This content was published in August 2026 in Rick Telecom's "Business Network".

Ehime CATV has upgraded the L2 switches used for LAN connections from common areas to individual units in order to provide its FTTH service "Hikari e-net" for apartment buildings.
The Edgecore Networks "ECS series" met all four criteria: price, size, number of ports, and features.
Mr. Horiuchi of the company, who was in charge of the selection, highly praised it, saying, "It's easy to use, and the size and functionality are just right."

"Of all the L2 switches I've used, this is the most compact and easy to use. The 10-port configuration is also just the right size for apartment buildings. Honestly, I can't think of any downsides."
Ehime CATV, which provides the FTTH service "Hikari e-net" for apartment buildings, has adopted Edgecore Networks' "ECS series" L2 switches installed in the common areas. Takayuki Horiuchi of the Technical Department, who was in charge of product selection and implementation, commented on the user experience. Ehime CATV provides the internet connection service "Hikari e-net" and fixed telephone services for detached houses and apartment buildings. In apartment buildings, the configuration involves distributing the service to each room via LAN from an L2 switch placed in the common area. The size of the apartment buildings they serve ranges from small properties with about 4 units to properties with dozens of units. In some cases, multiple switches are cascaded together for operation.

Previously, the shared L2 switches used two models from a certain manufacturer, an 8-port and a 16-port model, depending on the application. However, with the end-of-life (EOL) of that product, selecting a successor model became an urgent matter. Mr. Horiuchi recalls that he learned about the ECS series during the search for a successor model, and that contacting Macnica the distributor, was the starting point for its adoption. The following four points were important to Mr. Horiuchi when selecting a successor model.

Left: Kajigaya from our company. Center: Takayuki Horiuchi from Ehime CATV Co., Ltd. Right: Aoki from our company.

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