ON TOPIC What Will be Hot in 2023? This year has certainly been eventful – and set the stage for a number of advances next year. What will we be talking about in 2023? Here are a few predictions for the technologies, trends, and requirements that will drive optical networking over the next 12 months, all within this edition of Lightwave On Topic. Copyright @ 2022 Endeavor Business Media WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 1 PAPER E DI S, G DI A IT LIZ ATOIN LFE I S FO R E N T WORK DEPLYOE M NT NI 2023 T echnology is fast becoming the primary enabler in the successful delivery of the network infrastructure fueled by the $42.5 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding and billions of additional dollars available through private, federal, and state grants. And while it remains difficult to predict impact, the consumer demand for next-generation, future-proof fiber networks far outpaces the rate at which telecommunications infrastructure is currently built. Fortunately, the industry is united in the need to reduce network construction time without reducing quality and effectiveness. availability of public and private capital. Despite the volume of tasks required, traditional methods rely heavily on manual processes and contribute to the following challenges: Traditional construction management uses longstanding project methodologies that are not designed for today’s network deployments. Further, broadband networks a re i n c re a s i n g l y m o re co m p l e x a n d g e o g r a p h i c a l l y distributed than ever before with coverage and expansion re q u i re m e n t s d i c t a t e d by m a r ke t d e m a n d a n d t h e • P a p e r- b a s e d c o n s t r u c t i o n p a c k s a n d m a n u a l p ro ce s s e s p l a g u e d w i t h va r y i n g l eve l s o f d a t a capture capability and accuracy. WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY • Data integrity issues in the absence of a unified, geospatial view of project progress • L a c k o f t i m e l y a n d e f f e c t i v e c o o rd i n a t i o n a n d communication between the field and office • Asset and contractor management difficulties • Manual, inefficient task scheduling, forecasting, and allocation Moving to an all-digital and geospatial view of co n s t r u c t i o n u p d a t e d i n re a l -t i m e w i t h p ro d u c t i o n PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 2 from the field eliminates all these challenges. A single, unified view of the project can be kept in the cloud t o ke e p eve r yo n e o n t h e s a m e (v i r t u a l ) p a g e w h i l e maintaining an accurate network record instead of the incipient delays in manually updating progress via paper prints from the field to the office. Construction progress is documented and logged as it occurs, keeping all stakeholders, from planners through to project and network executives, abreast of completions by location. Digitalization also enables the agile allocation and reallocation of resources as needed. Teams can be instantly dispatched to the next ready construction task - with dependencies considered - instead of having to go back to the office for the next paperbased construction pack. If a resource or asset is not available, crews can be allocated to the next available t a s k w i t h o u t co n s t r u c t i o n d e l ays w h i l e wa i t i n g o n paper, parts, and people to deliver what’s next. INFORMATION FLOW FROM DESIGN TO CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATIONS IS CRITICAL Across the industry, there is a recurring disconnect between feasibility, engineering, and the breakdown of work that’s required to optimally construct a quality network. As the design is shared with general contractors and their subcontractors, build requirements and data quality are further diluted. The quality of construction and change data and its integration into finance, network management, maintenance, and customer relationship management (C R M ) sys t e m s d i re c t l y a f fe c t s h ow o p e r a t o r s c a n generate revenue and maintain an accurate system of record. Purpose-built digital construction solutions convert network design into project scope – including work definitions, dependencies material, and resource requirements at the task level – before the project commences. By including downstream system requirements in this scope creation, crews capture accurate and consistent geospatial data as they complete work, enabling a timely operations handover and end-toend efficiency. To meet federal and state grant funding requirements, operators must present and adhere to delivery milestones and metrics or risk severe penalties for noncompliance. Successful funding applicants will meet these milestones while effectively tracking construction crew performance, material utilization, quality, and geospatial progress. Early identification of performance issues or at-risk delivery milestones is going to be exceedingly important to operators in the upcoming funding rounds. An all-digital approach enables faster and better build decisions with the ability to track progress in real-time to ensure milestone and public reporting requirements are simplified. PROVEN SOLUTIONS TO NAVIGATING LABOR AND SUPPLY CHAIN CONSTRAINTS As the industry invests in training the next broadband workforce, operators are feeling increasing pressure WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 3 t o b u i l d t i m e l i n e s w i