3M Extending the Life of Your Copper Network
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Transcript of 3M Extending the Life of Your Copper Network
Extending the Life of Your Copper Network Through Physical Layer SolutionsBy Rob Mertz, Marketing Manager, 3M Communication Markets Division
Business White Paper
2 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
Table of ContentsIntroduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Next Generation Network (NGN): Vision versus Today’s Realities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
An Evolution of the Embedded Copper Network . . . .
Expansion and Rehabilitation Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . .
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
The increasing popularity of enhanced services presents
an exciting opportunity and a considerable challenge
for telecommunications services providers. Customer
demand, stiff competition from cable operators, and the
decline of voice revenues have made enhanced services
offerings mandatory. But when it comes time to add the
capacity needed to deploy broadband services, many
telcos have discovered that the costs can be staggering.
This white paper presents an innovative and field-tested
approach developed by 3M as an alternative to the costly
and time consuming practice of hot-swapping existing
cabinets and contents for all new components to deploy
enhanced services. The method, involving cabinet
expansions and rehabilitation, extends the value of legacy
investments and helps to significantly reduce the time
and money needed to bring enhanced customer services
to market.
Introduction
4 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom4 3M Communication Markets Division
During the early 2000s, fiber was considered one of the
the primary mechanisms for broadband access, and that
fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network architecture was the
means of delivering the increased bandwidth needed
for enhanced services. Advocates of NGN and FTTH
envisioned building an entirely new communications
infrastructure -- installing fiber in new developments
and elsewhere, replacing the existing copper
infrastructure upon which the telecommunications
industry was established.
Experts believed that creating an all-fiber infrastructure
would serve to link the country in the same way that
copper wires and phone linked previous generations
of Americans from coast to coast. But demand and
economic realities have intervened in ways that could
not have been imagined a decade ago.
“Last Mile” fiber infrastructure build is a
costly proposition for even the world’s largest
telecommunications services providers. Running fiber
through a typical American neighborhood can run
between $500 and $700 per home – and sometimes
higher than that, according to numerous industry
reports. In addition, telcos incur more costs to install
and connect each subscriber to an FTTH network
plus central office upgrades and other fiber-based
improvements. (In Europe, the cost to deploy FTTH is
nearly double the US figures, according to studies by
Analysys Mason and AT Kearney.)
But homes “passed” doesn’t necessarily equate to “take
up” rate. Unlike the era in which the copper network
was built, today’s customers have many communications
options. Running fiber can be a highly speculative
prospect, especially given the ferocious competitive
climate within the industry.
Companies that decided to invest in creating a fiber
network have quickly discovered that the material
and labor expenses can rack up quickly, particularly
in established neighborhoods. Hot-swapping existing
cabinets is an expensive, time intensive, and potentially
perilous process for telcos. A significant investment
in time and money – beyond that already anticipated
for fiber runs and hot-swaps – is required to resolve
permitting, community restrictions, and right-of-way
issues before any work can even begin.
Importantly, the overall return on a hefty investment in
FTTH can be suppressed due to its speculative nature.
Depending on the short-term take up rate, the teleco’s
return on investment may quite possibly be pushed out
far into the future.
Next Generation Network (NGN): Vision versus Today’s Realities
5 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
Telcos face an ongoing struggle to keep up with an
ever-growing need for capacity. Once defined simply
as Internet access, enhanced services as a category has
exploded. The market for enhanced services is in its
infancy in terms of adoption and development. It’s a
marketplace limited only by our collective imagination.
Social networking, cloud computing, high-speed file
transfers, and streaming audio and video have changed
the way bandwidth is used. Customers are increasingly
demanding the same speeds and quality as they might
experience in the workplace.
With current and potential customers clamoring for
enhanced services, planning for an all-fiber future and
delaying deployment can be disastrous to a company’s
immediate and short-term goals as well as its long-
term prospects. Today’s customers are not accustomed
to delays. Telcos who leave customers waiting are
vulnerable to competitive poaching, putting revenue
generation and infrastructure investments at an even
higher risk. Managing cost and delivery of an evolving
set of new services is a critical challenge.
The ability of telcos to deploy services quickly has become
both a business imperative and a key survival strategy.
Speed is therefore crucial. To help ensure a strong return
on investment, deployment cost must be minimized and
the revenue stream must be established quickly.
Unlike 20th century customers who had no other option
but to wait until phone lines were installed from a single
company, today’s customers have many choices. The
time lag between infrastructure and subscriber order
must be minimal.
To reduce costs and increase speed to market, more
and more companies are choosing an innovative yet
commonsense approach to meeting consumer demand:
expanding and rehabbing existing cross-connect
cabinets. The concept of broadband over copper may
seem counter-intuitive, given the initial vision for FTTH
and the resulting views of the value of the embedded
copper network in today’s high-speed world. For a
growing number of telcos, however, leveraging the
existing copper network is an ideal technological and
economic solution.
Why copper? Because it’s already there.
