SCOPE Alliance

Today’s hardware standards for telecommunications, which include Advanced Telecommunications Computing Architecture (AdvancedTCA® / ATCA®), AdvancedMC™ (AMC or Advanced Mezzanine Cards) and Micro Telecommunications Computing Architecture (MicroTCA™ or μTCA™) are all developed by the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group (PICMG®), a consortium of companies that collaboratively develop open specifications for high performance telecommunications and industrial computing hardware applications.

PICMG’s ATCA specifications are used within next-generation bladed telecommunications equipment and incorporate the latest trends in high speed interconnect technologies, next generation processors, and improvements in reliability, manageability and serviceability. This results in blades (boards) and chassis (shelves) being built which are optimized for communications. PICMG MicroTCA products are small form factor shelves populated with AdvancedMC modules. These all follow specifications of PICMG hardware and are adopted by major telecom companies as part of their Carrier Grade Base Platforms (CGBPs) because they increase network capacity, have higher power allowance, generate more advanced power distribution while lowering the total cost of ownership.

In order to better define PICMG’s standards for the telecommunications industry, as well as actively support the businesses that design the components that contribute to carrier grade base platforms, the SCOPE Alliance was formed in 2006. Over the years, the SCOPE Alliance has worked diligently to define applicable profiles (subsets) of existing CGBPs standards and specifications by revealing the gaps in these specifications which are applicable for the telecom industry and Network Equipment Providers (NEPs).

The organization publishes documents that specifically define the key content and characteristics of those components needed by the telecom industry, including PICMG standards. To date, a large part of SCOPE’s activities have been centered around defining profiles and gaps for PICMG 3.0 - AdvancedTCA, AdvancedMC as well as MicroTCA.

One SCOPE member, Emerson Network Power, specifically employs these standards to ensure its solutions meet industry requirements. Emerson delivers reliable power, connectivity and embedded computing solutions to support network infrastructures for OEMs around the world. Emerson’s Network Power business acquired Motorola’s Embedded Computing Communications division in January 2008, to strengthen its position in the embedded market. Since the launch of the SCOPE Alliance, Emerson has also been heavily involved in the organization, assisting with the development of profiles based on Advanced TCA and MicroTCA specifications. Robert Pettigrew, Director ATCA Marketing for the Embedded Computing business of Emerson Network Power, feels strongly about the importance of his company’s participation in SCOPE and the benefits derived from the work it is doing. “As advocates of SCOPE, and with multiple versions of our products, we have now developed several solutions that are compliant with SCOPE’s recommendations. We believe this aids us in providing a product that meets the requirements of Network Equipment Providers and ensures a better Carrier Grade Base Platform.”

Pettigrew continued, "As an advocate of the SCOPE profiles and an active participant in their development, Emerson Network Power has evolved its successive generations of AdvancedTCA and MicroTCA products to align with the concept of Carrier Grade Base Platforms. This enables extensive re-use across multiple customers further streamlining costs and accelerating time to market".

One of the issues with ATCA, AMC and MicroTCA standards has always been the flexibility built into them, meaning that they can be incompatible across the telecommunications industry. By defining profiles and gaps in these standards and making recommendations relating to them, SCOPE enables companies like Emerson Network Power to map these recommendations to their products and helps them meet the specific needs of NEPs and OEMs alike. This allows Emerson Network Power to create products that are interoperable and compliant with other solutions in the market. In this way the customer has the opportunity to purchase from multiple sources and be reassured that the products they are sourcing are compatible. This not only stimulates the telecom ecosystem at large, but provides a greater choice of solutions that meet customer requirements. A healthy ecosystem benefits everyone.