23/08/2002

New partnership helps advance photonics education

Ottawa, August 23, 2002: Vitesse (Re-skilling) Canada Inc. and Optiwave Corporation have joined forces to form a partnership that will allow for close collaboration on projects that meet the goals of both organizations.

 The cooperation between the two organizations creates a fertile environment for the advancement of the high-technology sector, as Vitesse is involved in providing Photonics education and training, and Optiwave produces and markets software products for Photonics.

 The goals of this partnership are to promote Photonics and Photonics education in the Ottawa region and beyond, using Vitesse’s educational resources along with Optiwave’s software tools.  Education will be enhanced by the availability of world-class training facilities at Optiwave Corporation.

 “Through this partnership Vitesse will be the key delivery mechanism for re-skilling programs in the region and will be able to use the modern facilities of Optiwave. This is a win-win partnership between out two organizations,” says Arvind Chhatbar, president of Vitesse.

According to Velko Tzolov, VP of Sales and Marketing at Optiwave Corporation, “the increasing complexity of optical systems will drive engineers to heavily rely on sophisticated software tools for assistance with design related issues. Therefore, we believe that educating the photonics community with state-of-the-art optical systems and components design software tools is extremely important.” 

 About Vitesse

Vitesse was founded in 1996 through a partnership between the National Research Council, the University of Ottawa, Carleton University and knowledge-sector employees to address skill-gaps in the high-technology sector.  In 2000, Vitesse launched the Photonics Lite Series, the most ambitious photonics training project in Ottawa to date. The Program consists of specialty and introductory courses covering the most important photonic technologies. Close to 200 professionals have gone through the program.

 About Optiwave Corporation

Optiwave Corporation, founded in 1994, has been recognized as a global leader in the development of software for optical communication systems and other materials for the dynamic fiber optics telecommunications industry and other Photonics applications.  It has licensed software to leading companies and educational institutions in over 40 countries.

For further information, contact:

Sonia Tercler
Optiwave Corporation
Tel: (613) 224-4700 ext. 353
sonia.tercler@optiwave.com 

Dr. Anton Minkov
Vitesse Re-skilling Canada Inc.
Tel: (613) 746-3595, ext 225
anton.minkov@vitesse.ca