CCW 2015: Gepco Booth To Feature Blown Optical Fiber Systems

General Cable will feature and demonstrate its Blown Optical Fiber (BOF) System in the Gepco/General Cable booth (#449) at Content and Communications World (CCW). Blown Optical Fiber technology provides flexibility in Broadcast cabling infrastructure design, while anticipating and facilitating future changes as the network evolves. General Cable’s BOF System provides the right system for the right application with its Individual & Bundled Blown Optical Fiber Systems. The first and only blown fiber system on the market to feature dual blowing technologies within a single installation machine, General Cable’s BOF System allows the user to match the technology to the type and severity of the installation route.

General Cable’s BOF System provides significant and measurable time, cost and service benefits to the cabling infrastructure throughout its life cycle. Offered as two through 12 fibers per Microduct or as one through three bundles of six fibers per Microduct, our BOF System provides numerous advantages over conventional fiber optic systems, including the reduction of the total lifecycle cost and an increase in flexibility for the designers of fiber optic networks. Blown optical fiber accommodates Moves, Adds, and Changes (MACs) easily and quickly with minimal disruption.

General Cable’s BOF System also offers advantages over other blown fiber systems currently on the market. By using compressed air instead of nitrogen, this system can be safely installed in any environment. It is also the most comprehensive system on the market, offering users two different systems to suit the different types of installation they face with a single installation machine capable of both technologies.

The Blolite Individual Blown Optical Fiber System is best suited for Broadcast premise applications with shorter distances that may contain tight bends and turns. This system employs a series of single or multiple empty Microduct between cable routing points; compressed air is then used to blow the optical fiber into the Microducts, which eliminates potential damage to fibers during installation. Designers have maximum flexibility regarding the number and type of fibers per Microduct. Color-coded fibers are typically supplied on master spools and cut to length during the blowing process.

The second offering, the NextGen Brand Bundled Blown Optical Fiber System, is ideal in applications that contain longer, straighter paths. Bundles are comprised of six color-coded optical fibers encapsulated in an extruded blowable jacket. Using a similar process as the Individual BOF System, one, two or three bundles can be installed per Microduct. Additionally, bundles can be “uninstalled” and repurposed elsewhere in your network.

Principle benefits and unique advantages of the Blown Optical Fiber Systems over traditional fiber include:

• Ability to expand, upgrade, reconfigure or relocate network cabling at minimal cost and effort.
• Ability to install empty Microduct so there is no risk of fiber damage during installation. Optical fibers are then blown into place, rather than pulled, with zero tensile stress on the fiber during the process.
• Ability to install the fiber type you need today and easily upgrade to new grades of fiber by blowing out old optical fiber when technology changes.
• Point-to-point Microduct connections decrease splicing points, thus increasing system performance and integrity.
• Once the Microduct highway is in place, a two-person crew (one at each end) can install Blown Optical Fiber on an as-needed basis.
• Physical damage to the cabling infrastructure from disaster does not require removal of the entire cable. Only the damaged section of Microduct is removed and replaced; within minutes, new optical fiber is blown in and terminated.

“As Broadcast requirements continue to evolve, Blown Optical Fiber technology provides the ability to cost-effectively future proof your network and to easily adapt to those changes as they come,” says Greg Carnes, Product Manager, Fiber Optic Cables, General Cable. “Our BOF System offers the technology to safely install in the different routes users face whether building a new facility or retrofitting an existing one.”

Both the Blolite Individual Blown Optical Fiber System and the NextGen Brand Bundled Blown Optical Fiber System will be demonstrated within CCW Booth #449.