1. Following the BTOP Money What to do after the grant arrives Merit’s REACH-3MC Project Educause August 4, 2010

2. Bob Stovall VP, Network Operations & Engineering bes@merit.edu 734-527-5704

3. Agenda l Merit for Michigan l REACH-3MC Scope l Funded – Challenges Begin l Learning the Bureaucracy! l Engineering the Network l Implementation & Delivery l Lesson’s Learned l Measuring Success! l Questions & Answers 1

4. l The Michigan Education Research Information Triad (MERIT) formed in 1966 because, “significant benefits might be gained from sharing computing resources via an electronic linkage…” l Merit is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. l Merit operates the longest running Regional Optical Network (RON) in the country. l Established Affiliate Member program in 1990 to connect Higher Education, K-12 Schools, Libraries, Government, Health Care, Research Organizations, and other Non-profit Organizations. l 1969 NSF grant for computer networking with only comparable work at BBN (ARPANET) l Merit Embarks on a Fiber and Wireless Backbone Strategy in 2003 l 2010 ARRA grant to construct a middle-mile fiber optic infrastructure in rural areas of Michigan (REACH-3MC) l 2 About Merit 2

5. Merit for Michigan l Merit’s Goal has been to interconnect the Upper Peninsula and Lower Peninsula by fiber l 2008 Competed UP, Bridge, and most of Southern lower Peninsula l 2009 ARRA Opportunity 3

6. Merit for Michigan REACH-3MC – Awarded! Rural, Education, Anchor, Community, Healthcare – Michigan Middle Mile Collaborative l Merit’s ARRA application was approved on 1/20/10. l Middle-mile network covering over 955 miles and reaching 33 counties. l 72 strands of fiber l 3 – For-Profit Partners 4

7. REACH-3MC Scope l Routes are in four corridors: l Southern Corridor, Monroe to Benton Harbor l Western Corridor, Benton Harbor to Mackinaw City l Central Corridor, Mount Pleasant to Hillman l Eastern Corridor, Midland to Oscoda l Segment lengths are selected to match fiber loss verses optical system transmission capability l Intermediate cities were selected for “drive by” to allow future service to under served areas 5

8. Engineering the Network Engineering & Build Process: l 955+ Miles! l Dedicated Project Manager l Environmental Assessment l Engineering l Permitting l Materials l Construction l Equipment installation 6

9. Engineering the Network Environmental Assessment: l Required by NEPA l Must be completed within 6 months of notification l Permitting and Construction cannot start until EA is accepted Permitting Process: l Engineering firm creates the permit documentation l Require digital photographs of all utility poles l Merit team will submit permits to the appropriate entities l Control the process and priorities 7

10. Funded – Opportunities Begin l Learning the NTIA/BTOP Program Compliance l Environmental Assessment l State Historic Preservations Office l Tribal Historic Preservations Office l Quarterly Reports l How are we responding? l Breaking down the process…keeping in mind the easy and hard stuff. l 1 st Engineering, 2 nd Construction, 3 rd Materials l Streamlining processes and managing the dollars l Manage those easy wins! 8

11. Engineering the Network l Using one Engineering firm for the whole project l Provides consistent documentation l Consistent process l Easier to project manage l Control cost l Unit pricing l $0.01/ft savings equals $57,400 over the whole project l Utility management 9

12. Engineering the Network Construction: l Bid out as per unit (cost per foot and per splice) l Economies of scale l Increased flexibility l Ability to move construction crews as needed l ~20 Crews – estimated to complete 1 mile per day, 20 miles a day, estimated to take 50 work days to complete the outside plant work l Critical part is permitting and make-ready Materials: l Purchase in bulk! l Economies of scale l Consistent materials through out the infrastructure l Control delivery of materials l Consistent operational management after installation 10

13. Engineering the Network Determining the fiber route/path: l Drive the route early and often l Early spring l Learn something different with each drive l Approach route in both directions l Different direction, different perspective l In urban areas walk the area l Search for existing conduit and infrastructure l Already disturbed surfaces l Someone else has already figured it out l Don’t believe the tools and documentation l Visually verify each site l 11

14. Engineering the Network l Route changes after EA submission l Work with NTIA Project Officer l Continue to investigate saving opportunities l Work with local communities to discover current infrastructure opportunities l Remember changes must be aligned within the scope of project 12

15. Implementation & Delivery 13

16. Fiber Utilization Plan: l Merit will immediately light two pair of fiber l One fiber pair will be lit with long haul DWDM 10ge electronics and connect major sites l Approximately 150 to 200 miles apart l No mid segment node insertions planned l The second fiber pair will be lit with CWDM 1ge electronics l This will be the access network l Many mid segment insertions planned l Driving signal both directions to nearest 10g node l Remaining dark fiber will be available for future network expansion and lease 14 10g North Node 10g South Node 1g Mid Node Services – Leveraging the Infrastructure

17. REACH II 15

18. Lesson’s Learned – So Far! l Community outreach is critical l Start engineering as soon as possible l Work closely with State Governmental Agencies l Department of Transportation l Department of Natural Resourses l State Historic Preservation Office l Tribal Offices 16

19. Lesson’s Learned – So Far! l Manage the easy stuff l Greatest areas of savings and speed l The hard stuff is the great unknown l Keep utilities informed l Competition is your greatest asset l Manage in bite size pieces l Learn from others 17

20. Discussion/Questions More Information: http://www.merit.edu/meritformichigan /