FP6 IST “Broadband for all” Network of Excellence Project 001933

1. FP6 IST “Broadband for all” Network of Excellence Project 001933 e-Photon/ONe “Optical Networks: Towards Bandwidth Manageability and Cost Efficiency” COST 279 Final Seminar Lisbon, June 29th, 2005

2. FP6 Instruments • Generation, demonstration and validation of new knowledge through research and development • Integrated Projects (IPs; ~10M€) • Specific Tergeted Research Projects (STRePs; ~2M€) • Durable integration of the participants’ activities and capacities • Networks of Excellence (NoEs; ~7M€) • Support to collaboration and coordination, and to other activities • Coordination Actions (CAs; ~1M€) • Specific Support Actions (SSAs; ~0.5M€)

3. 6FP First IST Call • Costly paperwork and proposal preparation • Relatively little funding to ICT • Strong competition among several NoEs and IPs for strategic objective “Broadband for All” • The ranking of e-Photon/ONe was 22/25 (best in “Broadband for all” among NoEs and IPs) • The EC proposed (and final) grant was 2.9 MЄ for 2 years … 

4. Consortium composition - I • Politecnico di Torino, Italy • Università di Bologna, Italy • Politecnico di Milano, Italy • Fondazione Ugo Bordoni, Rome, Italy • Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Pisa, Italy • INTEC - Ghent University - IMEC, Gent, Belgium • Technical University of Eindhoven, The Netherlands • Faculté Polytechnique de Mons, Mons, Belgium • COM - Technical University of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark • Kista Photonics Research Centre, Kista, Sweden • Fraunhofer Gesellschaft - Heinrich Hertz Institute, Germany • Duisburg University, Germany • University of Stuttgart - Institute of Communication Networks and Computer Engineering, Germany • Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany • Vienna University of Technology, Austria • Groupe des Ecoles de Telecommunications, France

5. Consortium composition - II • University of Essex, UK • University College London (UCL), London, UK • University of Cambridge, UK • University of Southampton, UK • Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain • Universdad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain • Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain • Polytecnic of Valencia, Spain • Instituto de Telecomunicações, Aveiro, Portugal • National Technical University of Athens, Greece • University of Athens, Greece • University of Patras, Greece • Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Budapest, Hungary • Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey • University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia • University of Mining and Metallurgy (AGH), Poland

6. Consortium composition - III [Industrial partners] • Telefónica Investigación y Desarrollo, Spain • T-Systems Nova GmbH, Germany • Siemens, Germany • Telenor R&D, Oslo, Norway • France Telecom, France • Alcatel R&I, France 38 partner institutions: • 32 academic institutions • 4 telecom operators • 2 manufacturers with broad European coverage (from Portugal to Turkey) ~400 researchers actively involved in the NoE Coordinator: Fabio Neri (Politecnico di Torino)

7. Some comments • A large number of partners raises project management issues • The EC grant must be efficiently utilized • A strong and well-defined project structure is required • Hierarchy of responsibilities • Several committees and boards to steer and promote activities • Efficient project office • NoEs bring new and “unusual” goals • EC grant not for funding individual research • Partners must learn to work towards “integration” • Results should come in the medium to long term • But the e-Photon/ONe duration was cut from 5 to 2 years • raising issues on effectiveness of the activities • downsizing of final objectives

8. Funding limited to two years • Same for all IPs and NoEs in Broadband for All • Two years is too short; several activities require a longer time span (e.g., PhD students should be financed for three years) • The project will have to stop its activities at the end of the initial warm-up transient • Limiting NoEs to two years appears as a symptom of little trust from the Commission in this new instrument • A significant part of the 2nd year was devoted to writing a new proposal

9. Objectives of e-Photon/ONe • e-Photon/ONe is focused on optical networks • Its main goals are: • integrate and focus the rich technical know-how available in Europe on optical networking • favour a consensus on the engineering choices towards the deployment of optical networks • understand how to exploit the unique characteristics of the optical domain for networking applications • promote and organize activities to disseminate knowledge on optical networks

