TECHNOLOGY
ITU-T L.110 defines the shape of low-cost, terabit-capable optical cable that can be cost-efficiently surface-deployed with low environmental impact. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) has granted first-stage approval (‘consent‘) to L.110. This new cable appears to primarily target community projects in rural regions. In theory, the solution may play an important part in closing the digital divide, an important goal of the ITU Connect 2020 Agenda, by bringing down initial capital investment.
Local communities should be able to deploy the lightweight cable without extensive training or specialist tools. The cable is waterproof, rodent-proof and offers some measure of fire resistance and can be rolled out using direct burying, aerial wiring, suspension and submerged application. Field trials show that the cost of cabling could come down to one tenth of conventional optical cables.
Interview with Lionel Provost,
Prysmian Group R&D, Telecom, Optical Fibre
How much of network CAPEX is usually spent on fibre cable installation?
Based on figures for an FTTH network given by the FTTH Council and previously reported in an NExsT, 70% is a good reference figure for a cable installation for a green field installation. According to this study the price for pulling a cable in existing duct is 1.5 AUS$ (€1) per meter, comparable to the deployment case tackled by L.110.
What are the risks of using unskilled labour and non-purpose built tools?
There may be a risk of damage to the cable or the fibre inside due to excess mechanical stress during unreeling and residual strains due to poor handling. What’s more, there is always a chance that something might happen that could reduce the cable’s reliability over its expected lifetime.
Which pros and cons do you see in using L.110?
Compared with duct cable, L.110 cable is more prone to external adverse effects throughout its lifetime. There are many of these factors to take into consideration: water, chemical, crush, UV, temperature change… (The temperature impact is lower for a buried or a duct cable, as the soil acts as a temperature protection buffer). Resistance to crush is also key and is more demanding, and there are other mechanical effects to consider
There is a trade-off between the ease of installation and the expected or desired performance of cabling, which might exceed performance of other solutions (such as cabling in ducts or direct buried cables). There is no specific guidance in this area yet, but the design of the cable may be more complex.
The current L.110 document only lists standard characteristics of the fibre and cables on manufacturer/end user has to agree upon. More feedback about these solutions from the field is to be expected (some are reported as appendix of L.110).
The benefit is the fact that this solution could offer a quick, low cost solutions for roll out of cabling in different conditions (buried, aerial, temporary) and that it can be deployed or maintained by people without specific training, which also helps reduce cost. Although this could be useful for Rural FTTH across Europe, for example, the business case described for L.110 seems more geared toward developing countries.
So although up to 1:10 cost reduction can be realised with DSA/direct buried vs duct cables, it is important to remember that this comparison is being made between the USA and Buthan.
L.110 Optical Fibre Cables for Direct Surface Application has been developed within the framework of Recommendation ITU-T L.1700. This builds on existing technologies to create a definition for (largely technology-neutral) low-cost, sustainable broadband backhaul infrastructure.
© Copyright Prysmian Group.
All rights reserved.
ITU-T L.110 defines the shape of low-cost, terabit-capable optical cable that can be cost-efficiently surface-deployed with low environmental impact. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) has granted first-stage approval (‘consent‘) to L.110. This new cable appears to primarily target community projects in rural regions. In theory, the solution may play an important part in closing the digital divide, an important goal of the ITU Connect 2020 Agenda, by bringing down initial capital investment.
Local communities should be able to deploy the lightweight cable without extensive training or specialist tools. The cable is waterproof, rodent-proof and offers some measure of fire resistance and can be rolled out using direct burying, aerial wiring, suspension and submerged application. Field trials show that the cost of cabling could come down to one tenth of conventional optical cables.
© Copyright Prysmian Group.
All rights reserved.