Federal BEAD Billions to Fuel Demand for Westell Broadband Equipment
Public records and job postings show Westell’s recent inflection in its highest-margin segment is likely not a one-off. It coincides with multi-year infrastructure upgrades to Verizon’s 5G network, ahead of state-level broadband deployments and funding disbursements under the $42.45 billion federal BEAD program.
Disclaimer: I am long $WSTL at the time of publication and may change my position at any time. Paid subscribers received early access to this report. See full disclosures below.
For more than two decades, however, Westell did nothing but destroy shareholder value.
That changed in September 2019, when it appointed Tim Duitsman as CEO.1 Within two months, he approved a restructuring plan, reducing headcount and narrowing the product focus around remote monitoring.2 Since then, the company has posted positive net income in each of the past four years, while holding almost two-thirds of its market cap in cash.
The real inflection came in early 2025, as demand for 5G and rural broadband equipment finally picked up, with Westell disclosing in its March 2025 annual report “a significant backlog in excess of $25 million, primarily in the [Intelligent Site Management (ISM) segment], that is expected to ship over the next two to three quarters.”3
However, one of Duitsman’s cost-cutting measures was a voluntary Nasdaq delisting.
After deregistering with the SEC in 2020, the company went “dark,” operating in the shadow of the OTC market.4 It has since adopted restrictive investor relations policies, with no earnings calls and minimal engagement with investors. As a result, market participants have been unable to determine whether the backlog has been depleted or if new contracts are replenishing it.
The limited investor write-ups on Westell all point to the same uncertainty.
“What’s driving the growth in the segment? I don’t have a great answer… there are very few disclosures put out by management,” Halvio Capital wrote in February 2026, adding that until there is better clarity on “1) why the business has inflected and 2) if that growth is sustainable or not, it’s a smaller position for now.”5
Deep Sail Capital, in a November 2025 note, said “we don’t know if the last two quarters are one-offs or if they will continue going forward. [...] Westell is an extremely hard company to underwrite due to [its] lack of SEC filings and reluctance to speak to investors.”6
“Now, the big question is how much of this demand is cyclical and how much of it is structural. I’ve spent time digging into this and, honestly, couldn’t come up with a good answer,” The Mikro Kap said in August 2025. “Even [an investor] who recently spoke with the CEO didn’t come away with much more clarity,” he concluded.7
CONTRACTS HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT
The pandemic triggered a wave of state-level broadband investment. The largest initiative at the time was Senate Bill 156 in California, signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom in July 2021. The legislation allocated $6 billion to the state’s multi-year Broadband for All program, including $3.25 billion for the Middle-Mile Broadband Initiative (MMBI). The 2022-23 state budget added a further $550 million.8
The California Department of Technology (CDT) divided the Middle-Mile Broadband Network (MMBN) into five regions, with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) executing a Job Order Contracting (JOC) master agreement for each. Together, the five regions cover 8,185.1 miles of network infrastructure, currently in pre-construction and installation statuses.9
Procurement is now underway, with Westell among the hardware vendors. On February 5, 2026, CDT issued an RFQ for IT equipment under the MMBI, “requesting 128 Westell RMX-4300, and associated gear, to support 128 Huts (MMBN huts, excluding D395) and one (1) year of Premium Westell 24x7 service and support.” Bids were due by February 18, 2026.10
The solicitation requires all 128 Westell RMX-4300 units to be delivered to HP Communications’ headquarters in Corona, CA, with no partial shipments accepted. As Caltrans records show, HP Communications is the prime contractor for both Regions 3 and 4 of the MMBN.11
In September 2024, American Dark Fiber (ADF) announced a joint-build partnership with CDT covering more than 380 miles. In April 2025, it expanded the partnership with an additional 496.96 miles, following a prior award of 400.09 miles in August 2024.12 13 The ADF buildout includes 128 total network huts.14
The CDT’s procurement of 128 Westell RMX-4300 units points to a one-to-one match with the 128 network huts under construction by ADF. HP Communications has also worked with ADF on several fiber projects, including the South Bay Fiber Network (SBFN) in Los Angeles County.15
In short, the contract covers just 897.05 miles of an 8,185.1-mile network in two out of five regions and only the middle-mile portion of the Broadband for All initiative. As the state moves beyond pre-construction and installation on the remaining miles, additional procurement phases are likely, including for Westell RMX-4300 units.