10. Joint Program of Activities (JPA) • The JPA provides a description of the broad scope of the NoE • For e-Photon/ONe it was planned for a 5-years time span, and it is articulated into15 WorkPackages (WPs) • JPA activities are classified into four categories: • Integrating activities • Joint research activities • Spreading of excellence activities • Management activities

11. Activities in the JPA • Integrating activities • A1.1 Coordination of research • A1.2 Researcher and student mobility • A1.3 Knowledge and innovation management • A1.4 Integrated dissemination • A1.5 Sharing research facilities • A1.6 Educational programs • Joint research activities • A2.1 Virtual Department 1: “Core networks: technologies, architectures and protocols” • A2.2 Virtual Department 2: “Metro and access networks: technologies, architectures and protocols” • A2.3 Virtual Department 3: “Home networks and other short-reach networks” • A2.4 Virtual Department 4: “Optical switching systems” • A2.5 Virtual Department 5: “Transmission techniques for broadband networks” • Spreading of excellence activities • A3.1 On-line dissemination • A3.2 Publications and conferences • A3.3 External relations • A3.4 Schools and continuing education • A3.5 Hosting students and researchers • Management activities • A4.1 Management of the technical bodies • A4.2 Management of governing bodies

12. Integration goals • Strengthen contacts between partners • Focus research on optical networking • Stimulate exchanges of researchers and lecturers • Support knowledge management and circulation of information • Sharing of research topics and activities • Sharing of lab infrastructures • Develop common educational programs • Support innovation management

13. Virtual Departments • Integration activities were organized in thematic structures called Virtual Departments (VDs) • Viewing e-Photon/ONe as a large virtual European research structure (e.g. a university), it is possible to envisage different departments to which people affiliate according to topics. Departments have chairpersons who decide on the activities and the internal organization. People of a department do research, but also organize projects, interact with people external to the departments, have teaching activities etc.

14. Major technical areas in optical networks • Wavelength routing (core) networks • Exploit large bandwidth on fiber links • Reduce time-domain operations, buffering requirements, and information processing • Innovative architectures for metro and access • Broadcast-and-select networks • WDM rings • PONs • Home and short-reach networks • Low cost • Easy deployment • Optics in switching and optical switching • Large switching fabrics • Lower footprint and power requirements • Optical transmission • Improving the best • Higher manageability

15. Virtual Departments • VD1 (F. Callegati): “Core Networks: Technologies, Architectures, and Protocols” • VD2 (E. Zouganeli): “Metro and Access Networks: Technologies, Architectures, and Protocols” • VD3 (D. Jäger): “Home Networks and Other Short-Reach Networks” • VD4 (L. Dittman): “Optical Switching Systems” • VD5 (P. Poggiolini): “Transmission Techniques for Broadband Networks”

16. Joint Projects • Although it is stated that funding research is not a primary goal of a NoE (!), four joint research projects (JPs) have been defined, so that the different partners can work together towards a few common goals • JPs are specific, short-term research activities, that may involve people from a single or multiple departments, just like the many research projects in which university staff people are often involved • JPs are serving as an important step toward integration inside the NoE, providing to a large number of partners an opportunity for interaction and accomplishment of common goals • Research activities in JPs are decided and coordinated by WP leaders

17. Joint Projects • JP1 (A. Stavdas): “New designs for optical packet switching nodes”. It aims both at designing optical switching devices (OXCs, optical packet switches), and at identifying the role of optics in traditional packet/circuit switches (e.g., switching fabrics in IP routers, or optical backplanes) • JP2 (T. Koonen): “Flexible broadband fiber in the loop networks and in home networks”, including fiber in the access and FTTH, hybrid fiber-wireless and fiber-coax, very-low-cost optics, plastic fibers, wireless optics • JP3 (M. Pickavet): “Protocols for the control plane in WDM core networks” (ASONs, G-MPLS, etc.) • JP4 (R. Killey): “Robust transmission techniques for core and metro networks”

18. Spreading excellence activities • Dissemination activities: it is important to convert the international reputation of individual partners in a quality label for the network • Training activities must help improve the skills and knowledge of the future young workforce and indirectly help to establish a competitive and knowledge economy

