BROADBAND COMMUNITIES is the leading source of information on digital and broadband technologies for buildings and communities. Our editorial aims to accelerate the deployment of Fiber-To-The-Home and Fiber-To-The-Premises.
Issue link: https://bbcmag.epubxp.com/i/90470
Microduct with pushable fiber makes it easy to deliver fiber close to the customer premises. patch panels, which offer the flexibility to choose any type of termination. FIBER TO THE UNIT Te third architecture is fiber to the liv- ing unit, in which fiber is driven into customers' living spaces. With this sce- nario, copper's bandwidth limitations are no longer an issue. Tis is the only way to make sure a network can handle current and future customer demand. Pros: 1 Te network is future proof. Once you build it, you're done. 2 Lower-cost single-family-unit ONTs can be used, and they don't need to be installed until customers order service. Tis makes the success of a deployment less dependent upon take rates. In addition, power is readily available in living units. 3 Te high reliability of the fiber net- work saves opex in the future. Be- cause fiber isn't affected by the ele- ments or by electrical induction, it's more robust than copper. Cons: 1 Higher capex is required to install fiber all the way into the unit. 2 Right-of-entry agreements are some- times harder to negotiate because the installation process is intrusive. 3 Deployments may be disruptive to customers because fiber is run all the way into living units. Pushable fiber pushed through mi- croduct can deliver as many fibers as desired to wall-mounted distribution ter- minals on each floor. Te microduct can then continue to a test access point out- side each living unit, where the fiber drop can be spliced to a pigtail or terminated with a splice-on connector. Some manu- facturers, including Clearfield, provide the option of a preterminated fiber drop that is pushed or pulled through the mi- croduct directly to the living space, sav- ing all in-building splicing costs. Once the drop is installed, simply snap the connector housing onto the end and plug it in. It's that easy. In summary, ask yourself these basic questions: • How deep into my network do I want to drive fiber, and what is the cost associated with each option? • Do I want to future proof my network or use existing coax and twisted-pair cabling as temporary fixes? • How much capex do I have available to spend? • How much opex will I incur for each dollar of capex I avoid? PUTTING IT TO THE TEST Oklahoma-based BTC Broadband knows firsthand the challenges of de- livering broadband services in an MDU environment. Recently, BTC completed a build that brought broadband capabil- ities to 248 units in 11 residential build- ings and a clubhouse. In light of obvious copper bandwidth limitations, fiber was BTC's choice. In addition, the company believed a fiber-to-the-unit solution pro- vided a future-proof path with unlim- ited bandwidth. BTC also recognized that, in addi- tion to guaranteeing sufficient band- width, a fiber-to-the-unit design would avoid problematic VDSL issues – for ex- ample, far-end crosstalk, common DC faults and other exterior disturbers. A key element of the fiber-to-the- unit design was the use of microduct and pushable fiber within it. "Te poly conduit install was easier and less time- consuming than any traditional Cat 5 solution I've been involved in," reports Justin Jones of BTC. "We were forced with small windows of time to com- plete the prewire stages during the con- struction of each MDU. Tis method also was much more resilient to on-site hazards posed by other contractors and construction processes." Jones reports that the installation procedures were straightforward. Dur- ing installs, a technician simply placed a bulk reel of pushable fiber outside near the splice enclosure and pushed the fi- ber into the appropriate conduit. At the exterior enclosure, the product was tran- sitioned to a buried distribution fiber, which was piped back to the company's fiber distribution terminal. In addition, because the path from each living unit to the exterior is con- cealed in the walls and no future access will be granted, the microduct design provides more flexibility to maintain the path moving forward. "In this increas- ingly competitive market, the microduct and pushable fiber solution ensures our ability to provide services to each unit for years to come," Jones concludes. Y 26 | BROADBAND COMMUNITIES | www.broadbandcommunities.com | OCTOBER 2012