Ameritech Inc, Chicago is speeding digitisation of its network with a $1,050m five-year programme: it will put in 276 digital exchanges and upgrade others to take digital lines to 80% of the 16.4m total:AT&T Co’s Network Systems, the original resident supplier, gets a share of the business, but the big winners are Northern Telecom Ltd and the Siemens Stromberg-Carlson arm of GEC Plessey Telecommunications Ltd – the Canadian gets orders to upgrade more than 4m lines by installing digital exchanges, making it the lead current supplier.
