Luke Judge

February 14, 2011 09:00 AM Eastern Time 

2011 Show Expands by 20 Percent, Offers New Program Content for Service Providers

OFC/NFOEC 2011

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The organizers of the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition/National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (OFC/NFOEC) announced today that the 2011 show, taking place in Los Angeles March 8 – 10, will be 20 percent larger than last year, featuring new programming for service providers and data center operators, and more exhibitors filling a larger space, alongside its core show floor programs and activities.

“we are pleased to see a spike in the size of the exhibit this year”

“We are pleased to see a spike in the size of the exhibit this year,” said Mehran Esfandiari, general co-chair of OFC/NFOEC 2011. “Attendance at this year’s show is expected to be strong, as we notice a resurgence of demand for optical communications technology from service providers and systems companies. As the only show in 2011 that offers programming for all sectors of the telecom field, OFC/NFOEC will be the place to be for anyone who wants to stay up-to-date on the industry.”

the exhibition will feature more than 500 companies—from network and test equipment vendors to sub-system and component manufacturers, plus software, fiber cable and specialty fiber manufacturers. Service providers and enterprises interested in building or upgrading networks or datacenters will find the latest products all in one place at OFC/NFOEC 2011 – the largest show of its kind in the world. New and returning show participants this year include Cisco, Juniper Networks, Nokia Siemens, Alcatel-Lucent, Huawei, Ciena, Infinera, JDSU, Finisar, Opnext, Agilent, Corning and many others.

Show Floor programming has been expanded to include new content such as the Optical Business Forum, Ethernet Alliance Program, Optical Internetworking Forum Program, Green Touch Panel Session and more. Flagship programs Market Watch and the Service Provider Summit will feature topics on data centers, wireless, 100G, and optical networking.

More information about the exhibit at OFC/NFOEC 2011 can be found in the Exhibit Hall and Activities section of OFC/NFOEC’s website.

About OFC/NFOEC

since 1975, the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition (OFC) has provided an annual backdrop for the optical communications field to network and share research and innovations. In 2005, OFC joined forces with the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (NFOEC) creating the largest and most comprehensive international event for optical communications. By combining an exposition of more than 500 companies, with a unique program of peer-reviewed technical programming and special focused educational sessions, OFC/NFOEC provides an unparalleled opportunity reaching every audience from service providers to optical equipment manufacturers and beyond.

OFC/NFOEC, ofcnfoec.org, is managed by the Optical Society (OSA) and co-sponsored by OSA, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers/Communications Society (IEEE/ComSoc) and the IEEE Photonics Society. Acting as a non-financial technical co-sponsor is Telcordia Technologies, inc.

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The purpose of this article is to show you the available options for termination a fiber optic cable installation project. I will compare the pros and cons of different termination approaches.

Fiber optic cable termination can be divided into two major groups: factory termination and field termination.

Field technicians face important trade-offs in deciding which approach to choose. For tighter loss budget, the best approach is factory terminated cables since it is much easier to achieve loss loss and high quality connector terminations in a controlled factory environment. On the other hand, field terminations provide far more flexibility in meeting system requirements.

Pros of factory termination

1. The factory has to guarantee the quality. Fiber optic manufacturers have highly trained technicians and high quality equipment for the job. Factory technicians usually are expert on fiber connector polishing and they produce thousands of fiber optic patch cords and fiber pigtails on a daily basis.

2. Factory termination provides the lowest cost. Since factories produce mass quantity of fiber patch cords, they have reduced the cost to the lowest possible point. This is the most economic choice.

Cons of factory termination

Factory termination doesn’t provide as much flexibility as field termination. You have to write down the list of fiber lengths and quantities and you have to make sure that you have enough spare length of cable for each termination.

Pros of field termination

1. Field termination provides the best flexibility in meeting system requirements. You can just pull the fiber cables and terminate them later.

2. You can do on-the-spot repairs wherever there is a defective fiber link. This is the biggest advantage of doing the termination yourself.

Cons of field termination

1. High cost. You need some polishing tools and supplies. Field termination quality are OK for multimode applications, but for single mode applications, you’d better leave that to factory termination.

2. The field termination technician must be highly skilled. He would have to practice a lot offline before doing the real work. A bad termination can cost you both time and money.

OK. You must already have a pretty clear idea on the choices for fiber cable installation now. Let’s examine in more details on the available options for each category.

Factory termination choices:

1. Factory pre-terminated cables

For this type of job, you provide a list of cable types, lengths and quantities to the factory. The factory will deliver each pre-terminated cable on a reel. You just need to pull these cables through duct carefully with a cable netting to protect the connectors.

2. Factory pre-terminated pigtails and splicing (fusion splicing or mechanical splicing)

This is a intermediate approach. You order cable segments with factory-mounted connectors on one end only. You need to order some fiber pigtails (fiber cables with only one connector mounted) and then splice the pigtail to the unterminated end of the cable. This is a quick and easy approach. However, it requires that you already have the fusion splicers (which could cost you tens of thousands of dollars). Or you would have to choose the less reliable mechanical splicing.