FROM STATE BUILDOUT TO FEDERAL SCALE
While the $6 billion Broadband for All initiative was the largest state-level program at the time of its passage, the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), passed later in 2021, included a $65 billion investment in broadband infrastructure throughout the United States.16 The largest program funded by the IIJA is the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant.17
In June 2023, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced allocation amounts for all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and five territories.18 For example, California has been allocated about $1.86 billion under BEAD, based on its share of unserved locations nationwide.19 Governor Newsom designated the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to receive and administer California’s allotted funds under BEAD.20
In February 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce issued a waiver of certain Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements for the BEAD program to prevent foreign manufacturers from monopolizing federally funded subsidies. As a result, prime contractors using BEAD funds must source infrastructure hardware that meets domestic manufacturing standards.21
To enforce compliance, the NTIA created a self-certification framework for manufacturers, with the Department of Commerce publishing a regularly updated list of approved vendors.22 Under this framework, subject to fine or imprisonment, Westell has certified its products as BABA-compliant, meeting the domestic manufacturing requirements for BEAD-funded projects.23
BEAD funding has just started to be disbursed, with Louisiana becoming the first state to distribute BEAD infrastructure dollars to internet service providers as part of the program’s initial 10% payment in February 2026.24 With the CPUC overseeing both the last-mile segment of the Broadband for All initiative and BEAD funding, the setup mirrors the MMBI, but at a federally funded scale.25
Beyond direct BEAD-related awards in California, Westell may have indirect exposure to other states through its partnership with Tilson, the only partnership disclosed since Duitsman’s appointment.26 Under the agreement, Westell supplies remote monitoring hardware, while Tilson integrates those systems into its Network Operations Center (NOC).27
Tilson has already participated in BEAD-related planning initiatives in multiple states. In West Virginia, which has been allocated $1.2 billion under the program, Tilson collaborated with the state’s broadband office in developing and administering its Five-Year Action Plan, where it is identified as a contracted partner for broadband consulting services.28
In Michigan, Guidehouse is the prime contractor under Contract 220000000125, providing consulting services to the state. Within the BEAD statement of work, Tilson is identified as a subcontractor, allocated approximately 19% of the total contract value to provide compliance support for Michigan’s BEAD program. The contract further describes Tilson as the prime’s “preferred partner,” noting the two “have supported nearly 20 states/territories in BEAD planning and implementation.”29
As BEAD funding is disbursed in more states, Westell’s solutions could be integrated with Tilson’s at later network deployment stages. Given Tilson’s role in BEAD planning and implementation and Westell’s integration into its network operations and infrastructure monitoring solutions, the two may overlap on certain projects, even if Westell is commercially embedded rather than publicly disclosed.
WHAT ARE THEY HIRING FOR?
Apart from public-sector broadband initiatives, hiring data shows a parallel private-sector upgrade cycle, with Westell systems embedded in the expansion of major commercial 5G networks. One such multi-state infrastructure project is underway in the American Midwest along the Indiana-Michigan-Ohio corridor.
TEKsystems, an IT staffing firm, is hiring a cell site technician in Indianapolis, Indiana “to support a major wireless network across Williams County.” The role includes integrating and providing alarming support for Westell systems, coordinating with vendors, primarily Ericsson, and managing projects ranging from new builds to complex system migrations.30
Similar roles in Fort Wayne are explicitly tied to Verizon’s wireless network,31 including a position titled “Verizon Cell Site Commission and Integration Technician.”32 These roles align with Verizon’s $8.3 billion multi-year agreement with Ericsson signed in 2021 to accelerate its nationwide 5G deployment.33
Verizon also has a documented history with Westell. According to a former sales director who managed the account on the West Coast, orders were typically “north of $2 million.”34
Other job listings point directly to Westell equipment in the field. One company was recently hiring for a field manager in Allen, Texas to “oversee field installations of Westell site monitors” and integrate them with Verizon’s monitoring platforms,35 while another is looking for a field technician in Lexington, Kentucky with experience in Ericsson integration, Nokia routers, and Westell alarming.36
The Verizon 5G network upgrades don’t stop there. In August 2025, a separate recruiter was hiring experienced field technicians in Tennessee and North Carolina “to support Alarm Monitoring Unit (AMU – SiteBoss/Westell) installation and migration at Verizon macro cell sites.”37
In a recent expert call, a telecom professional familiar with tower deployments said remote monitoring systems are still being rolled out. “Not all sites have it… they’re doing as much as possible,” the person said, adding that “a few places may not have it… at that point, they’re going to have Westell to deploy also in that environment.”
Against this backdrop, Westell itself is also hiring. The company is looking for a demand manager to “monitor incoming sales orders daily” and ensure “customer demand is met efficiently,” pointing to sustained order flow from both public and private broadband deployments.38
If demand was one-off, what are they hiring for?
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Westell Technologies, Inc. Westell Technologies Appoints Timothy Duitsman as President and CEO. Aug 22, 2019. Link.
Westell Technologies, Inc. Westell Stockholders Approve Reverse and Forward Splits. Sep 29, 2020. Link.
American Dark Fiber. CDT Selects ADF for Over 380 Miles of Middle Mile Network. Sep 10, 2024. Link.
American Dark Fiber. CDT Awards ADF an Additional Nearly 500 Miles of Middle Mile Network. Apr 28, 2025. Link.
National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program. Accessed Mar 20, 2026. Link.
National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Biden-Harris Administration Announces State Allocations for $42.45 Billion High-Speed Internet Grant Program as Part of Investing in America Agenda. Jun 26, 2023. Link.
California Public Utilities Commission. California Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Subgrantee Selection Process. Accessed Mar 20, 2026. Link.
California Public Utilities Commission. State of California Five-Year Action Plan Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. Aug 28, 2023. Link.
U.S. Department of Commerce. Build America Buy America Self-Certification List for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program. Nov 17, 2025. Link.
Westell Technologies, Inc. Westell Announces BABA Self-Certified Line of Enclosures for Use in BEAD. Oct 25, 2024. Link.
ConnectLA. Louisiana first to distribute BEAD infrastructure dollars, advancing statewide broadband buildout. Feb 16, 2026. Link.
California Department of Technology. Middle-Mile Broadband Initiative Annual Legislative Report. Mar 2025. Link.
Westell Technologies, Inc. Westell and Tilson Network Operations Center (NOC) Partner to Deliver Enhanced 24/7 Intelligent Site Management. Apr 18, 2023. Link.