t h o u t re s o u rce s b e i n g re a d i l y available. Many broadband operators have recognized the advantages of real-time, cloud-based technology in reducing project management overheads while optimizing available resources, something that’s more critical than ever in this constrained environment. In Arkansas, Craighead Electric Cooperative Corp. (CECC) found a 75% reduction in project resourcing and administrative overhead using such a digital approach. With the availability of field data and an intuitively designed platform, CECC was able to deploy its outside plant 84% faster than it anticipated during network planning in 2019. Capturing as-built records without needing to manually reconcile data reduced the CECC project management team from 4 to 1. The highest budget item on a project is labor and we know these constraints are crippling projects. By utilizing real-time data capture in the field, duplicated data processes are eliminated; change management and status reporting are streamlined as well. Management can track planned vs. actual progress and re-forecast every day based on real-time data to enable better workforce management, including identifying which contractors are the most efficient to keep productive teams moving. Supply chain constraints are still going to challenge the industry in the coming year, and what operators h a v e l e a r n e d i s h o w c r i t i c a l w a s t e re d u c t i o n i s t o manage delivery costs. Because of the reduced waste a n d i m p rove d u t i l i z a t i o n r a t e s t h a t a t e c h n o l o g yenabled approach delivers, operators are turning to t e c h t o o pt i m i ze m a t e r i a l s a n d e n s u re v i s i b i l i t y o f where they are used and by whom. When considering large projects with at least a three-year build forecast, stakeholders previously were not able to track actual vs. planned material usage accurately and, as a result, most rollouts exceeded 10% material waste. Digital construction technology enables a real-time view of material production data to inform future supply chain requirements. By including required material WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY units by location in construction tasks and matching fiber reels to runs, project and finance teams can track material utilization in real-time and measure waste by crew or contractor. When work is completed correctly the first time with the right materials, operators and contractors typically realize a 2% material waste rate and can nearly halve rework volumes. TODAY’S LABOR CONSTRAINTS WILL PERSIST AS THE DEMAND FOR BROADBAND INFRASTRUCTURE SOARS OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, BUT DIGITAL AND GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY HAS ALREADY EXPONENTIALLY IMPROVED HOW OPERATORS MANAGE NETWORK BUILDS WITH LESS. GIS IS TABLE STAKES, GEOSPATIAL EVERYTHING IS THE NEW BENCHMARK Considering GIS native technology in every aspect of network design, construction and operations is where cumulative benefit lies. Broadband service providers increasingly need to plan for and prioritize build areas based on census block and location-based requirements PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 4 PLANNING FOR THE KNOWN UNKNOWNS We know there are going to be obstacles throughout the cycle of a two- to three- or four-year network b u i l d . S u p p l y c h a i n a n d wo r k fo rce i s s u e s co nt i n u e to be of concern, especially given the ramp of digital infrastructure globally. While suppliers, service providers, and industry associations are seeking ways to meet the increased demand for materials and people power, there are no assurances that their growth curves for increased supply will match it. Add in occasional natural events that have both regional and potentially worldwide consequences to supply, such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, and it becomes clear that project managers need to be prepared to consider an agile delivery approach and build solutions. Digital technology utilization is incredibly important and an enabler to accommodate issues such as s u p p l y i n t e r r u p t i o n s , p e r m i t d e l ays , o r c h a n g e s i n stakeholder priorities. Today’s delay in supply could affect tomorrow’s need to add additional route miles and homes connected because of new funding. fo r m o s t fe d e r a l o r s t a t e f u n d i n g p ro g r a m s o r t h e fastest path to revenue generation. Leveraging geospatial intelligence in the planning process enables a more transparent and predictable construction scope and schedule; it enables identification Digital and geospatial construction technology is fast becoming the competitive edge and only way to effectively win bid proposals, deliver projects on time and budget, and hand over an operational network, especially in today’s volatile market. Paper is not the solution, but the problem to meet these challenges, w h i l e d i g i t a l p rov i d e s t h e l o w-t o - n o - r i s k s o l u t i o n operators need to accelerate broadband delivery and connectivity where it’s needed most. Sam Pratt is CEO of Render Networks. of problematic areas where construction may be delayed or bottlenecked due to resource constraints or permitting. Once construction commences, GIS data is used to display progress in real-time by documenting completed work or network changes on a map-based view. WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 