Nortel Networks will inject AU$100 million over 18 months into the Sydney-based optical components company, Photonic Technologies, which it acquired in May -- bumping employee numbers in Photonic from 100 to 640 in the process.
The move is part of a US$1.9 billion investment to further Nortel's global optical networking plans.
"The total number of [Nortel] employees in Australia today is 1,200 -- basically we're increasing employees here by 50 percent," Nortel president Reg Bird told ZDNet Australia.
The newly created positions -- in areas such as engineering, manufacturing and research & development -- will take a couple of months to fill, according to Bird.
"We have been increasing employee numbers in Photonic since we bought it," Bird confirmed. "We're hiring people as fast as possible."
The cash injection will also further plans to purchase a 160,000 sq foot local manufacturing facility that will enable Photonic to at least double or even triple its manufacturing capabilities.
Customer demand for higher capacity networks forced Nortel to push into optical Internet production -- which uses light to carry increased voice and data -- and to acquire Photonic Technologies.
The acquisition was an arrangement that suited both organisations, according to Bird. "Photonic had the unique technology needed in Nortel's networks," Bird said, "but didn't have the cash to build the technology as fast as we needed it."
Photonics continues to run as a separate entity.
