SpringfieldNewsSun.com

By the time fall rolls around, employees from TurnKey Network Solutions Inc. will have laid almost 20 miles of line to complete the area's fiber-optic infrastructure in and around Springfield.

Installation began Monday at Nextedge Applied Research and Technology Park.

The project will allow expansion of Nextedge and is vital to Springfield's ability to be competitive in the high-tech market, said Melanie Wilt, director of communications at Avetec.

Avetec is funding the $1.8 million project through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Partners in the project include the city of Springfield, Wittenberg University, Clark State Community College, Nextedge and the Turner Foundation.

For Wittenberg, the infrastructure ensures uninterrupted Internet access, said Joe Deck, director of computing services.

"The university can no longer function without Internet access, so this gives us the redundancy we need," he said. The increased bandwidth comes at a lower cost and has enabled the university to move forward with plans for a video conference center.

Library services, including an expanded OhioLink library catalog of academic movies, can be fully supported.

Wilt said the infrastructure will allow businesses to send and receive information worldwide. "It's like the introduction of a new highway," she said.

To prospective businesses, she said, "This will only make us more attractive as a community."