However, as optical link budgets are limited, insertion loss and splitter losses must be carefully managed, limiting the number of times an optical signal can be split, which in turn limits the number of endpoints that can be fed from a single fiber.

Since the cost of construction is significantly higher than that of a fiber strand and the number of customers of a particular fiber route is not often predictable, companies typically overprovision the number of fibers.

However, a fiber network deployed following the MV grid has a big advantage: A fiber cable following a MV feeder will never pass more homes than the electric feeder was designed to serve. This maximum number of homes is determined by the size of the power-line conductor and the transformer feeding it.

This is typically a few thousand homes per feeder, but in developing countries it can get as high as 15, homes per feeder. Through the use of suitably selected optical components, a wholesale lit service could be offered to serve all of these homes and businesses from a strand fiber cable.

These 24 strands are a beneficial strand count, as they enable the use of a single loose tube in place of the four or more typically used in outdoor fiber cables, shrinking the core of the fiber cable. Beyond all the usual mechanical and environmental stresses an outdoor fiber optic cable must survive, using the MV power line as a support adds a number of additional challenges.

The first is the voltage stress. MV conductors can have a voltage as high as 35kV which can cause degradation phenomena such as tracking, partial discharge, and dry band arcing. The power line can also see elevated temperatures far above the melting point of typical fiber-optic jackets, and the stretching of the power line due to thermal changes and wind-induced aeolian vibration can induce strain on the fibers.

To solve these challenges, we brought in veteran cable designer Wayne Kachmar. Developed with a number of partner companies and academic advisors, the resulting design uses G.

Even with a 4 mm OD cable, we still had problems, caused by the cable volume and counterweight. A traditional helical wrap solution uses a standard spool, which turns to pay off the cable as it is orbited around the conductor.

With a standard spool sitting offset from the conductor, the available clearance around the conductor would limit the maximum flange diameter and spool height. As a result, even with the reduced fiber diameter, a standard spool would be unable to carry the required amount of fiber.

Furthermore, the offset spool center of gravity would require a counterweight, which in turn would restrict the weight budget of the wrapping machine. Solving this problem took dozens of extremely varied approaches over a number of years ranging from spools with driven surfaces, curved, and even multi-axis mandrels.

In the end, our solution was an upgrade of a technique first developed for military applications, which requires no spool at all. Instead, we created a spool-free cable coil geometry that meets all the clearance requirements around the conductor to allow passing obstacles, all while maintaining a center of mass aligned within 2 mm of the center of the power line, removing the need for both the weight of the spool and the counterweight.

This brings us to the last big challenge, which is the wrapping machine itself. As mentioned earlier, MV conductors are most commonly deployed in a bare overhead configuration that relies on clearance around the uninsulated conductors to prevent arcing or fires.

With thousands of electric utilities around the globe and over a hundred years of evolving standards, the number of permutations of support structures, insulators, taps, and other obstacles is vast. However, the requirements governing the design of the conductor supports have a common goal of preventing electrical hazards, so the clearances, approach angles, and loading limits required for safe navigation across these obstacles can be distilled to one common, albeit challenging, set of requirements.

First, our system needs to allow installation of fiber while the conductors are energized. This is necessary because extended outages would inconvenience the homes and businesses in the area.

This requirement, in turn, made it necessary for the wrapping machine to be able to cross all the obstacles on its route without human assistance or intervention. To find a solution to this problem, we talked to a number of robotics companies across the globe.

In the end, we selected ULC Robotics , based on their innovative concept design and their decade-plus of experience designing robots for high-reliability utility applications. The resulting ULC design comprises a pair of drive subsystems, a lift subsystem, and a rotation subsystem.

To pass an obstacle, the lift subsystem raises the payload and rotation subsystems from their normal cable wrapping position, which has a center of mass aligned with the power line, up to clear the obstacle. During this operation, the robot is put in an unbalanced state like a tightrope walker and uses a stabilizer to balance itself as it crosses the obstacle, after which the payload and rotation subsystem are lowered, and the wrapping operation continues.

The robot also includes a vision system to identify obstacles and appropriately adjust its movements to clear the obstacles while maintaining the clearances required to prevent an electrical hazard. The shape and material properties of the robot are currently being optimized for weight and safe operation on live lines.

