Deploying hyperscale infrastructure during a pandemic

Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in South Africa, we have added over 1Tbps of backhaul capacity onto our 16Tbps-ready hyperscale network. In doing so we supported rapid, high-capacity service activation for clients wanting to meet the significant rise in end-user demand for content and connectivity.

“Even before the pandemic, demand for capacity was on a steep upward progression, heavily influenced by the arrival of OTTs and content providers in South Africa. To meet this increased demand from new and existing clients, it was both urgent and important to deploy our network on-schedule,” explained Shelley Durkin, WIOCC Programme Manager.

She continued: “Government-imposed restrictions on the movement of people and goods meant fewer Field Engineers to regulate physical contact, reduced working hours to meet curfews and delays in importing network equipment – which we had already pre-emptively stored in bulk. Leveraging our strong supplier relationships, we collaborated to safely support our engineers – some of whom had to drive over 500kms each day to work at the build sites. To further support the network build and meet key business objectives, we swiftly re-allocated resources in a timely manner to focus on high-priority projects first.”

“Successfully deploying our 11,000km dark-fibre network with over 100 national PoPs during a pandemic took impeccable planning, fast decision-making and a tenacious field team, who went above and beyond. Our network is fully OTN-enabled and utilises Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) transmission technology, which provides clients with almost limitless capacity to efficiently deliver multi-signal wavelengths across a single fibre,” she concluded.

You can find more information about our investment in South Africa’s first, truly hyperscale network on our website, or send us an email at info@wiocc.net.

WIOCC: Building Africa’s hyperscale infrastructure