Airespace Unveils WLAN Platform

Brett Galloway, president and CEO of Airespace, based here, said the new solution is "channel ready" and the company is working to boost its channel roster to about 30 partners by the end of the year from only several now.

The components of the new platform include the Airespace 4000 Wireless Switch, Airespace 1200 Access Point and Airespace Control System (ACS) software, Galloway said.

The 4000 switch provides critical intelligent switching functions for the entire Airespace WLAN network, Galloway said. The new access point has traffic-forwarding capabilities and derives policy, access control, power and other key functions from the switch.

Galloway said the advantage of the new platform is the ACS software, which provides "expert visibility into the [radio frequency] domain for wireless configuration, automated network optimization, troubleshooting and the creation of enterprisewide Quality of Service and security policies."

Jim Portaro, CTO of Akron, Ohio-based wireless integrator NeTeam, said the dynamic allocation of channels and the ability to do load balancing between clients are unique to Airespace.

Portaro said these features are important when building a high-availability wireless network that won't fail when, for instance, filing cabinets are moved within an office building or an X-ray machine is moved within a hospital.

"That is very difficult to do, and [a solution provider] doesn't have any control in that respect," he said. "Now, with this product, as the dynamics of the environment change, the product senses and knows that and will change along with it."