Each robot will be capable of installing over a kilometer of fiber and passing the dozens of intervening obstacles autonomously in approximately an hour and a half. To account for the human interaction steps such as setup, loading and unloading the robot, installing transitions, etc.

While traditional aerial fiber deployment involves heavy machinery, reel carts, large spools and large crew sizes, a fiber deployment crew deploying our solution, will comprise two or three electric utility linemen and a pickup truck with a few kilometer spools of fiber, a robot, and a few accessories, allowing many crews to work in parallel.

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Ditch Witch — Trencher — RT QUAD. Conduit and Innerducts for Fiber Optic Cable. RELATED ARTICLES MORE FROM AUTHOR. Fiber Optic Cable Installation Process: Connecting Homes. Top Subsea Cable Systems in the World as of Our solutions now include:. FiberPlus promises the communities in which we serve that we will continue to expand and evolve as new technology is introduced within the telecommunications industry.

Have any questions? Interested in one of our services? Call FiberPlus today , email us at info fiberplusinc. com, or visit our contact page. Our offices are located in the Washington, DC metro area and Richmond, VA.

In Pennsylvania, please call Pennsylvania Networks, Inc. at Categories: Services Offered Tags: fiber optic deployments , FTTB , FTTD , FTTH , FTTN , FTTx , and services offered This entry was posted on Thursday, April 9th, at am.

Fiber optic networks are constructed through the placement of both underground and aerial fiber, meaning that fiber does not always have to be buried. Fiber optic cables consist of many glass fiber strands , with existing networks typically having been built with 36, 48, 72, , and fiber strands in each cable.

However, newer fiber optic cables are being built with , , and 1, fiber strands in each cable, which provides fiber optic networks with built-in capacity for future growth. Fiber route miles signify the length, measured in non-overlapping miles, of a fiber optic network.

While fiber strand miles represent the number of route miles in a network multiplied by the number of fiber strands within each fiber optic cable on that network. As an example, a 10 mile fiber route with fiber strands would be commonly referred to as having 2, fiber strand miles.

As a general rule, fiber construction takes 6 to 10 months for a network to become operational, after the beginning of a build-out. However, the construction timeline for a new fiber optic network varies depending upon the number of route miles to be constructed, the number of homes or premises targeted for connection to the network, and the general deployment of the network.

The fiber optic network construction process involves the placement of both underground and aerial fiber, which are each detailed below:. Fiber optic cable is buried in tubes, known as a conduit , which are placed by means of plowing, trenching, jack and bore, multi-directional bore, or directional bore techniques.

As shown below, machinery from manufactures like Ditch Witch, is used to plow, trench, and bore into the ground:. Conduits are usually constructed on a level grade, parallel to the surface of the ground, with only gradual changes in grade elevation over the fiber run.

Fiber optic cable is placed into three primary types of conduit: HDPE polyethylene plastic , PVC vinyl polymer plastic , and steel.

An innerduct , which is a separate tube within a conduit, divides the larger conduit into subsections. Typically, if conduit is laid along paved city, state, federal, and interstate highways, as well as railroad crossings, bridges, or through tunnels, then it will be encased in steel conduit.

Otherwise, HDPE and PVC conduits are viable options for placing fiber optic cables. Specifically, larger installations generally occur through either pulling or blowing:.

Fiber optic cable is buried in conduits, typically at a depth of 3 feet to 4 feet, which is equivalent to 36 inches to 48 inches underground. In many instances, cable installation agreements will stipulate a minimum depth of 42 inches, with certain environments requiring the conduit to be placed at even greater depths.

For example, depths of 48 inches can apply for conduit placed in ditches adjacent to roads, highways, railroads, and interstates. While 60 inches is often the minimum requirement for conduit placed across streams, river washes, and other waterways.

Microtrenching is a process used to bury fiber optic cable that reduces the time to build a network and bring on customers, while creating less disruption e.

However, microtrenching does not reduce the cost to construct a fiber optic network. Uniquely, microtrenching buries fiber optic cable in the ground at much shallower depths of only 8 to 16 inches deep, while creating a trench that is only 1 to 2 inches wide.

As shown in the video below, the microtrenching process can support conduit that is over 3 inches in diameter. Aerial fiber optic cable is installed by stringing and bolting overhead cables on top of existing utility and telephone poles.

