PITTSBURGH, Oct. 26 -- Marconi, provider of hardware and software for communication and information industries, has secured a major order from China and formed alliances aimed at boosting sales of the company's optical technology throughout China.China Telecom in Beijing is the most recent company to take part in a series of orders for Marconi's synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) equipment that are worth close to $14 million. The orders are being used for an extensive upgrade of fixed and mobile phone networks in and around Beijing, which will include the most up-to-date high-speed optical networking capabilities.Marconi has also won orders for its SDH products worth at least $50 million over the next 15 months from the Datang Telecom Technology Co., one of China's top four manufacturers and distributors of telecom equipment. Marconi has also taken a position as senior partner in a joint venture that was set up in 1992 by Finnish manufacturer Nokia to form a new enterprise, Guilin Marconi Telecoms (GMT), designed to cater to the telecom market in China. The company, which has 108 employees and sales of close to $43 million per year, is run in conjunction with the Chinese Ministry of Information Industries.