BRINGING BROADBAND TO SMEs

The project BOURBON conducted a series of field trials to deliver broadband services to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Testbeds exploiting pre-commercial broadband ATM/IP services and commercial ISDN services were set up in Ireland, Finland, France, Austria, Germany, Scotland, Italy, Greece and North Holland. The BOURBON broadband core networks could support several access types (ISDN, xDSL, optical) with or without ATM link level protocol. The work included several phases: network architecture planning, network implementation and network operation and development. The participating SMEs were chosen from industries likely to have a requirement for broadband services.

The trials showed that the kind of Information and Communications Technology (ICT), which the big companies have been using for several years, can also increase the competitiveness of SMEs. They also confirmed that it is very important for SMEs to have cost effective, easy to use services, because they usually have no technical support teams. They also find it extremely difficult (time restraints, knowledge, culture, costs) to implement a new technology or get involved in a pilot project as users alone. They need help and support.

The Sligo trial

LAKE Communications (one of the partners in the Bourbon project) have set up an ADSL/ATM network with Telecom Eireann in Sligo, using the Telecom Eireann copper infrastructure. The SME users of the ADSL/ATM trial are in toolmaking or are CAD/CAM designers who design mouldings for engineering companies and transfer the designs and work proactively with customers. The architecture of the trial is shown below. The network essentially provides a number of virtual leased lines between users (using ATM's PVC facility) and uses ADSL to provide the high bandwidth connection over the local copper network. As part of the network, a high speed connection to the Internet is also provided. As an example of the use of the trial, STET Engineering is an injection mould company which has designers who work with Elon Design, a CAD/CAM design company. The ability to transfer designs and files on a real time basis has made collaborative working a reality. Before the BOURBON trial, files had to be physically transferred between companies, often accompanied by skilled staff who would then discuss any changes on site. This work can now be carried out in real-time across geographically dispersed sites by using high-speed file transfer, video-conferencing and joint access to files during discussions. Tecnocad is a CAD/CAM software design company, also taking part in the trial. Writing CAD/CAM software for companies like AutoCad requires the ability to transfer designs on a real-time basis to clients in the USA and elsewhere around the world. The high speed connectivity afforded by ADSL in the BOURBON trial also allows them to carry out remote teleworking in real time, which enables much faster interaction with their clients in different time zones.

Other trials in BOURBON

  • Finland
    • Users are conducting their own application trials and developing their own internal networks. Email, file transfer and telephony are the most popular services for corporate networking. Some users are connected to the broadband IP and ATM based network services provided by HPY and other Finnet Group PNOs. In addition to the "narrowband Internet based services", these users are trialling fast file transfer, remote working and new applications like IP based CSCW tools.
  • France
    • An ATM platform has been made available by France Telecom for the project. The trial is based on ADSL access to the ATM backbone network.
  • Germany
    • The project partner is Deutsche Telecom Berkom and their practical experiments and trials have all used Public Network Operator links. SIEMENS provided ATM Multimedia PCs for tests at the Berlin-Buch Campus.
  • Greece
    • Athens Technology Centre (ATC) is the Greek testbed co-ordinator and the field trials are supported by the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE). OTE provided the Greek Test bed with ISDN infrastructure. The SMEs involved in the field trials are publishing organisations.
  • Italy
    • The Italian Test Bed is testing new working methods to improve both business processes and the quality of the every day working practices. The users are connected to ISDN via connections provided by ONION srl, which is connected to the network via communication links provided by Telecom Italia. Electronic mail, file transfer, telephony and especially video-conference based services are the most popular services by those users.
  • Scotland
    • The BOURBON participants in Fife, Scotland have developed a service that is encouraging businesses to take advantage of the telematics available, bringing together information and services that they need on a day to day basis, to run an effective business. This includes access to workplace training, videotelephony/conferencing, email, business to business services, access to world markets etc. The software developed in the Scottish test bed for the BOURBON project is now being used across three projects in Fife and several service providers and projects are also using the infrastructure.

    SMEs are the powerhouse of the European economy, but their size usually means that they can only do business with companies close to them. The BOURBON trials not only showed how they could work more efficiently with established trading partners, but also showed how they could establish a global presence and do business with any organisation interested in their products or services.