Huawei has been involved in more than 170 commercial network functions virtualization (NFV) projects, according to the company. From its experience, it's learned that large multi-vendor NFV systems integrations are inhibited due to a lack of industry standard benchmarks.

To help service providers achieve commercial viability of multi-vendor NFV integrations, Huawei created a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) to guide the process. The Chinese vendor has constructed a three-dimensional evaluation system to assess the implementation feasibility of a multi-vendor NFV system. The NFV assessment framework includes all major NFV components.

A sample of some of the KPIs in the evaluation system include VNF manager capabilities, network readiness for service integration, CPU performance, interface reliability, and data reliability.

The KPIs provide measurable values that demonstrate the strengths of a particular multi-vendor combination, and the framework helps service providers evaluate the overall technical feasibility of the NFV combination.

The assessment system also propels service providers to consider a more detailed view of a proposed multi-vendor NFV integration to evaluate the potential gains and losses.

According to a Huawei white paper entitled “3-Dimensional KPI Assessments for High Efficient NFV Multi-Vendor Integration,” the company is positioning itself to become a leading NFV systems integrator in the telecommunications carrier marketplace.