Can you elaborate on the competitive advantages of Optical Engines based on the POET OI?
Optical Engines based on the POET OI are fabricated, assembled, tested and packaged entirely at wafer-scale. Optical Engines offered by the JV should have a significant sustained (25% to 40%) manufacturing cost advantage over the competition. Wafer-scale assembly also offers the ability to scale production at lower capital cost relative to the other methods of producing optical transceiver modules. The flexibility of the POET OI platform allows rapid design improvements and the ability to extend over multiple generations of products with little or no changes to the basic design, which also saves cost.
As a reminder Tom advised us that they needed to establish the kind of high volume manufacturing capacity that industry requires to meet customer demands. He had hoped to be able to provide some insights into that effort this fall.
I think Tom has under-promised and over-delivered. I wonder what is in store for us in NA production.
This cost advantage is going to put a lot of pressure on companies and they will in my opinion have to be quick in satisfying everyone’s needs or potentially risk becoming a takeout target.