MPLS for Service Providers:
Reduced operating costs and new service opportunities
Focal Point: MPLS for Service Providers
The TorreyPoint MPLS for Service Providers solution includes:
- Requirements
- Architecture design
- Technology selection, procurement, or redeployment of existing equipment
- Project management
- Equipment staging
- Implementation, Deployment, Verification, and Production Cutover
The TorreyPoint solution delivers significant benefits to service providers, including:
- Simplified network
- Revenue-generating technologies
- Rapid deployment of new services
- Increased efficiency
Service providers are moving from ATM and frame relay to MPLS.
Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) used to be the “new thing” in service provider networks, the province of the early adopters. Many providers opted to wait, either because they did not see a need for the change or to avoid the instabilities of a new and, at that time, unproven technology.
Today, faced with new customer demands and new patterns of traffic growth, network operators are more and more turning to MPLS to replace their legacy ATM and frame relay infrastructures. The benefits of MPLS—reduced operating costs, better traffic management, higher performance and spending caps on legacy technologies —are becoming compelling for providers of all sizes. Many carriers still have separate transport and IP networks, supporting each other in various roles. Combining these services into a converged MPLS network will simplify network management, ease growth and scaling, enable new services and allows Service Providers to realize the investment made in IP networks.
There are alternatives to MPLS, most prominently, carrier Ethernet. Carrier Ethernet can solve many of the same problems as MPLS, and often involves less capital investment. As both technologies have evolved, many in the industry are coming to see MPLS and carrier Ethernet as complementary rather than competing technologies.
Choosing and deploying the best transport technology is critical to a service provider’s business. Many providers are looking to outside experts for assistance—and TorreyPoint is a frequent choice.
The TorreyPoint MPLS for Service Providers solution offers service providers a fully integrated, turnkey installation of MPLS that delivers significant benefits including reduction in operating costs, better traffic management capabilities, and higher performance.
TorreyPoint recommends the best technology for each service provider’s unique needs.
The TorreyPoint MPLS for Service Providers solution starts with extensive consultations between our engineering consultants and the provider’s Engineering and Architecture teams. We meet with both the technology and business owners to develop a clear understanding of the provider’s core needs, this drives our process. Scope is critical—smaller deployments with relatively straight-forward requirements are often good candidates for carrier Ethernet. On the other hand, MPLS is often a better choice for providers that support a large user base over a wide area and offer advanced services. Our commitment is to the customer’s needs, not a particular technology.
The TorreyPoint Service Provider solution includes these services:
- Requirements—We work collaboratively with all stakeholders in the service provider’s organization, both technical and business, to develop a complete set of requirements for the MPLS infrastructure.
- Architecture design—TorreyPoint works with the provider’s network architects to design an MPLS architecture that meets the requirements.
- Technology selection and procurement—TorreyPoint represents many of the top network equipment vendors, including Adva Optical Networking, Alcatel-Lucent, Brocade, Cisco Systems, Force10 Networks, and Juniper Networks. Our deep knowledge of the equipment landscape gives us a unique perspective on the strengths and weaknesses of each vendor’s portfolio, and enable interoperability.
- Project management—Our project managers work closely with in-house project managers to develop and execute a comprehensive Implementation, Deployment, and Validation plans.
- Equipment staging—TorreyPoint can serve as a staging platform to prepare equipment for the installation phase. This approach reduces the time demands on the provider’s Engineering and Architecture staff and shortens the running time for the actual installation.
- Installation, test and switchover —Our network consultants work side-by-side with the provider’s IT team to install the equipment to the project schedule, avoiding interruptions to services and ensuring a smooth turn-up process.
MPLS offers service providers simplified network management and service delivery.
The TorreyPoint solution delivers a turnkey solution that offers significant benefits to service providers, including:
- Simplified network and improved system scalability—Converging parallel networks and consolidating staff resources leads to streamlined operations and more effective management and monitoring, providing more value for your investment..
- Revenue-generating technologies—VPN and pseudowire transport run on MPLS and provide opportunities to drive new revenue.
- Rapid deployment of new services—MPLS shortens the time-to-revenue for new services, providing a competitive edge.
- Increased efficiency—Sharing the same transport for multiple services can reduce the cost of having multiple circuits or services from third-party providers.
TorreyPoint’s extensive experience in service provider and enterprise environments informs our MPLS deployments. Our engineering consultants know the best solutions for a range of provider environments and business models. We help customers find the best solutions for today’s needs, anticipate tomorrow’s, and implement the solutions quickly so that service providers can begin to realize the substantial benefits of MPLS.
