OCTOBER 15, 2008 -- Kabel-X USA (search for Kabel-X), the North American arm of Austria-based Kabel-X, has brought to the U.S. its parent company's process removing and replacing copper coax cable with fiber. The process significantly cuts maintenance costs and procedures, while also providing operators a conduit through which they can easily deploy upgraded fiber-optic cabling without excavation and replacement of existing lines, according to the company.
Lightwave interviewed Kabel-X USA President and CEO Joby Upton at the recent FTTH Conference in Nashville, TN. (See video here.)
Upton said that Kabel-X has successfully trialed its proprietary technology with many of the country's top cable operators, to positive response.
The Kabel-X process provides a fiber pathway that converts hundreds of feet per pull. The company says its process is ideally suited for a variety of applications, including fiber-deep network build-outs, challenging crossings or pathways, and vertical high rises and other MDUs.
The process uses a proprietary lubricant under pressure to separate the dielectric within the coax cable from the outer aluminum shield. The dielectric and center conductor are quickly pulled out, leaving an empty conduit for easy replacement, repair, or fiber upgrade. This process expedites installation time, minimizes costs, requires minimal new permits to be pulled, and simplifies a once expensive and inconvenient process, according to the company.
As a result, cable-TV providers can quickly deploy high-bandwidth fiber-optic facilities within their existing plant. Outdated copper conductors that are buried, aerial or underground are re-cored with new cable using this patented process, which Kabel-X USA asserts provides a faster, more convenient, less destructive, and less labor-intensive alternative to traditional fiber cable placement techniques.
"Cable service providers have been looking for cost-effective and less intrusive construction alternatives to line excavation and replacement for a long time," said Darin Clause, executive vice president for Kabel-X USA. "Whether to the node, pole, or beyond, Kabel-X technology removes line access costs and hassles by leveraging the most efficient and minimally disruptive cable conversion process on the market."
Kabel-X says its copper/coaxial cable replacement method has been used in over 120 countries in the last four years.
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