Sao Paulo, Brazil, November 12, 2014 - The Brazilian Federal District has taken the first step to become a “Smart City”. It will invest R$ 22 million (about US $ 9 million) by the end of the year to ensure free Wi-Fi connectivity in public spaces for up to 30,000 citizens under the “Sinal Livre” (Free Signal) project. This is the largest free connectivity project of Brazil.
Cisco® Wireless Outdoor Metro Ethernet and Security solutions were implemented in Federal District. Cisco has also provided technical and operational support to the project, which is bolstered by a consortium of four companies, including MTel Technologia, Cisco integrator for the public sector.
The project will have a total of 220 access points spread throughout the Federal District, sized according to the urban traffic and serving points with higher concentration of people. In the central area, for example, where the National Stadium “Mane Garrincha” is located, there are 96 access points. At the Bus Terminal Station, there are 54, while the Convention Center “Ulysses Guimarães” has six. Finally, each administrative district shall receive, on average, five coverage areas.
"By using the network to improve public administration and citizen services, the Sinal Livre project is much more than simply providing Internet to the people. This is an ambitious strategy and an important milestone in the country when it comes to Smart City projects”, said Rodrigo Dienstmann, president of Cisco in Brazil.
MTel Technology, Cisco integrator, has built a Metro Ethernet network, data center composed of redundant core switches, security solution with firewall, IPS, user authentication, content web filter, and a centralized management platform capable of supporting the service.
"The technology used creates the foundation for public services delivery in real time for Federal District’s regions with greatest concentration of people. Citizens and visitors now have connectivity, access to public utility information and the overall digital inclusion offered by this project. This is the first step in a larger goal of building a modern city and perhaps the first Smart City of Brazil," said Mauricio Blanco, president of MTel.
"The initial goal was to provide connectivity to the population at specific points of Federal District. About two years ago when the project was initiated, we included the possibility of transforming it into a Smart City through systems integration, and by using the existing technology in the areas of health, education, mobility, and others," highlights the project leader, Alexandre de Oliveira Lobo, assistent secretary of State Agency for Digital Inclusion and Technology Contents.
So far R$ 18 million (about US$ 7.5 million) of the total amount of the bid has been invested. The service was launched to the public on July 23, 2014, about four months after the infrastructure deployment.
Traffic and garbage collection in real time; and public parking computerization are among the additional services proposed.
About MTel Technology
The Brazilian company was created in 1996, and it was acquired by Private Equity Fund Alothon Group LLC in August 2011. MTEL has invested in strategic partnerships with global players manufacturers, as well as in the expertise of its team of certified engineers and technicians in order to add value to customer services. It offers NaaS model - Network as a Service, allowing the provision of infrastructure and professional services as operating expenses (Opex) and not as fixed assets (Capex).
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