Transatlantic Cable Lands in Prefab Modular Landing Stations

Landing stations in the UK and Canada for a recently launched transatlantic submarine cable were built in seven months using prefabricated modules by Emerson Network Power. The telco modules are part of Emerson’s SmartMod line, which also includes its modular data center product.

Hibernia Express, operated by Hibernia Networks, is the first transatlantic cable to have been launched in the past 12 years, according to Emerson. One of the investors in the project to increase bandwidth between the two continents is Microsoft.

Speed of deployment for the landing stations was key. The vendor says it took about 40 percent less time than it would have taken to build traditional brick-and-mortar landing stations.

Each site is about 1,700 square feet, consisting of multiple modules. They also have Emerson’s power and cooing infrastructure, as well as backup power failover systems.

Another major transatlantic cable system is in the works. Microsoft, Equinix, and Digital Realty Trust are among future users of the new system being built by Aqua Comms.