Economics Are Changing: What’s Happening in Optical Fiber Networks

Today, network operators must install new connections, whether to offer new services to customers or simply for the purpose of leasing. While they cannot always be expected to sustain their traditional network-maintenance model, justifying the continuous and proactive investment in optical-layer testing to their engineering or planning teams can be a major challenge. Another challenge is being able to integrate or interface with inventory and GIS-based systems.

Fortunately, remote fiber testing and monitoring is the best way to overcome these challenges; unfortunately, this approach is still relatively unknown to many network operators, support and operation managers as well as quality managers.  

This is why I recently hosted a webinar, in which I revisited the fundamentals as well as examined the indicators that can be generated to help benchmark and improve operations. I also provided hints on how to create stable optical demarcations or borders from a fiber standpoint. This is an improvement over the usual approach of extracting and processing part of the data stream with active elements, which adds to the overall cost/complexity of establishing a delivery point and associated quality level. If you are interested, you can watch the recording of the event.