This aerial fiber construction can be performed though a new pole attachment or by utilizing a technique called overlashing , which involves the attachment of a new cable to an existing cable. This technique allows for the addition of new aerial fiber optic cable, utilizing existing pole attachments, without the requirement for additional space on the pole.

Often, aerial overlash and pole attachment rights are secured by fiber optic providers, from utility companies, to utilize space on their utility poles. Discussed below are underground fiber construction costs i. READ MORE: Fiber Optic Cable Installation Process — Connecting Homes.

Fiber construction costs vary significantly, depending on factors including labor, population density, depth or height of the fiber deployment, terrain, equipment, whether or not the provider has existing conduit, make ready costs, and permitting costs.

Below are further details on each of these drivers of fiber construction costs:. The Fiber Broadband Association FBA , an all-fiber trade association, and Cartesian, a specialist consulting firm, produced a study on the cost, in the United States, to construct a fiber to the home FTTH network that passes different populations, based on their household density per square mile.

Particularly, this study yielded the following cost ranges for urban and rural areas in the United States:. READ MORE: Fiber to the Home FTTH vs FTTP, FTTN, FTTC, and FTTB.

Shentel NASDAQ: SHEN , a broadband internet service provider ISP in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky, through its Glo Fiber brand, is targeting , homes passed by Shentel — Broadband and Fiber Network Map. Glo Fiber is a greenfield fiber overbuilder deploying gigabit symmetrical passive optical network XGS-PON fiber-based transmission technology, while seeking to deliver bandwidth speeds of up to 2 gigabits per second Gbps to customers.

READ MORE: XGS-PON — Fiber-based Technology Delivering 10 Gbps. Given the discrete nature of this fiber to the home FTTH initiative, Shentel identifies key data points relating to its fiber construction costs. READ MORE: Fiber Broadband Internet Is The Future For Your Home.

However, these costs will differ greatly based on the type of geographical area, with urban environments being the most expensive, followed by suburban and rural areas being progressively cheaper. To this end, rural areas have fewer obstructions, making pole attachments easier and more cost-effective for fiber networks.

Importantly, aerial fiber deployments require only days or weeks to connect, as compared to underground fiber construction, which can take several months. Aerial fiber construction costs include pole attachment expenses, fiber materials, installation, and splicing.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Facebook Instagram Mail Twitter Youtube. Consumers are eagerly awaiting the next step in broadband technology: 5G. Users can download and stream data better than ever before.

The Internet of Things is creating a new tech landscape for the world, and its backbone is fiber. Broadband providers are scurrying to lay fiber optic cable as quickly as possible.

Small cell and DAS are being deployed rapidly to boost signals in metro areas, at large event venues and in other challenging environments, often with fiber backhaul. According to U. With the Dig Once Policy, infrastructure is installed and providers have adequate access to the ROW during roadway work.

It lowers deployment expense by sharing costs of digging between road construction companies and broadband companies. Several states are opting into the policy, including Arizona, Minnesota, and Utah. However, because of the many actions being taken to speed deployment and provide internet for all Americans, the joint use community is being impacted.

As the nation changes, joint use departments should prepare for a high-volume of attachment requests, permitting paperwork, insurance requirement paperwork, billing and invoicing, OTMR documents, and much more. Joint use owners are scurrying to ensure that their asset data is current and accurate.

Several asset owners and attaching companies are exploring new, intuitive ways to prepare their departments for upcoming deployments. Spreadsheets and the use of multiple systems are being left behind. Joint use departments across the nation are switching to a system that works for their data and business processes.

Many companies are using a joint use platform that provides communication between external partners and internal departments. In fact, 39 states across the US are currently using the platform. The platform assists in managing new and existing asset data with workflows, dashboards, and mapping features.

If you would like assistance managing fiber deployment or if you would like more information on a joint use platform, contact Alden to speak with a product management specialist. We are happy to provide a consultation to discuss how a joint use management system may help your company. How is your company managing fiber deployment?

What preparations do you have in place to ensure clarity over your assets in the future? Only 25 percent of households have the option of Fiber to the Home FTTH and rural areas in the United States are still underserved or not served at all. We have compiled a short-list of three reasons why deployment is not speeding up.

As Forbes explains, a fiber cable cannot simply be stretched, for example, from New York to San Francisco.