WE’RE READY: Telkom Fifa World Cup programme manager Themba Magazi

The South African technology infrastructure (telephone systems, electronic communications) has come under the microscope recently.

There are concerns that it could be found lacking in coping with the influx of thousands of sophisticated global tourists expected to arrive here for the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

But Telkom’s Fifa World Cup programme director Themba Magazi says the telecommunications giant is confident of honouring all its obligations to Fifa, South Africa and the world and so help ensure that the World Cup is a successful world-class event

He says Telkom has completed the two hubs, or exchanges, at each stadium as well as the dual optic-fibre routes from each stadium to the International Broadcast Centre.

“The upgrade of Telkom’s core network , with self-healing capability, has been completed. This means that the wide area network for Fifa is ready,” Magazi says.

“The company is currently busy with the completion of the local area network and related services. This task is on track for completion as scheduled.

“Upgrades to undersea optic-fibre cables have been completed and will enable international broadcasters to send live images of World Cup games back to their respective countries.”

Magazi says the two undersea cables (SAT-3 and EASSy) can now handle three times the international traffic volume than previously.

He says in provisioning for the information and communication technology (ICT) requirements of the World Cup, Telkom not only took into account Fifa’s specific requirements, but also the requirements of its existing customers as well as normal projected customer growth.

He says its day-to-day customers will not be affected in any way by its obligations to Fifa. He adds that Telkom is on track in achieving its goals in three general areas.

* No single point of failure in the dual optic-fibre routes from each stadium to the International Broadcast Centre.

* 99,99% availability of the network and without any failure during any match.

*The self-healing capability of the core network.

In essence, all routes and equipment to and from the stadiums as well as the International Broadcast Centre have network redundancies (back-ups). And in the unlikely event of damage to a route or equipment, traffic can be re-routed via an alternative route he says.

“It must be noted that there are two Telkom hubs within each stadium.

“By constructing a second hub at each stadium, the possibility of any service interruption is further reduced,” he says.

All ICT service provisioning is monitored from Telkom’s highly vaunted National Network Operations Centre (NNOC), in Centurion, which, inter alia, enables the early detection of, and rapid response to, faults, he explains.

“The company is therefore confident of meeting Fifa’s requirement of 99,99% availability of the network,” he says.

* aprila@sundayworld.co.za