Fujitsu has unveiled the Fujitsu 1FINITY™ platform, a new category of network equipment spanning access, packet optical, and more. The innovative platform, which will be available globally, will enable service providers to decrease time to revenue, streamline services evolution, and take advantage of innovation velocity. In a strategic departure from physically aggregated platforms, the 1FINITY product family incorporates Fujitsu’s first-ever disaggregated architecture and design.

The 1FINITY platform encompasses a revolutionary approach to networking that enables open development, optimizes functionality, and increases operating efficiencies. Leveraging functional disaggregation, the initial platform release comprises four distinct product families providing transport, lambda, switch, and access functionality. Each product will be an independent system on a blade that is capable of being a full network element. The self-contained, modular blades can stand alone to deliver specific functionality or be combined with others for a broader network solution. The software framework logically reaggregates modular functions and provides a consolidated northbound interface, supporting communication with a user’s operations support system (OSS) and business support system (BSS).

The small, dense form factor of the 1FINITY blades enables fast time-to-market, low initial investment, and efficient scaling, resulting in a pay-as-you grow approach for the specific functionality users require. The blade-centric architecture allows full utilization of rack space with blades as compact as one rack unit (1RU), and it eliminates rack partitioning due to chassis boundaries. Separating the blades from a shelf provides evergreen technology, allowing independent blade improvement and replacement as functionality advances. Support of open pluggable optics simplifies procurement for users, and support of open APIs and open standard protocols permits easy integration with a user’s chosen OSS.

“The concept of disaggregation has been commonplace in the server world for years, but functional disaggregation in the optical networking world is a radical change,” said Ron Kline, principal analyst, Ovum. “By evolving its portfolio to a more open ecosystem of components that will deliver customized offerings, Fujitsu is fostering a collaborative development approach to lead the industry down a path to open, agile solutions. The 1FINITY platform, combined with an SDN controller and orchestration system from Fujitsu or another vendor, provides a disruptive answer to network operators seeking competitive advantages.”

Interoperability and backward compatibility between the 1FINITY and FLASHWAVE® platforms can protect investment and smooth transitions for users with existing FLASHWAVE network equipment.

More than an architecture, the 1FINITY platform marks Fujitsu’s entry into the data center interconnect market. The new 1FINITY T100 blade is designed specifically for metro data center interconnect (mDCI) applications, creating a remarkably simple, powerful, point-to-point transport solution. The open, modular blade delivers unprecedented capacity (1.6 Tbps bidirectional transport) as well as power and space efficiencies. Other key features include SDN-enabled Linux software, support for the latest optical technologies, and compliance with DWDM transmission standards. Customer trials of the 1FINITY T100 blade are in progress, and general availability is scheduled for December 2015.

“DCI is the fastest-growing application for optical networking equipment,” said Rod Naphan, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Fujitsu Network Communications. “Fujitsu’s response to this market demand is a purpose-built product with cost, space, and power attributes that will enable hyperscale data center operators to reduce their footprints and power requirements, efficiently scale their metro clouds, and create new revenue opportunities.”

Fujitsu will expand the 1FINITY portfolio beyond the mDCI solution with blades for wavelength services, extended-reach transport, high-density packet switching, innovative access, and multilayer interoperation with the FLASHWAVE 9500 platform.