SINGAPORE - May 14, 2004 - Cisco Systems'® Networked Solutions Integration Test Engineering (NSITE) lab in Singapore is taking some of the brightest young minds in the country and placing them in its sister labs around the world for five-and-half-month training attachments. This builds on the NSITE-IHL Collaborative Initiative, first launched in July last year.
The first group of ten students from Ngee Ann Polytechnic start their attachments next week in NSITE labs in North Carolina, US, Reading, UK and Singapore. They will work with emerging technologies such Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) and Voice over IP (VoIP). Cisco's NSITE labs are committed to helping Cisco's customers test complex IP networking solutions in real world conditions. A second set of students from Singapore Polytechnic start their attachments in July. NSITE is also in talks with other polytechnics regarding their participation in the program.
"The NSITE-IHL collaboration has helped to bring advanced networking technologies to Singapore. This is in line with IDA's Converged Networks cluster bets under the Connected Singapore blueprint. IDA welcomes this new development, which brings the programme to the next level, where our students are given the golden opportunity to gain hands-on experience. Such exposure is valuable and contributes to building manpower capabilities for Singapore's ICT industry. We look forward to more collaborations between industry and academia in grooming future talents", said Mr. Khoong Hock Yun, assistant chief executive, Industry of the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA).
"Our primary mission is to help our customers. We also contribute to the local communities wherever we are located. This attachment program for students is the first for an NSITE lab anywhere in the world and we drew inspiration for this from the Economic Development Board (EDB) of Singapore's Training and Attachment Program (TAP). In the future, we may even see students from countries where our sister NSITE labs are located come to Singapore for training stints," said Mr. Uwe Fisher, director for the Cisco NSITE lab in Singapore.
The NSITE-IHL Collaborative Initiative was initially focused on staff from institutes of higher learning(IHLs). Fisher added that extending the program to students and to NSITE labs in other parts of the world contributes to the development of talent in Singapore. Three research and teaching staff from Ngee Ann Polytechnic and Singapore Polytechnic have already completed attachments at NSITE Singapore with another two from Ngee Ann due to begin their stints soon.
Ms Nurneeza Ali, a lecturer in the School of Engineering, Electronics and Computer Engineering Division, at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, was the first to complete the attachment. "I was thrilled with the opportunity to work with NSITE. Not only did I learn about a new IP technology IPv6, I also learned about a different work culture and experienced working with different people from different walks of life from around the world without having to leave Singapore. Cisco Systems has greatly improved the way people can connect and work or play together through technology. I was able to maintain a close working relationship with engineers in North Carolina and Japan, twenty-four by seven. It empowers you to achieve your best," she said.
NSITE lab in Singapore
The NSITE lab in Singapore is focused on advanced technology areas such as IPv6, data, voice and video integration, service provider Voice over IP and next-generation mobile wireless solutions. The lab's infrastructure features a variety of carrier elements, including STP's, Class 5 simulators, PBX's, Call Agents, SCP's, various access equipment (Cable, DSLAM, etc), a high speed IP core, and ATM transport network. A significant investment has been made in the development and acquisition of tools to stress Cisco solutions and measure the effects of extreme traffic conditions.
The lab will soon include Security testing as part of its focus areas as companies and organizations in Singapore and the region demand resilient and robust solutions to protect their network and infrastructure assets.
