Orange in KSh 4 Billion Network Transformation Project

•    Project will enable company to expand network, infrastructure; develop new products and services in line with customer needs
•    Company will replace copper cabling with fibre; a deterance to vandalism

Nairobi, February 19, 2013… Integrated telecommunications services provider Orange has embarked on a countrywide transformation programme that will see the firm replace its copper cables with fibre infrastructure in order to enhance network reliability in the face of rising cable cuts and vandalism.

The programme, which began in 2012, and to be implemented at a cost of KSh 4 billion, targets Nairobi’s Upper Hill and Milimani areas in its first phase, as the company aims to upgrade the its network with next generation network switches throughout the country. All buildings that have been mapped out in the Milimani area will have their copper cabling replaced with fibre by the end of the first quarter this year.

Road construction, that led to businesses being affected due to a loss of or degraded service, initiated the start of the transformaton project in the Upper Hill area of Nairobi. Worthy to note is the fact that this area plays host to several office blocks occupied by various government ministries, corporates, NGOs and multinational firms as well as diplomatic missions. A cable cut or network disruption in this location could lead to downtime, affecting a significant number of the telco’s clients.

Copper infrastructure has various challenges, key being the restoration of service complex, during faults and cuts. A fibre network on the other hand is more ideal, requiring much less time to restore; it also has redundancy of service factored into its last mile component.

Overall, the transformation programme is aimed at enabling Telkom Kenya build on the best practices and benefits from the global expertise of its parent affiliate’s enterprise function, Orange Business Service, bringing a wealth of innovative products and services to the country. Telkom Kenya intends to use this platform to support the entire market chain: SMEs, large corporates as well as public sector organisations to cope with their dynamic ICT needs.