Transatlantic Cable Lands in Prefab Modular Landing Stations

Emerson Network Power, a business of Emerson and the world’s leading provider of critical infrastructure for information and communications technology systems, was selected by Hibernia Networks as its partner to design and build two fully integrated cable landing stations on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean to securely connect the recently launched dedicated submarine fiber cable known as Hibernia Express.

Hibernia Express Cable Map
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Source: Hibernia Networks

Hibernia Express is the first new transatlantic cable system deployed in over 12 years, providing the absolute lowest latency and additional high-performing global capacity. Emerson Network Power customized its modular, prefabricated solutions to meet local requirements in Canada and the United Kingdom — two of the global landing spots for Hibernia Express. The dual landing stations, deployed concurrently, were completed seven months from the start of work, which is more than 40 percent faster than the typical deployment time for traditional brick-and-mortar facilities.

The safe and secure prefabricated landing stations are designed to achieve the industry’s highest standards for energy efficiency and power usage effectiveness. In fact, Emerson’s understanding of the harsh oceanfront environment based on past cable landing station deployments coupled with its ability to deliver efficient, reliable cooling systems under such conditions were key differentiators in Hibernia Networks’ selection process. Emerson Network Power’s Liebert® DSE and Liebert PDX thermal management units realize the benefits of the cool climate without introducing salty, corrosive oceanfront air into the IT environment.

“Emerson Network Power’s resources, flexibility and knowledge of the product were what we needed in a partner,” said David Smith, senior vice president global network operations at Hibernia Networks. “Faster speed and improved resiliency are central to the differentiated valued proposition of the Hibernia Express Cable. The technology and security underlying the Emerson Network Power landing station solution is an important element to the overall cable system, serving to strengthen these key attributes valued by our customers.”

“We were excited to lend our expertise to the development of Hibernia Networks state of the art network facilities,” said Steve McKinney, vice president and general manager of power management and integrated modular solutions for Emerson Network Power. “We look forward to leveraging these engineering, design and project management capabilities in future world-class projects.”

The landing stations in Canada and the United Kingdom are comprised of several prefabricated modules assembled onsite. Each site is approximately 1,700 square feet, and complies with building code regulations and governmental standards of the applicable country. In addition to the Liebert DSE and Liebert PDX thermal management units, Emerson’s solutions include high-efficiency NetSure™ DC Power systems with secure remote monitoring and control, ASCO® automatic transfer switches and switchgear, inverters, VRLA batteries and other support infrastructure.

Source:  Emerson Press Release

JRC ANALYSIS: To the best of JRC's knowledge, this is the first time that modular landing stations have been used for a transatlantic cable. The modular approach is normally eschewed by purist industry project managers as much for the fact that it is perceived as cutting corners as for any reasons related to actual network performance and reliability.

Since the raison d'être of Hibernia Express is to provide the shortest and therefore the lowest latency route between the financial centers of New York City and London, cutting corners was literally the project mantra.

Given that Aqua Comms' "AE Connect" project was not far behind Hibernia Express in terms of RFS date, it is understandable that Hibernia Networks chose a landing station solution that would contribute to reducing installation time.
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