Zhone Technologies, Pulaski-White Rural Telephone partner on FTTx network

Pulaski-White Telephone will integrate Zhone’s MXK multi-service access node (MSAN) into its fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and fiber-to-the-premise (FTTP) network. The Zhone MXK MSAN’s flexibility and ability to provide intelligent Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON) and Active Ethernet (AE) connectivity in facilitating network and service upgrades to FTTH has been demonstrated in similar broadband projects, including a Midwest deployment with Alhambra-Grantfork Telephone in Alhambra, Ill.
With the extreme bandwidth demands being remotely managed by the MXK platform, Pulaski-White Telephone residential customers will benefit from multiple high-definition television (HDTV) channels, high-definition digital video recorder (HD-DVR) content, and video streaming within the home.
“Our 2,000 lines to residents and businesses require increasing bandwidth as user needs exceed our current capacity. Fortunately, the increased density, scale, and performance provided by the Zhone MXK, zNID ONTs and Zhone EZ Touch Provisioning address our network complexity and challenges,” says Mark Dickerson, plant manager, Pulaski-White Telephone. “We initially plan to provide our business customers, including banks, hospitals, and schools, with AE connectivity and consumers with GPON connectivity using the same MXK system without worry about bandwidth constraints or expansive cost requirements. The ability to provide multiple services off the same system was imperative for us to curtail operational costs.”
The MXK’s feature set aligns well with Pulaski-White Telephone’s specific field requirements, enabling Zhone to provide optimum cost efficiency and maximum service differentiation in the operator’s network in combination with the zNID GPON Optical Network Terminals (ONTs) that will be installed at the residence and business sites to support individual subscriber service needs.
“Like some of our other North American deployments, we recognized Pulaski-White Telephone needed a fiber access solution with superior scale; that was our primary goal,” explains Brian Caskey, chief marketing officer for Zhone.
The use of the Zhone Management System (ZMS) in the Pulaski-White Telephone deployment enables seamless network management support for Zhone’s multi-service network solution. As an extension of the ZMS, Zhone EZ Touch Provisioning provides next-generation, carrier-class network management and automated service provisioning, reducing recurring operational expenditures (OPEX) by minimizing truck rolls and the need for field technicians to manually turn on subscriber-specific features at each residence or business, says a spokesperson.