Openreach has installed 500,000 Zyxel ONT to reduce plastic waste

The Zyxel ONT constructed with plastic that is 95% recycled plastic has been installed in over 500,000 places across the UK and is a key part of Openreach reducing its environmental footprint.

Sustainable business practices may not always be the flavour of the month but by using only 5% virgin plastic in the casing of its ONT Zyxel is delivering hardware for the Openreach full fibre rollout that is reducing the amount of waste generated by the rollout. Other factors include reducing or eliminating plastic in packaging.

The Zyxel ONT was specifically constructed for Openreach to support their GPON rollout where the maximum speed possible is currently 1.8 Gbps from the technical limit of GPON which is 2.5 Gbps download shared between addresses on that fibre split.

“We’ve already passed more than 22 million homes and businesses to our broadband network, and more people across the UK are choosing Full Fibre as they rely on fast, reliable connectivity more than ever.”

As we continue connecting communities to our network, it’s essential we do so in a way that reduces our environmental impact as well as delivering world‑class technology.  A great example of this is moving to 2.5G Ethernet by default, avoiding future truck rolls as customers seamlessly move to higher speeds.”

Trevor Linney, Network Technology Director, Openreach

“With Zyxel, we have a partner that shares our focus on reducing the environmental impact of our build – from using recycled materials in the equipment to cutting plastic in packaging – while still supporting secure deployment at scale.”

Abby Chicken, Head of Sustainability, Openreach

“As Openreach continues to expand its fibre network across the UK, speed, reliability, security and sustainability are all important factors.”

We’ve engineered our ONT portfolio to meet these exact standards, enabling Openreach to rapidly scale its multi-gigabit services and continue connecting millions of homes and businesses with confidence.”

We are pleased to support Openreach’s ‘Let’s reach zero’ strategy. Through close collaboration, we have delivered a customised ONT design that significantly reduces the amount of plastic required in its manufacturing process.”

James Harris, Head of EMEA, Zyxel Communications

The pellets of recycled plastic are from the polycarbonate family and generally is made from cases from old laptops, tablets and phones, face shields, headlights and interior trims used in the car industry. The small amount of virgin plastic is used to ensure that the strength of the new casings is not compromised.