We discuss the following topics in this blog:
- Progress of Digital Capabilities in Defense
- Contribution of STL in mission-critical projects
- All about Project Varun
In addition to these topics, we shall also be answering the following FAQs:
- What is WiFi?
- What is an Optical Fibre Cable?
Contents
How the Digital Wave is Taking Over?
There are various facets of Nation-building among which the most important one at this moment seems to be tapping the potential of digital technology. As digital capabilities progress and connectivity become omnipresent, technology is poised to radically change nearly every sector of India’s economy.
We are into the 21st century where Digital India is not only shaping our lives but also compounding the power of our defence forces. While creating a digital infrastructure, creating a Digital Defence force is at the core as nations will now be known by the digital infrastructure their defence forces have.
STL: Always in the Service of the Nation
STL’s nation building spirit is guided by taking up the mission critical projects and giving back to nation. Building a digitally adept defence force which is at par with global super powers is a matter of national pride and national security and sovereignty for us. We strive to get our passion of nation building to our business and we are fortunate that it has translated into projects like Bharatnet and NFS.
Military communications has always played a major role in warfare. Communications systems on or off the battlefield are regarded as an essential component for mission success. Specific to network modernization, communicating securely with command-and-control centre and other units within the increasingly communications-reliant battlefront landscape is critical to ensure the success of the mission and the safety of war fighters.
What is Project Varun All About?
Project Varun was conceived with an aim to connect and secure the nation’s borders all across, serving to protect the lives of 1.3 billion Indians. With its sheer scale Project Varun touched every node of the Naval network.
Project Varun symbolizes the spirit of oneness, wherein the Navy, the BSNL and STL came together to conceptualize the project. The project also epitomizes how we are at the forefront of serving the nation through such mission-critical projects.
STL identified the vulnerability of critical communications in the Indian Navy and proposed an end-to-end network modernisation approach to reach the desired state. STL designed a next-gen digital communications network for the Indian Navy solidifying the nation’s Naval security forces.
In first of a kind undertaking, an integrated communications network of such scale was built in India. STL designed a converged MPLS infrastructure on a two-layered centrally managed IP backbone.
We built a robust, integrated communications network spanning converged network design, fibre and ICT deployments, data centre ecosystem, and network security that ensured a secure, reliable and seamless digital highway for administrative and mission-critical operations of Navy.
The unprecedented information security created formidable digital fortress accessibility, enhanced bandwidth enabled superfast action orchestration, and an advanced data centre and cloud platform brought in multiple efficiencies.
The project brought greater synergy, efficiency, further strengthening the naval forces. The new-age technology will enable the Indian Navy to ride new-age applications with advanced security solutions while bringing real-time situational awareness and faster decision making. It will also position our Navy for future-readiness, preparing for network virtualisation, Big Data analytics and customised enterprise applications.
We take much pride in contributing to the nation and our defence forces.
FAQs
What is WiFi?
Put simply, WiFi is a technology that uses radio waves to create a wireless network through which devices like mobile phones, computers, printers, etc., connect to the internet. A wireless router is needed to establish a WiFi hotspot that people in its vicinity may use to access internet services. You’re sure to have encountered such a WiFi hotspot in houses, offices, restaurants, etc.
To get a little more technical, WiFi works by enabling a Wireless Local Area Network or WLAN that allows devices connected to it to exchange signals with the internet via a router. The frequencies of these signals are either 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz bandwidths. These frequencies are much higher than those transmitted to or by radios, mobile phones, and televisions since WiFi signals need to carry significantly higher amounts of data. The networking standards are variants of 802.11, of which there are several (802.11a, 802.11b, 801.11g, etc.).
What is an Optical Fibre Cable?
An optical fibre cable is a cable type that has a few to hundreds of optical fibres bundled together within a protective plastic coating. They help carry digital data in the form of light pulses across large distances at faster speeds. For this, they need to be installed or deployed either underground or aerially. Standalone fibres cannot be buried or hanged so fibres are bunched together as cables for the transmission of data.
This is done to protect the fibre from stress, moisture, temperature changes and other externalities. There are three main components of a optical fibre cable, core (It carries the light and is made of pure silicon dioxide (SiO2) with dopants such as germania, phosphorous pentoxide, or alumina to raise the refractive index; Typical glass cores range from as small as 3.7um up to 200um), Cladding (Cladding surrounds the core and has a lower refractive index than the core, it is also made from the same material as the core; 1% refractive index difference is maintained between the core and cladding; Two commonly used diameters are 125µm and 140µm) and Coating (Protective layer that absorbs shocks, physical damage and moisture; The outside diameter of the coating is typically either 250µm or 500µm; Commonly used material for coatings are acrylate,Silicone, carbon, and polyimide).
An optical fibre cable is made up of the following components: Optical fibres – ranging from one to many. Buffer tubes (with different settings), for protection and cushioning of the fibre. Water protection in the tubes – wet or dry. A central strength member (CSM) is the backbone of all cables. Armoured tapes for stranding to bunch the buffer tubes and strength members together. Sheathing or final covering to provide further protection.
The five main reasons that make this technology innovation disruptive are fast communication speed, infinite bandwidth & capacity, low interference, high tensile strength and secure communication. The major usescases of optical fibre cables include intenet connectivity, computer networking, surgery & dentistry, automotive industry, telephony, lighting & decorations, mechanical inspections, cable television, military applications and space.
