PFH deploys 4,000 data ports at new Aviva Stadium

7 Jul 2010

Cork IT player PFH has signed a major deal with Kentz to provide a fully resilient local area network (LAN) infrastructure at the new Aviva Stadium comprising 4,000 data ports and 84 wireless access points.

The infrastructure will provide Aviva with connectivity for stadium control management and entertainment systems.

It will consist of 87 high-performance access switches that provide almost 4,000 ports across the stadium.

This includes a HiPath Wireless solution comprised of more than 84 access points operating on current wireless industry standards 802.11a/b/g/n.

This entire WLAN infrastructure is centrally managed and offers exceptional performance, high-availability and seamless roaming for the mobile users/devices with speeds of up to 300Mbps.

Network perimeter security, which is based on high-performance, high-availability firewalls, provides internet access and remote access solutions for staff, media and attendees at the Aviva Stadium.

Enterasys Network Management suite provides Aviva Stadium with a real-time view of network status, topology and inventory management, including firmware and configuration version control.

Eircom’s contract for stadium work

The news follows last week’s announcement that Eircom was awarded a multi-million euro contract to provide fibre and voice communications at the new stadium.

“Given the scope and scale of the Aviva Stadium project, this has been an exciting project,” said Paul Hourican, managing director of PFH.

“Aviva Stadium is rightly seen by many as one of the most sophisticated stadiums in Europe, our infrastructure will not only enable the media to capture the live action, but also enable the fans to avail of a full range of secure and onsite services to enhance their experience.”

This announcement follows on the recent acquisition by PFH of Siemens Enterprise Communications Group Ireland, who was originally contracted by Kentz to deliver the Local Area Network and Wireless infrastructure for the Aviva Stadium.

“The network that PFH set up will form the backbone of our stadium’s communication infrastructure,” said Paul Charles, technical services manager, Aviva Stadium.

“This will allow us to easily and centrally manage and control our connectivity for our staff, spectators and media’s mobile users and devices,” Charles said.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com