 Customer
Spotlight:
OpNext
chooses Polatis switch to help increase throughput, maintain
high quality
The
Polatis Test & Instrumentation line of optical switch
products continue to demonstrate the value of automated
optical testing in high volume, quality-critical manufacturing
environments. OpNext, a market leader in active optical
components for the telecommunications, data communications,
industrial and informational industries, needed to increase
its manufacturing capabilities, to meet sharply increased
customer demand for its products, and shrinking lead time
requirements. Working through its partner JDSU, Polatis
met the challenge in this high sensitivity test environment.
The Polatis switch was part of an optical signal management
solution delivered by JDSU.
Traditionally
known for its high standards of quality, OpNext turned to
JDSU and Polatis for a solution in a key series of performance
tests for its XFP, XENPAK/X2 and 10G 300-pin MSA-compliant
modules.
In
the days when optical switches were not used for connecting
units to our Testers, – which include jitter, mask
and BER (bit error rate) measurements – these tests
were conducted manually and required each device to be connected
and monitored by an operator. This involved long cycle times,
as each test step required manually cleaning and connecting
test leads, verifying the test setup, and instrument re-calibration
for each test. Additionally, as there were no capabilities
to share equipment, each station required dedicated test
instruments, which had detrimental impacts to capital expenditures
and test equipment utilization.
OpNext
chose the Polatis 16 X 16 OST as a solution to their automated
test requirements. The Polatis OST is a fully transparent
physical layer connection device, and can be used for automated
test for any OpNext active optical products, regardless
of line rate or launch power. As an instrument-grade tool,
the physical impairments are minimal. Extremely high quality
optics (low loss, high repeatability, high return loss)
and switching capabilities ensure the highest in test quality
confidence, with minimal manual intervention, eliminating
the potential for human error. The strictly non-blocking
nature of the MxN switch fabric allows multiple, simultaneous
connections, enabling equipment sharing of costly test gear,
maximizing utilization, capital investment, and manufacturing
throughput.
“The
Polatis switch optimized our capital investment in test
equipment by enabling us to maximize utilization. We were
also able to realize our stringent measurement objectives
because the Polatis NxN switch allowed us to eliminate multiple
tandem switches thereby reducing insertion loss.”,
said Yasunori Iwafuji, Senior Director for Testing Technology
at OpNext. “We needed to increase our throughput, and
the only way to keep up with demand was through more automated
testing. Polatis enabled us to improve our productivity,
while maintaining the extraordinary focus on quality that
is our company standard.”
About
OpNext Inc.: A global leader in high-performance active
optical components, OpNext offers the industry’s most
comprehensive optical components and devices. Formed out
of Hitachi, OpNext brings more than 30 years of experience
to the design, development, and manufacture of high-performance
components, opto-devices, and subsystems that power today’s
access communications, backbone, metro, information, and
industrial markets. For more information, please visit www.OpNext.com.
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