To a company like Alcatel-Lucent, data networking is just one simple layer in the new unified communications universe. But it’s important enough to play a major role in the company’s plan to woo the large enterprises of the world.

The company unveiled a new initiative and product line this week aimed at boosting its presence in the voice and data transmission portion of enterprise communications. Called Corporate Communications Solutions for Large Enterprises, the goal is to establish network transitional elements as organizations embrace the changes brought on by globalization, virtualization and centralization.

A key component of the plan is the new OmniSwitch 9000E, which uses techniques like multivirtual routing and forwarding to reduce power consumption to improve the scalability factor for high-capacity environments. The device brings switching capabilities into the data center and allows for the partitioning of both users and applications across networks.

With multivirtual routing, the device is able to act as several routers at once, reducing overall energy consumption and creating multiple virtual networks for use by select users or project groups. The unit is available in 10- and 18-slot configurations.

The system is driven by the OmniPCX Enterprise 9.0 platform, a centralized, scalable communications architecture that can serve up to 100,000 users.