Calix has introduced a new GPON card that doubles the port density of its Ethernet platform.

The company’s GPON-8 card works with its E7-2 modular Ethernet Service Access Platform (ESAP), enabling a doubling on the platform to 16 GPON ports, 8 gigabit Ethernet (GE) ports, and multiple 10GE uplink ports in each 1 rack unit (1RU) chassis.

With the new card, communications service providers can leverage pluggable optical interface modules (OIMs) on each card slot to incrementally grow their fiber access deployments to deliver broadband service speeds of up to 1 Gbps to over 1,000 subscribers with each modular E7-2 deployed.

Calix continues to play off the E7-2’s modular architecture, designed to enable service providers to make capital investments only when they grow.

While new modules such as the GPON-8 card are intended to provide new capex efficiencies, new Calix software tools like Smart Activate are intended to provide opex savings through an intuitive, easy-to-use interface for deployment of Calix optical network terminals (ONTs) and residential services gateways (RSGs).

With Smart Activate, Calix ONTs and RSGs can be identified, provisioned, and with one touch activated from common mobile devices like tablets and smart phones.

In addition, with the recent announcement of Home Gateway upgrades to 700GE ONTs and the availability of 836GE RSGs for Calix E7 GPON customers, Calix service provider customers can efficiently deploy RSGs at every fiber-fed premises, providing new service opportunities for in-home network management.

“Calix continues to provide us with new innovations that not only drive costs out of our existing fiber access deployments, but also enable new service revenue opportunities across our fiber access subscriber base,” said Gary Johnson, CEO of Paul Bunyan Communications. “The GPON-8 card in the E7-2 form factor gives us the right combination of high capacity, density, and flexibility to cost effectively address residential and business subscriber growth in our network, as well as the ability to aggregate services from copper-fed deployments we have at MDUs, mobile home parks, and even campgrounds. For us, it’s all about constantly improving to provide our subscribers with the best possible broadband service experience, and Calix continually provides us with powerful new tools to get us there effectively and efficiently.”