WCA July 2009

Fibre optics – materials and machinery

Photo courtesy Medek & Schörner GmbH

F ew developments are as advanced in concept, materials, and construction as a fibre optic line. But this technological marvel is famously unfussy about accommodation. It is commonly consigned to an old railway right-of-way, disused for decades – or worse. Like the aristocrat it is, a fibre optic cable is not defined by downmarket neighbours. But if there is a disconnnect between a fibre optic cable and its placement, there must be no disconnnect among subscribers to the service it supports. Accordingly, security concerns – prompted by jarring incidents such as the recent attack on fibre lines in Silicon Valley [see page 28 of this issue] – are moving to the fore. As fibre optic applications proliferate, systems will be buried deeper and more sequestered. Because the new precautions will mean new maintenance challenges, fibre optic machinery of the future will feature more equipment for physical-layer testing of increasingly inaccessible systems. One recent entry is a portable fibre identifier from the Canadian supplier GAO FiberOptics, designed to detect optical signals including continuous wave, live optical transmission, and low-frequency modulated tones, without disrupting service. Even as security becomes more of a focal point, the systems requiring protection must be continually enhanced in value if they are to justify the effort. A fibre optic line is no prima donna. But the companies whose products and services are reviewed in this section of Wire & Cable ASIA wisely accord it the treatment it deserves — not what it demands.

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Wire & Cable ASIA – July/August 2009