5 Build faster with less resources As broadband infrastructure demand soars, supply chain and labor shortages are impacting today's network delivery. Render’s digital and geospatial construction platform enables operators to deploy with greater visibility and smarter material and resource utilization. Discover more at rendernetworks.com/platform 2023: A YEAR FO PUCLIB NVE I STE M NS T , E N WA VON I S NOTI AND ARTIE HC E RTUC S, AND GREENER SOS N O U TI L BY TIM DOIRON 2 0 2 2 i s t h e ye a r w h e n w e j u m p e d b a c k o n t o airplanes and met face to face with our partners, customers, teammates, and industry colleagues. Having recently returned from a two-week trip to Japan and South Korea, I am reminded of the global scope of our networks and the human lives they touch. With so much of our focus on technology, products, and innovations, it’s still people who are at the center of what we do. We connect people and applications to the cloud and each other every single day – and it’s never been more critical and rewarding. As we look to 2023, we see governments and service providers taking actions to increase supply diversity, u t i l i ze n ew i n n ova t i o n s a n d a rc h i t e c t u re s t o co s teffectively scale their optical networks, and embrace WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY greener and more power-efficient solutions to slow or reduce their environmental footprint. GOVERNMENTS OPEN THEIR WALLETS TO LOCALIZE AND DIVERSIFY SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING While much has been written about government funds supporting the expansion of broadband internet for unserved and underserved communities, governments are also opening their wallets to localize and diversify the sources of critical semiconductor components that represent key building blocks of our optical networking solutions. One of the most significant responses to pandemic-induced supply shortages and increased geopolitical friction is the passage of the $52 billion CHIPS and Science Act in the U.S. Most of the funding provides financial incentives for semiconductor companies PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 7 like Intel, TSMC, Samsung, Micro, and others to invest in American semiconductor manufacturing as well as research and development within the United States. Other governments seeking reduced risk and increased autonomy have or will soon follow suit, including the EU, Japan, South Korea, and China. While silicon-based semiconductors and their fabrication facilities (or fabs) generally receive the media limelight, less well known is the role of optical semiconductors in powering our networks and our connectivity. Today’s coherent optical engines enable 800G per wavelength and tens of terabits per second to be transmitted over a single fiber pair in subsea, long-haul, and metro networks. Co m p o u n d s e m i co n d u c t o r s l i ke t h o s e f a b r i c a t e d a t Infinera’s indium phosphide (InP) fab in California are critical for the creation of the high-density photonic integrated circuits (PICs) that are the optical front end of high-performance coherent optical engines. InP PICs integrate tuneable lasers, optical amplifiers, high-speed modulators and detectors, and other functions into a single thumbnail-sized chip. IN 2023, LOOK FOR GOVERNMENTS TO NOT ONLY INVEST IN LOCAL FABRICATION OF SINGLE-ELEMENT SILICON SEMICONDUCTORS BUT ALSO COMPOUND SEMICONDUCTORS LIKE INP THAT ARE CRITICAL TO THE FUTURE EVOLUTION OF OPTICAL ENGINES AND OUR TRANSMISSION NETWORKS. GROWING IMPORTANCE OF SUBSEA CONNECTIONS AND ADVANCES IN SDM CABLES Strong capacity growth and an increased emphasis on intercontinental fiber route diversity have led to a proliferation of subsea cable deployments. At present, TeleGeography estimates that there are more than 460 active subsea cables, with another 75 planned to come online between now and 2026. Space-division multiplexing (SDM), a technique that focuses on total WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY cable capacity at the expense of slightly reduced individual fiber capacity, utilizes several techniques to economize repeater power consumption while delivering more total electrical power into the cable. Utilizing conventional technologies, SDM will get us to a 32-fiber cable, and when combined with today’s 800G embedded coherent optical engines or their successors will approach 1-Pbps transmission capacity over transatlantic distances. With additional unconventional technologies, we expect even the 32-pairs-per-cable barrier to be broken sometime in the future. So where are we with SDM cable deployments today, and what do we expect in 2023? The Dunant Atlantic subsea cable between Virginia Beach in the U.S. and the French Atlantic coast was the first 12-fiber SDM cable when it went ready for service in early 2021. Since then, additional 12-fiber SDM cables have been announced and deployed. But in 2023, look for 16-fiber cables to be the new SDM standard bearer for transatlantic distances. Becoming operational will be the Amitié transatlantic cable, one of the first SDM designs with 16 fiber pairs, and the incredibly ambitious 2Africa system, also with 16 fiber pairs connecting 33 countries and spanning 45,000 km. While the SEAME-WE 6 cable system was announced in early 2022 with plans for 24 fiber pairs, we expect this system and other 24-fiber cables to come online beyond the 2023 timeframe. INDUSTRY COLLABORATION