Thales Selects BelAir Networks Wi-Fi for Bergen Light Rail Project
Thales partners with BelAir Networks for mass transit Wi-Fi deployments in Europe, Middle East and Asia
Kanata, ON, October 20, 2009 - Thales has selected BelAir Networks for both onboard and trackside Wi-Fi infrastructure for mass transit deployments, including the Bergen Light Rail project. BelAir Networks is the global market share leader in mesh Wi-Fi for the last 8 quarters and is the Wi-Fi equipment provider to North America's largest Wi-Fi networks. The new Bergen Light Rail project, which will serve 380,000 citizens in Norway's second largest city, is slated to launch in 2010.
For the Bergen Light Rail project, Thales is supplying and integrating rail signalling, telecommunications, passenger information, traffic priority and traffic control & supervision systems. The Wi-Fi network consists of 40 BelAir100 nodes along the 12 kilometer tram network and 24 BelAir20M mobile access points installed in the initial 12 train cars. Testing completed earlier this year in Portugal, Berlin and Bergen confirmed high-performance connectivity at high-speed and contiguous coverage through tunnels. The BelAir20M also underwent extensive vibration, shock and bump testing to meet the demanding regulatory requirements for railway installations. The BelAir20M is mounted on the ceiling or interior wall of the train car providing 802.11 n/b/g Wi-Fi access for iPhonesTM and other smartphones, laptops, netbooks, game consoles and other Wi-Fi enabled devices. Traffic from onboard devices is backhauled from the second radio of the BelAir20M to the BelAir100 trackside infrastructure.
"We are proud to have earned the opportunity to work with Thales on mass transit deployments including the Bergen Light Rail project," said Bernard Herscovich, president and CEO, BelAir Networks. "BelAir Networks customers around the world are focussing on mass transit Wi-Fi as a key market, so we've developed a market leading solution for both onboard and trackside Wi-Fi infrastructure."
About Thales
Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace, Space, Defence, Security and Transportation markets. In 2008, the company generated revenues of 12.7 billion euros with 68,000 employees in 50 countries. With its 25,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design, develop and deploy equipment, systems and services that meet the most complex security requirements. Thales has an exceptional international footprint, with operations around the world working with customers as local partners.
Improving the quality of service and security in the transport sector
Thales provides solutions for three main transportation segments: rail signalling, integrated communication and supervision systems and ticketing. Thales offers a comprehensive range of integrated, modular solutions for the safe transportation of people and goods covering all forms of transport: from bus, metro, tramway and regional train networks to mainline (high-speed) links and road transport.
About BelAir Networks
BelAir Networks is the market share leader in Service Provider Wi-Fi solutions. The company's portfolio of indoor and outdoor wireless LAN access points, control and management systems enable service providers, government and businesses to deliver high performance, scalable and flexible managed Wi-Fi services to both enterprise and public users. BelAir Networks solutions provide a compelling return on investment and address the need for public Wi-Fi hot spots and hotzones, secure wireless LAN, cellular data offload, wireless backhaul, surveillance, and smart grid networks. Innovative cable, telecom and mobile service providers and government, education, retail, hospitality, healthcare, mass transit and property management customers use BelAir Networks to drive revenue and improve competitiveness. Founded in 2001, BelAir Networks is a privately held company backed by investment from leading venture capital firms including Comcast Interactive Capital, T-Mobile Venture Fund and Trilogy Equity Partners. For more information, visit www.belairnetworks.com.
Press Contact:
BelAir Networks
Sheila Burpee Duncan
+1 613.254.7070 ext. 134
sburpeeduncan@belairnetworks.com