Infonet, Lectra Sign Network Services Deal

January 8, 2003 -- (WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- Global communications service provider Infonet Services Corporation (Infonet.com) announced on Tuesday that it has extended its data communications contract with software, CAD/CAM equipment and related services provider Lectra.

According to the terms of the agreement, Infonet will customize Lectra's global network to meet the company's infrastructure requirements, and centralize its operations around three data centers in Bordeaux, Atlanta and Hong Kong. The contract, says Infonet, connects 18 sites across Europe, Asia, North America and Mexico.

Based in France, Lectra has more than 1,400 employees, 38 subsidiaries and 78 offices worldwide, and generates more than 80 percent of its sales outside France. Infonet has managed Lectra's IP-based internal infrastructure for seven years. The new contract will further extend the reach of Lectra's communication solutions.

In the coming months, Infonet and Lectra plan to evaluate a larger network connecting Lectra's frame relay and IP VPN sites. The company is considering connecting its smallest domestic sites to Infonet's secure Internet network, allowing the sites to benefit from services offered on The World Network, including router management, surveillance and assistance.

"While Lectra is not a multinational organization in a traditional sense," says Alain Morgant, General Manager of Infonet France, "it is a perfect example of a company with similarly challenging network requirements. Infonet is pleased to supply a turnkey solution to Lectra and other companies that have neither the structures nor the workforce to manage a global network. We are delighted with Lectra's continued loyalty and look forward to addressing all of their future telecommunications requirements."