19. Training • The NoE aims to establish a significant influence on the training in the area of optical communication • Initiatives will be taken to complement the currently on-going uniformisation of the university degrees within Europe, in the framework of the Sorbonne-Bologna declarations, and specific attention will be paid to improvements of the quality • Specific objectives: • improve and uniformize the undergraduate and graduate programs in the domain of optical communication throughout Europe • draw guidelines for the curricula and, in particular for degrees in electrical and/or telecommunications engineering, as well as photonics • to improve the PhD training, a.o. by including hands-on training in a broader field • to organize specialized post-graduate programs for PhD students, post-docs and industrial researchers and technicians

20. 15 WorkPackages • WP1 (VD on Core Networks): F. Callegati – DEIS-UniBo • WP2 (VD on Metro and Access Networks): E. Zouganeli – Telenor • WP3 (VD on Home and Other Short-Reach Networks): D. Jaeger - UniDu • WP4 (VD on Optical Switching Systems): L. Dittman – DTU • WP5 (VD on Transmission): P. Poggiolini – PoliTO • WP6 (NoE Management): L. Fulci – PoliTO • WP7 (JP on Optical Switches): A. Stavdas – NTUA • WP8 (JP on Reconfigurable Access): T. Koonen – Tu/E • WP9 (JP on Protocols for WDM Network): M. Pickavet – UGent • WP10 (JP on Robust Transmission): R. Killey – UCL • WP11 (Mobility): G. Morthier – UGent • WP12 (Teaching Activities): B. Mikac – TELFER • WP13 (Joint Laboratories): A. Seeds – UCL • WP14 (Dissemination): M. O’Mahony – UEssex • WP15 (International Collaborations): S. Tomic – TUW

21. STEERING COMMITTEE PROJECT COORDINATOR JPA COMMITTEE MANAGEMENT & ADMINISTRATIVE BOARD Integrating Activities Board Joint Research Project Board Exchange & Mobility Board Dissemination & Training Board Gender issue panel Socio-economic panel Innovation & IPR panel Project Office Ethical issues Panel Admin. Leader Area 2 Admin. Leader Area 1 Admin. Leader Area 3 Admin. Leader Area 5 VD1 VD5 …….. Admin. Leader Area 4 Admin. Leader Area 6 Admin. Leader Area 9 Joint Project 1 Admin. Leader Area 7 Joint projects …… Admin. Leader Area 8 …….. Joint Project 4 Quality Assurance Committee Virtual Departments NETWORK PARTNERS (38) Local Administrative Dpt. JPA Dpt. e-Photon/ONe organization

22. Project management and administration • The Project Office was established at Politecnico di Torino to deal with project management and administrative issues (two full-time persons) • The Consortium Agreement was negotiated and signed • Difficult integration of diffrent rules in different countries for cost eligibility • Quarterly (!) Management Reports were prepared and submitted to the European Commission • The role of Collaborating Institutions, participating to e-Photon/One with no budget allocation, was established, and several application were received (this is a recognition of the project quality)

23. Some achievements • e-Photon/ONe web site:http://www.e-photon-one.org • Support to the organization of conferences, including ONDM, and ECOC • Workshop presenting e-Photon/ONe to the international community at ECOC in Stockholm (Sweden) on September 7th, 2004 • Events and workshops at NOC (Holland), OECC (Japan), WOBS/Broadnets (USA), Broadband Summit (Belgium), and others • Links with the IEEE Optical Networks Technical Committee (ONTC);joint organization with NSF and COST ofworkshop on research directions Europe-USA technical collaboration (June 2005 n Brussels) • Several members of e-Photon/ONe are in the editorial board of the new Elsevier journal “Optical Switching and Networking (OSN) • Interactions with Global Grid Forum on Optical Burst Switching standards • Two technical schools (one in Mons in September 2004, and one in Aveiro in February 2005); next school in Summer 2005 in Cesenatico • Several personnel exchanges took place in the framework of mobility actions. Around 25 such events involved mainly PhD students for extended periods • An effort towards integration of lab activities and sharing of lab infrastructures lead to an inventory of existing labs and to a plan for coordinated lab experiments