AND MARKET TRENDS BROADEN OPEN OPTICAL ADOPTION With the separation of optical line systems from coherent transponders and pluggables, multi-vendor open optical networking will continue to accelerate and broaden deployment in 2023. Why? The answer is multifaceted. With data center connectivity and 5G networks nearly doubling capacity demands every two years and driving modest incremental revenue for service providers, it is imperative that service providers adopt new generations of optical transmission technology f a s t e r. O p e n o p t i c a l n e t w o r k i n g e n a b l e s s e r v i c e PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 8 providers to have more choice, faster innovation, and improved economics. In addition, pandemic-induced supply chain challenges are pushing service providers toward increased opticalengine diversity to reduce their risk and shorten delivery times. Industry maturity and collaboration with organizations like the Telecom Infra Project’s (TIP) Open Optical & Packet Transport (OOPT) project group are also easing adoption by driving consistency across vendor solutions with standard interfaces and data models. As an example, the TIP OOPT Mandatory Use Cases for SDN Transport subgroup recently initiated its badge evaluation process to demonstrate compliance and interoperability and has made its initial awards. INNOVATIONS IN COHERENT PLUGGABLES ENABLE NEW OPPORTUNITIES Led by 400ZR deployments with internet content providers (ICPs) for sub-120-km data center interconnect, 400G coherent pluggable optics in both QSFP-DD and CFP2 packages have risen from less than 10,000 shipments i n Q 2 2 0 2 1 t o m o re t h a n 5 0 , 0 0 0 u n i t s i n Q 2 2 0 2 2 (source: Cignal Ai). In 2023, look for three incremental innovations to enable more networking opportunities for coherent pluggables and expand their use with both ICPs and communication service providers. F i r s t , h i g h - p e r fo r m a n ce p l u g g a b l e s w i t h 0 - d B m transmit power and low out-of-band noise in QSFP-DD packaging will enable coherent pluggable transceivers to cover a richer set of use cases, including deployment in metro networks with multiple cascaded ROADMs. This increased transceiver performance will also push some pluggables beyond the 600-km metro threshold and into a portion of the long-haul network. Second, advances in intelligent pluggables management, as being defined in the 28-member Open XR Forum and with inputs to other organizations like the OIF, will simplify operational support for advanced functionality like remote diagnostics, auto-discovery, spectrum analysis, and streaming telemetry – bringing transponder-like functionality to all types of non-optical hosts, including WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY switches and routers. Finally, a new class of coherent pluggables will enable commercial deployment of p o i n t-t o - m u l t i p o i n t a r c h i t e c t u r e s , w h e r e a s i n g l e high-speed (e.g., 400G) hub optic can communicate with multiple lower-speed (e.g., 25G to 100G in 25G i n c re m e nt s) o pt i c s w i t h o u t re q u i r i n g i nt e r m e d i a t e electrical aggregation – thus reducing the amount of equipment, space, and power utilized and the total cost of network ownership by up to 70% over multiple years. GREENER AND POWER-EFFICIENT SOLUTIONS INCREASINGLY DRIVE DECISION MAKING With increased focus on power consumption and carbon emissions and their costs and impacts to the planet, 2023 will be a year when power efficiency makes up a key part of the vendor and solution selection process. Multiple service providers have announced ambitious environmental goals. Among them is the European service provider Deutsche Telekom, which is targeting to be climate neutral in terms of its own emissions by 2025 and carbon neutral throughout its value chain by 2040. To a c h i e v e t h e s e f u t u r e t a r g e t s , D T a n d o t h e r environmentally conscious service providers will need to select products and network architectures today that will begin to close the gap. Technology innovations l i ke 4 0 0 G / 1 0 0 G p l u g g a b l e X R o p t i c s t h a t s u p p o r t both high-performance point-to-point and point-tomultipoint network architectures can provide leapfrog or step-function improvements in power and footprint by reducing the number of transceivers by almost 50% and eliminating the need for intermediate electrical aggregation. Together, we can support capacity growth, reimagine the network, and reduce our environmental impact along the way. So, that’s it for this year’s Big 5 predictions. Whether at a trade show, webinar, or meeting, I look forward to seeing you face to face in 2023. I wish you all a safe, healthy, and joyful 2023. Tim Doiron is vice president, solution marketing at Infinera. PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 9 MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONECTED emobstcnialydhwgocetvanridSsp ecn.dtosmhpafrlgvi A mong the measurements of success investors currently use to gauge the value of broadband service providers is the number of homes passed by their networks. The statistic indicates the potential number of customers within a service area, which is valuable, but does little to indicate the number of households that are essentially “revenue ready.” Homes connected is the emerging benchmark for service provider success, providing a precise number as to the number of