Belgacom ICS employs Sonus for IP core network migration

When Belgacom ICS (BICS), the fourth largest wholesale voice provider in the world, decided to update its core network it was faced with the daunting task of not only having to migrate more than 10,000 E1 TDM and SIP trunks all without any customer disruption.

To get its IP network migration off the ground, Belgacom ICS turned to Sonus (Nasdaq: SONS) and its next-gen voice and security suite. Completed in less than 15 months, BICS' network migration required it to replace TDM trunking with a SIP core, adding centralized routing and policy management capabilities while assuring interworking with legacy ISUP connections, not to mention the bevy of international standards BICS continues to use.

"With our advanced IP core network in place, we now have a way to linearly scale our capacity and offer new IP-based services to address customer demand while consolidating and managing traffic from Africa, the Middle East and Asia using only a few central locations, and continuing to ensure the security of our network borders," said Pierre-André Rulmont, Chief Technical Officer for BICS in a release.

Included in the new IP-based network is Sonus' GSX9000 Open Services Switch, PSX Call Routing Server, SGX Signaling Gateway, the Sonus Insight Management System, in addition to the NBS9000 Network Border Switch for enhanced border security and advanced IP peering capabilities.

Simultaneously supporting BICS' legacy TDM and next gen IP traffic, the Sonus-based network will centrally manage policy and routing on the BICS network regardless of traffic type. BICS' investment in the Sonus gear won't require a forklift upgrade as wholesale customers switch to all IP environments because the Sonus GSX hardware will transition to NBS border security and media transcoding.

For more:
- see the release here

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