gearing up to be our biggest edition to date.
This year’s 20th anniversary edition of the Nice-based networks and data centres expo is set to be largest and most diverse such event held so far. Matthew Peach reports.
N GON & DCI Europe, which this year celebrates its twentieth anniversary, describes itself as ‘the world’s leading strategic and technical specific optical networks event’. Taking place once again at the Acropolis, Nice, France, between June 26-28th, it features an expanded set of presentations and exhibits from some of the industry’s largest optical network carriers and data centre operators. The three-day program of presentations, panel sessions and interactive discussions organized by the UK-based events company KNect365, cover the industry’s hot topics such as transformation and automation, the evolution of data centre interconnects, evolving network architecture for 5G and intra- versus inter- DCI solutions, to name a few. This year there are new additions to the programme, including the following: Optical Masterclass Series – a series of workshops, with partners including the OIF, who are providing insider insights and content via innovative platforms; case Study Panels – Stakeholders within a particular project will describe the challenges they have faced and demonstrate how they solved problems these to achieve their goals; and the ‘interactive agenda’, which includes panel discussions and sessions covering a range of hot topics, presented by industry leaders within the NGON and DCI space. Optical Connections interviewed Dr Millad Borzabadi-Farahani, the event producer from KNect365 about the event and the market of NGON technologies and his expectations for the future.
an SDH-focused conference and has latterly grown to an LSE-focused event moving with the technological advances in optical networking. In 2016, DC was launched and the plan is to continue grow it by attracting more data centre players. However, there was a significant gap in the attendance of data centre companies and experts in 2017. MB-F: In the sphere of optical networks, with the continued data explosion directly linked to new sector innovations such as IoT and connective gigabit cities, this situation points to NGON being positioned as the go-to event at which to formulate, benchmark strategic and technical frameworks in a highlight competitive market. As the years have progressed the exhibitors want to relay their solutions and products to the market by providing thought-leadership and knowledge and explaining how their offerings can address the challenges operators and the wider market are facing OC: Why should exhibitors and attendees come to this conference?
OC: What are the origins and objectives of the NGON conference and exhibition?
NGON & DCI 2017
MB-F: Nineteen years ago, it started as
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ISSUE 13 | Q2 2018
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