households that can quickly generate revenue with little to no capital expense involved – in some cases, by simply pressing the Enter button after signing up for service on a web portal. WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY Service providers are going to have to change the way they do installations to become more efficient to move the goalposts from homes passed to homes connected. The work begins by examining the process of making physical connections from the core network to the neighborhood, household, and inside the house. Depending on the age of the neighborhood and the type of fiber deployment, outside work is required to get a fiber connection between the network and the premises, followed by inside work connecting the outside cable inside of the home to connect the optical networking unit. PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 11 The “last foot” work, connecting homes into a fiber network, is typically very labor and craft intensive, requiring cables to be stripped and cut in an unprotected environment, adjusting cable slack storage by hand, s p l i c i n g o n e o r m o re f i b e r s o n - s i t e , a n d i n s t a l l i n g connectors to the ends of fiber. All are time-consuming processes that offer many ways to introduce defects and issues that could require makeup work and additional truck rolls to fix problems before a customer can get up and running. A fast install completed poorly is more costly to a service provider than a more timeconsuming but good install, since it will require one or more truck rolls to fix, while the customer waits for service and the billing department waits to start collecting revenue. In today’s environment with a shortage of manpower, especially in skilled fiber technicians, service providers need to carefully examine their processes, products, and procedures for connecting customers with a keen eye to minimize touch labor at every step of connecting a new household into the network. Simplification is key t o re d u c i n g va l u a b l e o n s i t e t i m e a n d a vo i d i n g introducing defects into the process. The goal is to connect homes as rapidly as possible with working connections from day one. STEPS TOWARD SIMPLIFICATION T i m e s a ve d i n a n e f f i c i e n t a n d q u a l i t y i n s t a l l a t i o n process enables service providers to maximize value out of their available field installation workforce and leads to more installations – more homes connected – per day. The best way to save time is to invest in craft-friendly technologies that are plug-and-play in nature to minimize splicing and other types of touch labor during installation so field teams can be as effective as possible when they are on-site. Using a craft-friendly broadband deployment technology when connecting fiber to the home has been shown to save anywhere between 35% to 38% in direct time savings when compared to the baseline WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY method of inside and outside work performed. The key is in leveraging technology in connection products rather than having to do extra work manually, step by step, in the field. Simplification starts by using a house cable supplied on a flexible deploy reel that contains up to 100 feet of flexible optical cable and by using pre-connectorized cable products for both the drop cable from the outside plant (OSP) network and the house cable that enters the home. Using a prepped deploy reel for the house cable minimizes pre-engineering because there’s no need to specify an exact length of cable needed. The reel enables optical cable to be pulled directly to the entry point of the house. Once the entry cable with its pushable connector reaches the location inside, the connector assembly is completed with supplied connector housings and the connector is mated to an adapter. Since the slack on the reel is already stored, no further slack management is required. THIS PROCESS ELIMINATES THE REQUIREMENT TO SET UP A CONNECTOR INSTALLATION STATION SINCE THE CABLES ARE PRE-CONNECTORIZED – NO FUSS, NO MUSS, NO SPLICING OR PUTTING ON CONNECTORS IN THE FIELD. T h e p re l o a d e d c a b l e re e l e l i m i n a t e s t h e n e e d t o set up a cable payout station to cut house cable to custom length, inserting the cable into the home, and splicing both ends. SURVEY SHOWS THE BENEFITS A large service provider recently commissioned a study to quantify the time saved using the method and technology described above when conducting residential installations, using a baseline of 12 steps for outside and inside work. When compared to a previous baseline study, the craft-friendly broadband deployment method PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 12 saved between 35% to 38% across outside and inside work during a total of 159 installations. The baseline study pointed to several potential failure points using field-installed connectors and fiber cables cut and installed on site. Field-installed connectors had less successful connections, delivered higher optical loss, took more time to install, and required more truck rolls for fixing problems overall. With cables cut in the field and installed onsite, problems can be introduced by cable stripping, fiber cutting and fiber cleaving in an unprotected environment, creating a cable pay-out rig onsite, and relying on a technician to coil slack storage by hand and then fit the slack into the TAP box. U t i l i z i n g c r a f t-f r i