Caribbean communications service provider Lime has asked Calix to help it build a 13-nation mobile backhaul expansion project that will be based on a network that will include both GPON and gigabit Ethernet technologies.
Lime, part of Cable & Wireless Communications, has been a Calix customer since 2005.
The provider has selected the EXA-powered Calix E7-2 Ethernet Service Access Platform (ESAP) for a fiber forward initiative to upgrade its mobile backhaul across its footprint in 12 of its Caribbean markets.
Industry-standard Ethernet operations, administration and maintenance (OAM) technology is being used across these networks for remote management and service quality assurance. This initiative also provides the opportunity for future expansion of other advanced broadband services from these locations, beyond service to cell sites to nearby businesses and homes as well, Calix said.
“Mobile traffic growth is skyrocketing across the Caribbean, and we needed a scalable solution that we could rapidly deploy in our network to handle a wide variety of interfaces across ANSI and ETSI standards,” said Patrick Bradd, chief technology officer at Lime. “Calix mobile backhaul solutions have allowed us to get to market quickly and given us exceptional flexibility, with Ethernet, T1 and E1 termination options at the cell sites and Ethernet OAM for remote management. It also provides the capacity we will need to rapidly deliver 4G mobile data solutions to our customers. As we look forward, we also see this mobile backhaul expansion initiative as very strategic, providing us with a scalable and economic solution for expanding fiber access services well beyond cell sites in the future with minimal investment.”