ADTRAN (News - Alert), a provider of networking and communications equipment, will soon offer ActivReach – Ethernet technology which supports all grades of wiring and extends service three times more than with standard Ethernet.

It also offers high-speed voice, data and Power over Ethernet (PoE) from a single device, according to a company statement carried by Daily Finance.

ActivReach will first be found in ADTRAN's NetVanta 1535P Gigabit Ethernet switch.

It lets businesses and service providers have flexible networks through long distances of CAT3, CAT5 and CAT6 cable.

The company explains that businesses can use existing voice-grade wiring to access IP-based voice, hosted services, cloud-based unified communications (UC), and provide data networking speeds at 100Mbps.

It is important because many older office buildings, schools, retail stores, hotels, hospitals and distribution facilities rely on CAT3 or voice-grade cabling for legacy phone systems. 

However, voice-grade cable is not designed for traditional Ethernet. That restricts businesses from using new IP voice and data network options.  Businesses often put in new cable to for VoIP and UC. That solution can be costly.

"Our business customers that reside in these older buildings have told us time and time again that re-cabling costs are a significant barrier in their ability to adopt our hosted service offerings. Despite the overall total cost-of-ownership benefits that VoIP can offer them, they back away from the service because the initial investment is just too much," Mark Stappenbeck, senior manager of business development for Windstream (News - Alert)-Allworx, said in a recent statement. "ADTRAN's ActivReach-enabled NetVanta 1535P Gigabit Ethernet switch delivers 100 Mbps over existing cable plant infrastructure, allowing us to offer flawless voice quality without impacting the existing data network. All of our customers can finally take advantage of the complete set of benefits that our hosted VoIP and UC services can offer."

“The NetVanta 1535P with ActivReach is currently the only solution that can realistically provide a path for a Gigabit future while removing the traditional limitations of existing voice-grade wiring," Patrick Price, product manager for ADTRAN's Ethernet Switching product line, added in the statement. "With ActivReach, businesses – regardless of their location, cabling infrastructure or IT budget – will now be able to leverage a cost-effective solution for both voice and desktop connectivity in a way they have not been able to do before."

The NetVanta 1535P has 24 copper ports and 4 fiber ports for uplinks and stacking. Each copper port can be configured for speeds of 10/100 Mbps in ActivReach mode at distances up to 365 meters (1,200 feet) or standard IEEE (News - Alert) 10/100/1000Base-T Ethernet at distances up to 100 meters (328 feet), the company said.