e n d l y h a rd wa re , i n c l u d i n g p re connectorized cable products for both the drop cable and the house cable supplied on a deployment reel, m i n i m i ze d p re - e n g i n e e r i n g fo r s p e c i f y i n g a n exa c t length of cable needed and eliminated the need to install connectors in the field or improvise cable slack management for both inside and outside work. This process eliminated the need to set up a connector installation and cable payout stations onsite. Improvements made through using pre-installed connectors included 100% guaranteed performance over field-installed because connectors could be tested both before shipping to the customer and at a depot site for additional assurance before going out into the field. Incorporation of a pre-loaded deployment reel dramatically simplified installation by paying out the exact amount of cable required and provided superior cable management with remaining slack stored safely on the reel rather than forcing a field tech into making slack cable fit into an enclosure. T h e s t u d y f o u n d t h a t c r a f t- f r i e n d l y t e c h n o l o g y saved an average of 39 minutes on outside fiber work and 19 minutes on inside work. The operator running this study found that the cumulative time savings of outside and inside work enabled field technicians to add one and sometimes two additional homes-connected WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY installation appointments per day for each technician – a considerable productivity increase that ultimately led to being able to generate revenue faster by turning up more customers per day. THE TIME IS NOW Fiber broadband networks are going through an unprecedented boom, driven by federal funding from t h e $ 4 2 . 4 5 b i l l i o n B r o a d b a n d E q u i t y, A c c e s s , a n d Deployment (BEAD) Program and aided by other federal and state programs along with private investment. Service providers are going to look for ways to accelerate homes connected, using more efficient technology and methods to reduce and take the best advantage of skilled field teams. Given the urgency to connect homes to generate revenue, faster ways to connect homes is more of a certainty than a prediction for 2023. Kevin Morgan is chief marketing officer of Clearfield, Inc. PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 13 ABOUT THE SPONSOR: RENDER NETWORKS With a successful history of streamlining large-scale network construction, Render’s end-to-end geospatial network construction platform eliminates manual processes for network operators and construction teams by digitizing every detail of the construction project. Each individual task is automated and sequenced, timelines and resources are optimized, and progress is reported to all stakeholders in real-time. The result is an unparalleled level of confidence that every minute, dollar, and resource is maximized with improved visibility and control across infrastructure rollouts. RESOURCES: • https://www.rendernetworks.com/resources/strata-networks • https://www.rendernetworks.com/resources/fiber-providers-feeling-heat-of-inflation • https://www.rendernetworks.com/resources/irby-cecc • https://5136250.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/5136250/Sales%20Enablement%20Assets/ Capability%20Brochure/Render%20Capability%20Guide_October%202022.pdf • https://5136250.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/5136250/eBook_5%20ways%20to%20deploy%20 rural%20broadband%20networks%20smarter.pdf WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 14 ABOUT THE SPONSOR: INFINERA Infinera (Nasdaq: INFN) is a global supplier of innovative open optical networking solutions and advanced optical semiconductors that enable telecommunications service providers, cloud operators, governments, and enterprises to scale network bandwidth, accelerate service innovation, and automate network operations. Infinera solutions deliver industry-leading economics and performance in long-haul, submarine, data center interconnect, and metro transport applications, powered by the world’s most advanced embedded and pluggable optical engines. Our agile, open, compact, and modular networking platforms enable network operators to rapidly and easily take advantage of best-in-class technology. Over 40 years of experience and 1,900+ patents power our carrier-class products and services worldwide. We serve over 1,000 customers, including nine of the top 10 Tier 1 operators and five of the top six internet content providers. To learn more about Infinera, visit www.infinera.com, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, and subscribe for updates. RESOURCES: • ICE6 for Submarine Networks: https://www.infinera.com/solutions/submarine/ • ICE6 Optical Engines: https://www.infinera.com/innovation/ice6-800g-wavelengths/ • Overview of XR Optics: https://www.infinera.com/innovation/xr-optics/ • Blog: Game-changing Innovation for a Greener Planet: https://www.infinera.com/blog/game-changing-innovation-for-a-greener-planet/tag/optical/ • Advanced Coherent Optical Engines and Subsystems: https://www.infinera.com/innovation/optical-semiconductor-fabrication WHAT WILL BE HOT IN 2023? SPONSORED BY PAGES 2-5PAPER DIES, DIGITALIZATION FLIES FOR NETWORK DEPLOYMENT IN 2023 PAGES 7-92023: A YEAR OF PUBLIC INVESTMENTS, NEW INNOVATIONS AND ARCHITECTURES, AND GREENER SOLUTIONS PAGES 11-13MOVING THE GOALPOSTS FROM HOMES PASSED TO HOMES CONNECTED PAGES 14-15 RESOURCES 15