Field Termination Choices:

1. Field installation of epoxy and polish connectors

Lots of experience technicians still prefer this way since it provides the best flexibility and the lowest possible cost. Epoxy and polish connectors are the same as used by factories. You pull the fiber first, and then terminate the fiber on the site. This involves fiber optic epoxy, high temperature curing oven, scribe tools, polishing films and fiber optic inspection microscopes. This approach needs you already have a termination kit that includes these items.

2. Field installation of quick termination connectors

Quick termination connectors are a god bless for emergency repairs. This type of connector functions like a fiber optic pigtail. It is pre-polished in the factory. It has a fiber stub in the connector body. You just need to cleave your fiber, insert it into the connector body, and lock it per the connector manufacturer’s instruction. However, it doesn’t provide as much long term reliability as the epoxy and polish connectors. Also, quick termination connectors are much more expensive then standard epoxy and polish connectors.

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MEDINA — Members of the business community attended the county commissioners’ meeting Monday to show their support for the fiber optic network project that has been in the works for about 10 years.

They also were there to ask commissioners to show their support by voting to provide a credit enhancement for the project — in other words, a financial safety net.

The Medina County Port Authority has asked commissioners to sign an agreement in which the county will replenish a bond reserve fund for the project if it dips below a certain amount. Any money the county pays into the fund would be a loan paid back by the Port Authority with interest, authority administrator Bethany Dentler said.

The Port Authority was established in 2003 and “is relatively new. It doesn’t have the strengths to do this on its own. So it does need the county’s backing to obtain bond financing,” explained Jim Gerspacher, who chairs the Port Authority’s committee for the fiber optic network.

If commissioners agree, it could mean the Port Authority would have a better bond rating when taking on debt, making it easier to receive loans. It also could make it easier to receive lower interest rates, which would lower the cost of the project.

The $7.3 million project involves building a 151-mile, 144-strand fiber optic loop in the county that would connect with existing fiber networks in Cuyahoga and Summit counties. It would create high-bandwidth connectivity for institutional groups, such as government entities, libraries, schools, businesses and hospitals. It also would give private broadband companies a chance to pay to access the network and serve other customers, including residential ones.

Gerspacher explained the project’s bond reserve fund would need to be kept above about $1.1 million, or 10 percent of the total money expected to be borrowed for the project. He said it would be several years before the fund nears that point. He also noted the Port Authority expects the fiber optic project to be profitable, so it’s possible it would not dip below that and commissioners would not have to put in any money.

Commissioner Pat Geissman said she’s concerned about guaranteeing the project because of the county’s tight economic situation.

“Unfortunately, timing couldn’t be worse for them to ask us to guarantee something,” she said.

She said she supports constructing the loop, but fears the Port Authority could default on the loan if it doesn’t make enough profit from the loop.

“It may never happen. It probably never will happen. But you’re still putting the county at risk. We don’t know if the county is going to get better,” she said.

Commissioner Steve Hambley said the county is discussing sharing the responsibility for the fund with other governments. For example, about 16 percent of the loop passes through Brunswick. He suggested the city might have that much responsibility for any money owed to the bond reserve fund.

“If we can get more people signed in on this, obviously it makes us more comfortable as a county,” Hambley said. He said if more entities participate, it could improve the bond rating even more.

He said county officials have had preliminary meetings with Brunswick and Medina and limited discussions with some villages.
Commissioner Sharon Ray said Tuesday commissioners eventually will vote on whether to back the fund.

“But I feel positively that this would be a good move for the county. From an economic development standpoint, we have to be competitive,” she said.

Medina County businesspeople had similar comments on Monday.

“Economic development, today and tomorrow, is an extremely competitive field,” said Jim Doutt, a former director of the Medina County Economic Development Corp. and now a manager of business development at EBO Group in Sharon Township.

“What you need to do as an economic developer is set yourself apart from the competition,” he said. “That’s what this fiber ring will do.”

Bob Joyce, chairman and CEO of Westfield Group in Westfield Center, said his company has used teleconferencing to communicate inexpensively with its offices throughout the country.

“While cost is an issue, timeliness and quality of communication is much more important. The fiber ring would help us do that,” he said.

Gerspacher said the project will be paid for with low-interest, stimulus-funded Recovery Zone Bonds. So far, the Port Authority has been allocated $4.2 million in the bonds, but has a chance to receive more from the state. Gerspacher said whatever the Port Authority doesn’t receive in Recovery Zone Bonds it will take out in traditional bonds.

He said construction likely will start shortly after the bonds are issued sometime early this summer and construction will take between 12 and 18 months.

Contact Maria Kacik at (330) 721-4049 or .

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