Nokia Announced Domestic Manufacturing of Electronics Equipment for Fiber

The manufacturing of the company’s fiber-optic broadband electronics products will start in 2024.

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WASHINGTON, August 3, 2023 – Nokia is set to announce the U.S.-based manufacturing of key electronic components for fiber-optic broadband networks on Thursday.

The announcement, which is set to be made with Vice President Kamala Harris and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is specifically focused on providing U.S-manufactured electronics products and optical modules for use in the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program.

The Finland-based telecommunications company is partnering with Sanmina Corporation to manufacture products in Sanmina’s manufacturing facility in Kenosha. The announcement makes Nokia among the first telecom equipment manufacturers to announce that core electronic components of its fiber equipment will be made in America.

Requirements under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s BEAD program state that program recipients must source at least 55 percent of their components by cost from the United States, either manufactured, produced, or mined in the country.

This requirement is part of President Joe Biden’s Made in America agenda which seeks to support the country’s manufacturing economy. The regulation will increase the requirement to 75 percent by 2029, according to Biden.

The manufacturing of the company’s fiber-optic broadband electronics products will start in 2024, according to Nokia. Production is expected to bring up to 200 new jobs to Wisconsin’s state. Nokia said it will be able to supply its products and services to critical BEAD projects.

Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark said that the company is “committed to connecting people and communities. However, many Americans still lack adequate connectivity, leaving them at a disadvantage when it comes to accessing work, education and healthcare. Programs like BEAD can change this.”

“By bringing the manufacturing of our fiber-optic broadband access products to the U.S., BEAD participants will be able to work with us to bridge the digital divide. We look forward to bringing more Americans online,” Lundmark continued.

Jure Sola, chairman and CEO of Sanmina, said that the company is “excited to partner with Nokia to support their efforts to build robust and resilient high-tech fiber broadband networks that will connect people and societies. By continuing to invest in domestic manufacturing, Nokia and Sanmina will be able to help create a sustainable future for the industry, one that drives job growth and ensures the fiber products produced embody the quality and excellence associated with American manufacturing.”

The announcement comes a week after Biden’s “Made in America Week” that celebrated supporting American works and domestic businesses. The Biden Administration’s Investing in America initiative is investing billions of dollars into the United States’ domestic manufacturing. Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act and CHIPS and Science Act which invest in America’s electric vehicle and green energy plans and semiconductor manufacturing.

Biden ran his presidential election campaign on his initiative to move companies onshore, defend American supply chains, and create more jobs. According to the White House, the agenda has “already attracted hundreds of billions of dollars in private investment and created nearly 800,000 new manufacturing jobs in everything from semiconductors and electric car batteries to clean energy technology and more.”

Industry experts have called on the NTIA to provide clear guidelines on the implication of Buy America requirements for BEAD projects, claiming that the requirements spread uncertainty surrounding the impact of the funds due to the increased complexity of an already complicated supply chain. The NTIA has already issued waivers for its $1 billion Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure program to exempt certain construction materials from the requirement list. NTIA head Alan Davidson, however, indicated that getting such exceptions for BEAD-funded projects would be very difficult.

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Gigapower CEO Bill Hogg and AT&T President Erin Scarborough headline event.

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‘Our Broadband Breakfast Live Online events take place on Wednesday at 12 Noon ET. Watch the event on Broadband Breakfast, or REGISTER HERE to join the conversation in the webinar.

Wednesday, September 13, 2023 – AT&T and BlackRock’s Gigapower Joint Venture

In December 2022, AT&T and BlackRock, through a fund managed by its Diversified Infrastructure business, jointly invested in the Gigapower joint venture that is expected to build fiber connectivity to an initial 1.5 million customer locations beyond AT&T’s current footprint. Notably, AT&T will rely on a commercial wholesale open access platform, where multiple providers share space and compete for customers over the same fiber infrastructure. Could Gigapower alter the historical reluctance of U.S. telcos toward such networks? How will the deployment impact open access projects throughout the United States? Get the facts from this special Broadband Breakfast Live Online event.

Panelists:

Adam Waltz, Bill Hogg, Erin Scarborough (left to right)

Adam Waltz is a Managing Director in BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Fund focused on investments in digital infrastructure opportunities across fiber networks, data centers, and wireless infrastructure. He serves as a Board Director at Gigapower, BlackRock’s joint venture with AT&T to develop a commercial wholesale open access platform on a state-of-the-art fiber network.

Bill Hogg leads Gigapower, an open access, wholesale fiber broadband company that builds and operates fiber solutions lit for fast connectivity and designed for network resiliency and reliability. Bill retired as President, AT&T Technology Operations, and was responsible for all planning, investment, engineering, construction, delivery, and assurance of AT&T’s wireless and wireline networks. Previously, Bill served as President-Technology Development, responsible for the development of AT&T’s products and services, digital experiences for customers, and systems supporting the operations across AT&T’s networks and services.

