It’s been a momentous week for business Ethernet leader tw telecom (News - Alert), as ground-breaking news of a noteworthy appointment as well as a new strategic partnership comes out of the company today.

For starters, tw telecom’s President and CEO Larissa Herda has been re-assigned to her board member post for the third consecutive year on the Denver Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. In addition, Herda has also been designated as chairwoman of the branch for 2012.

Since joining tw telecom in 1998, when the company was known as Time Warner (News - Alert) Telecom, Inc., Herda has helped the company grow from $25 million in revenue in 1996 to $1.3 billion in 2010, expanding its broadband network footprint from 17 U.S. markets to 75, among other outstanding accolades.

While the Federal Reserve Bank will certainly benefit from another year of contributions from Herda, tw telecom – a leading provider of business Ethernet, converged and VNP solutions for U.S. and global enterprises – has gained yet another customer that it will supply with its unmatched voice, data and Internet services.

California-based healthcare provider Clinica Sierra Vista has pinned tw telecom to develop a seamless, reliable, multi-site network of business Ethernet and converged services to its 46 sites in central and southern California. According to company officials, Clinica Sierra Vista is well-known as one of the largest, non-profit agencies in California, delivering primary healthcare and preventative health education services throughout parts of the state.

Under the terms of the agreement, tw telecom will connect the healthcare firm’s data centers and collocation facilities in Fresno and Bakersfield, Calif. tw telecom’s customized voice, Internet and data converged services will enable Clinica Sierra to optimize its bandwidth allocation and prioritization based on its requirements.

“As a healthcare provider, it is critical that we have a highly reliable, cost-effective communications network in place to ensure that we deliver the level of service our patients expect and require,” said Tony Carbone, chief information officer, Clinica Sierra Vista, in a press release. “tw telecom’s impressive national and regional infrastructure, coupled with its track record of providing exceptional reliability and value, ensures that we will continue to deliver a patient experience second to none.”

With the third highest market share of retail business Ethernet ports in service, tw telecom has successfully connected more commercial buildings to its fiber network than any other communications provider in the space. Thanks to its robust metro fiber networks, and ownership of one of the 10 most interconnected IP backbones globally, tw telecom is capable of supporting mission-critical enterprise applications and delivering high-quality customer experiences and improved business productivity.

“For more than 40 years, Clinica Sierra Vista has provided vital healthcare services to those who need them,” said Joe Rodriguez, vice president and general manager for tw telecom’s Bakersfield market. “As Clinica Sierra Vista transitions into delivering electronic medical records, they needed the consistency between locations that tw telecom delivers. As a single provider in all locations, we deliver efficiencies that help Clinica Sierra Vista become even more effective in delivering extraordinary care to its patients in southern San Joaquin Valley.”

Tammy Wolf is a TMCnet web editor. She covers a wide range of topics, including IP communications and information technology. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Carrie Schmelkin