Fiber supplier OFS and CommScope inked a new eight-year deal that the companies said will ensure enough optical fiber is available for use in CommScope’s customers’ networks.
With the supply of optical fiber, CommScope will be able to develop fiber cabling products to support customers’ fiber build-outs being driven by 5G, FTTx, and N+0 fiber approaches, according to the companies.
“The OFS innovations in fiber optics can support this breadth of reach from fiber for traditional outside plant applications, to 200 micron fiber helping to ease installation in existing crowded duct networks, to bend insensitive fiber to connect the home, businesses and wireless cells,” Pierre Marty, SVP of global marketing and sales at OFS, said in a statement.
OFS is investing to increase its own manufacturing capacity, saying it would support “a multi-sourced contract from our optical fiber facilities in the United States, Europe and Japan.”
In September, OFS parent Furukawa Electric Company announced plans to nearly double its 2016 optical fiber manufacturying capacity by 2019, a company spokesperson noted in an emailed statement.
“However, in order to meet the strong customer demand for optical fiber and optical fiber cable, the Furukawa Eletric board approved $150 million captial spending for further expansion in production primarily in the U.S. and Europe through the optical fiber and cable operations of OFS,” the spokesperson added.
Terms of the deal with CommScope were not disclosed.
“Through this agreement, CommScope secures access to a premier supply of optical fiber for development of innovative fiber cabling products for global wireline and wireless networks,” Jaxon Lang, SVP and Connectivity Solutions segment leader at CommScope, said. “Service providers and enterprises are pushing fiber connectivity deeper into their networks to address the growing need for speed and capacity. We are pleased to continue our relationship with OFS in the supply of optical fiber—it is an important part of our growing fiber connectivity business that supports wireless, broadband, commercial building, campus and data center networks around the world.”