Erin Scarborough leads the team responsible for AT&T’s efforts to connect more Americans to greater possibility through fiber and wireless 5G investment initiatives, participating in government funding programs and public private partnerships. She and her team are taking a strategic, state-by-state approach working closely with state and local governments as they assess their broadband access, affordability and adoption needs. She also leads the combined broadband and mobility product management teams and has cross-functional responsibility for product profitability, pricing, customer experience, product design, multi-year roadmaps, development, and value-add services across the product portfolios.

Breakfast Media LLC CEO Drew Clark has led the Broadband Breakfast community since 2008. An early proponent of better broadband, better lives, he initially founded the Broadband Census crowdsourcing campaign for broadband data. As Editor and Publisher, Clark presides over the leading media company advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. Clark also served as head of the Partnership for a Connected Illinois, a state broadband initiative.

WATCH HERE, or on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

As with all Broadband Breakfast Live Online events, the FREE webcasts will take place at 12 Noon ET on Wednesday.

SUBSCRIBE to the Broadband Breakfast YouTube channel. That way, you will be notified when events go live. Watch on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

See a complete list of upcoming and past Broadband Breakfast Live Online events.

Co-ops can provide stability and a meaningful career while capitalizing on local capital.

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ORLANDO, August 22, 2023 – Electric cooperatives are uniquely positioned to attract employees despite labor shortage concerns, said electric cooperative experts on a panel at Fiber Connect Monday.

Randy Everett, chief information officer for First Electric Cooperative Corporation, said that electric co-ops can provide stability to employees and give them a sense of fulfillment in their job.

Bringing fiber to the home in areas that have been historically left behind is an important mission, he said. When people hear the stories of people finally getting connected after years of no internet, they want to be part of that and have a part of that gratification that comes from making a difference in other people’s lives, said Everett.

Everett advised electric co-ops to hire local talent to design and build broadband networks to avoid having to build networks from scratch. He suggested that hiring local talent can help make the project more time and money efficient.

Local talent can design, acquire necessary material and manage the project in a more efficient way, he said. “Go out and find the talent that has been there and has done this work and just give them the tools and get out of the way.”

Robby Theodore, outside fiber plant manager for First Electric Cooperative, agreed. “Thankfully we’ve been able to pull different talent from different areas with experience,” he said.

Industry leaders have reiterated a call for more workforce training and development at Fiber Connect. Experts expressed concerns over the lack of skilled labor to build out internet networks, especially in light of the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment funding that will make its way to states in the upcoming years.

Some experts have touted electric co-ops as the ideal grantee for the BEAD program because they are well suited to build public owned networks that then can either be operated by the co-op or leased to private providers. Experts claim that fiber networks can reduce operating costs for electric co-ops as well as connect residents to the internet.

Networks need to be more resilient, reliable and flexible for ‘unimaginable’ applications.

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ORLANDO, August 22, 2023 – Quantum computing, which can enable advances in technologies including artificial intelligence and virtual reality, is coming in the near future, said a representative from Chattanooga, Tennessee’s smart city provider during a Fiber Connect address Tuesday.

Quantum computing refers to the technology that uses principles of physics to solve complex problems not solvable by computers. According to Jim Ingraham, representative for EPB, the provider of energy and connectivity for smart city in Chattanooga, Tennessee, quantum computing is the “new future.” Technology is evolving, is real and is well-invested, he said, claiming that it behooves the industry to be aware of coming demands on broadband networks because of it.

Networks need to be more resilient, reliable and flexible for coming adoptions, stated Ingraham. Networks have to be clean, affordable and implement advanced computing on a fiber system.

“The rate of innovation and adoption is accelerating, there is no doubt about that,” said Ingraham. “It is happening more rapidly, rapidly, rapidly.” Already, quantum computers are available, and innovators are continuing to improve their processes, he continued.

“Right behind [quantum computers] is coming a quantum network,” said Ingraham. “It will take time. Quantum internet will evolve… we will stop talking about kilobits, megabits, even gigabits. We will start talking about qubits.” Qubits process data not in a linear way, but instantaneously, he explained.

Thus, quantum computing can make unimaginable applications possible for the future, he said. He predicted that virtual reality will evolve to become a 360-degree, holographic-based world in which virtual reality blends seamlessly with reality. “it will not be an equipment based system,” he said, referring to new virtual reality headsets released earlier this year by Apple.

Chattanooga, Tennessee is considered by some as the country’s best connected smart city when it became the first U.S. city to offer fiber internet through EPB’s fiber network. EPB announced in November its partnership with Qubitekk, a provider of quantum optic-based cybersecurity solutions, to launch the nation’s first commercially available quantum network.

Quantum networks, like traditional networks, transmit information between nodes. Instead of sending classical bits, however, quantum networks send quantum bits – or qubits – each of which is comprised of a single photon. Unlike the classical binary bit, which is limited to a “1” or a “0”, a qubit has unlimited values.

“Today we have what we believe to be the country’s first quantum communications network that is commercial,” said Ingraham. “We believe that this can be an engine for innovation in this new quantum world.”

He added that total annual quantum start-up investment hit the highest level of all time in 2022 at $2.4 billion, though it only grew one percent year over year.

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