DUMBO

Firm helps make ‘Brooklyn Tech Triangle’ a reality

July 6, 2013 By Raanan Geberer Brooklyn Daily Eagle
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Awhile back, this newspaper reported on the “Brooklyn Tech Triangle” initiative to develop the area between Downtown Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Navy Yard and DUMBO to make it the largest cluster of high-tech activity outside Manhattan.

Part of the plan involves reactivating key buildings such as the Empire Stores, office buildings currently owned by the Watchtower, unusual government offices near Cadman Plaza and long-unused space above stores in the Fulton Mall.

To reactivate these buildings and others, however, they must be brought up to current high-tech standards. One of the companies working with the Brooklyn Tech Triangle Coalition to achieve this is the Control Group, a Manhattan-based technology design firm.

Among the group’s objectives are to dramatically expand public WiFi throughout the district, to increase fiber availability in tech buildings by help to get high-speed broadband fiber from the curb to the desktop (the “last mile”), to meet with representatives of creative digital enterprises, and to give startups the change to test their products locally.

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“Everyone is probably familiar with what WiFi is,” said a spokesperson for the company, “but fiber refers to fiberoptic communication – the methods of transmitting information from one place to another by sending pulses of light through an optical fiber. This type of wiring is what is used to provide non-wireless internet access at the fastest possible speeds.”

The main corridors in MetroTech, DUMBO and the Brooklyn Navy Yard “all have fiber below the street,” said the spokesperson. “The infrastructure is in place for buildings to be wired with fiber.”

Control Group has recommended a series of programs that could encourage investment to bring that fiber into the buildings. “These programs will help the proliferation of modern connections and bandwidth to establish Brooklyn Tech Triangle’s reputation as not only well-connected,  but also advance the area toward the goal of being “the most connected place to do business in the city,”  said the spokesperson.

“Our recommendations are part of a broader strategic plan for the Brooklyn Tech Triangle that was released just last week, and the stakeholders will now work on establishing the means for full implementation.  But we know from our work with other clients how important it is to be able to establish a technology infrastructure that is stable and fast, providing the bandwidth possible to communicate quickly, collaborate effectively, and share assets reliably,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Control Group, located at 233 Broadway, Manhattan, has worked on a wide variety of projects, including one to “Reinvent NYC Payphones.”  


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