24. Research directions and challanges • More packets in networks, more circuits in the optical domain • (Dynamic) connection-oriented operation; lot of work on control plane functionalities • Large attention to (new architectures for) the access segment; G-PONs, E-PONs • More optics in traditional switching devices • New design criteria: • bandwidth cost no longer an issue – cost of switching more important • QoS requirements do not scale with packet duration: no need for reconfiguration in the ns scale • Consider non-traditional application domains: • Home networks • Vehicle networks • Unclear evolution towards higher data rates (40 and 100 Gb/s): 2.5 Gb/s best transmission compromise

25. Uneven partner involvement • Limited involvement of industrial partners • Also limited initial involvement of some academic partners • WP leaders monitor the involvement of partners in their WP • The Technical Annex assumes full transfer of EC funds only upon verification of active participation: EC contribution may be reduced in proportion to the costs claimed and accepted for the first annual report • Adjusting the budget subdivision to actual activities and involvement in the integration process proved to be effective, but increases management costs

26. Collaborating Institutions • At the kickoff meeting it was decided not to enlarge the consortium, but to establish the role of “Collaborating Institution”, with • no budget allocation • full participation to the project • It is an interesting approach to have a consortium “evolving” with time and a recognition of the quality of e-Photon/ONe • Current Collaborating Institutions: • Intel Cambridge, UK (Madeleine Glick) • Multitel, Mons, Belgium (Augustin Grillet) • Athens Information and Technology Center, Greece (Ioannis Tomkos) • Beijing University of Posts & Telegraphs, China (Jian Wu) • Fujitsu Labs Europe, UK (Michael Parker) • Campinas State University, Brazil (Helio Waldman)

27. Comments after one project year Advantages of NoEs: • Research and personal integration in the European scientific community • International visibility • Cooperation with the European international leadership in specific technical areas (optical networks for e-Photon/ONe), and with Japan, USA, Canada, China, Korea • Possible alliances for setting up consortia towards other forms of research funding

28. Comments after one project year • Consortium size: • Difficult to build small consortia • Large consortia difficult to coordinate (~5K emails in my mailbox; response times with very large variance; meetings become conferences; etc.) • Intellectual Property Right issues difficult to handle (in particular for industrial partners, but also between different projects) • The allocated budget is too small for industries to participate: the involvement of industries and SMEs in FP6 has been limited (industries participation in IST reduced from 55% to 29%) • The funding period was really too short for an NoE: will we have durable integration effects?

29. Comments after one project year • Project management: • Large management effort • Difficult interaction with the EC • Sixth Framework Programme rules not clear from the beginning (and unknown or obscure to participating institutions) • Large paperwork overhead (61 deliverables, quarterly reports, and heavy annual reports and reviews) • No real administrative autonomy: very detailed reporting to the Commission still requested • The AC model (used by most universities) is not appropriate for NoEs • Co-existence of AC and FC models leads to administrative problems

30. Conclusions (1) • Exploiting the NoE instrument is not trivial • Consortium size  • Small consortium likely misses significant players and has no consensus in the research community • Big consortium raises management issues • The project management architecture is a cornerstone to achieve tangible results • The Virtual Department concept is the e-Photon/ONe answer to the coordination of research issue • Budget and funding period must be adequate • New proposal e-Photon/ONe+ to overcome the 2-years limit

31. Conclusions (2) • VDs had a slow start • After one year, results are beginning to emerge • Partners have got to know one another a lot better: • Mutual knowledge of fields of expertise and areas of excellence • Mutual knowledge of group layouts and major laboratory infrastructure • Integration is truly taking place • Formal and informal collaborations have actually started among several partners • Actions towards the 4th FP6 calls coordinated • Consensus on key issues being formed common papers being written and plans for building common teaching material • The pace towards integration is still uneven among VDs

32. More in www.e-photon-one.org Visit our web site! Register (on web site) to Newsletter! Come to e-Photon/ONe booth at ECOC 2005!

33. How the project leader views e-Photon/One How the project office views e-Photon/One How the Commission views project leaders How partners interpret European projects Different views …

34. Q?