NGN Challenge: Address Market-Driven Business Considerations
6 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
An Evolution of the Embedded Copper Network
Broadband Over Copper Network: Key Advantages•Reducedcapitalexpense•Loweroperatingexpense•Quickerdeployment•Fasterspeed-to-market•Fasterrevenuestream
establishment•Increasedrevenue•Increasedreturnoninvestment•Quickerrecaptureof
deployment costs•Competitiveadvantage
Replacing the existing network entirely
with fiber has become so costly and time-
consuming that many telecommunications
services providers have begun to pursue
alternatives to fiber, including copper and
a hybrid architecture: fiber-to-the-node
(FTTN). This approach enables operators
to use copper-based “last mile” links
and xDSL technology. Because of the
industry’s recent fixation on fiber, many
companies do not realize that advances in
copper technology and related software
have been, and continue to be, vigorously
pursued.
An international consortium led by ECI
Telecom was formed in 2007 to develop
technology that would boost DSL speeds
using Dynamic Spectrum Management
as a future evolution of broadband
access networks using existing copper
infrastructure. Experts such as Stanford
University professor John Cioffi, a DSM
research pioneers has argued that copper
has more available bandwidth than
fiber, but its capacity isn’t being utilized
properly.
In 2004, Cioffi and others at Stanford,
joined by Mung Chiang at Princeton,
Alexander Fraser at Fraser Research Lab,
and industry partners, began FAST Copper,
a multi-year project funded by the U.S.
National Science Foundation. The goal
of the project is to substantially improve
the rate, reach, reliability, and quality in
copper-based “last mile” broadband access
to everyone with a phone line. The team
realized that ubiquitous access to everyone
across America is a formidable task, given
technical and socio-economic challenges,
and proposes leveraging the “installed
copper plant.” The team’s overall solution
is a hybrid fiber/DSL deployment “where
fiber is pushed into the access network but
copper takes over the last mile, thereby
utilizing the best of ubiquity, broadband,
reliability, and economic viability.”
Advances have enabled copper to deliver
at previously unimaginable speeds.
According to a company news release
in 2010, Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs
successfully demonstrated a technology
that boosts the transmission speeds
achievable over just two digital subscriber
lines, delivering 300 Megabits per second.
“At these speeds, service providers will be
able to maximize the ability of the existing
copper infrastructure – widely deployed
around the world – to satisfy demand for
bandwidth-intense residential triple-play
and business services, for years to come,”
the release announced. Copper speeds will
likely continue to increase.
7 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
Pushing the last mile through copper elevates the
importance and value of the existing cross-connect block
and cabinet. Substantial time and significant cost savings
are derived from expanding and retrofitting cabinets,
rather than completing expensive cutovers that involve
removing everything from the pad, positioning a new
box with new blocks and other components, and splicing
and jumpering of the new blocks. The cross-connect is
the crucial element in leveraging the copper network to
deliver enhanced services.
The vast majority of cross-connect cabinets in the field
are good candidates for cost-saving rehab and expansion.
Some already have enough pair count to support the
DSL application. About a third of the cabinets must
be expanded, according to Matt Gillette, executive
vice president of Pearce Services, Inc. (PSI). PSI is a
Contractor that specializes in the repair, replacement,
expansion, relocation, and servicing of telephone cross-
connect cabinets. Since 2007, the company has completed
about 3,000 rehab and expansion projects a year and
estimates rehabbing and expansion, rather than hot-
swapping, saved at least one PSI customer, a major telco,
$9 million per year for the past four years.
Every expansion and rehab project presents unique
challenges that require a tailored solution. But in basic
terms, rehabbing leaves the existing block in place, adds
an expansion block where needed, and increases pair
count to support the broadband offering. The cabinet’s
internal compartment capacity is often increased by
using components that reduce space requirements by up
to 50 percent.
Expansion and rehab is about half the cost of a full
cut-over. The solution accelerates time to market and
requires far fewer labor hours to accomplish. Because the
expanded and retrofitted cabinet sits within essentially
the same footprint, right-of-way and permitting issues
are virtually eliminated. Overall, the solution provides a
competitive advantage because customers do not have to
wait as long as they would for an all-fiber solution. Using
the existing copper network also permits the solution to
be quickly and efficiently deployed to a larger number of
customers.
Expansions are accomplished within the original
footprint by adding an extension that increases
the cabinet’s height or width and interior space.
Accomplishing the expansion usually requires little to
no splicing or jumpering. Given that some cabinets
in the field date back 30 or more years, expansion and
rehab might not be feasible in all situations. Designing
and engineering the right solution for each site takes
experience and an understanding of technical and
business challenges.
Successful DSL deployment over copper at the cross-
connect cabinet is dependent upon many factors. These
include:
• DistancefromtheDSLAM;half-tapsplices,embeddedcable conditions, and other electronics on line
• Qualityofpremisework
• Requiredpaircountversusexistingpaircount;projectedgrowth in pair count to support broadband offering
• A site evaluation to include condition of cable, existing count, general existing capability and environment
• An examination of the existing infrastructure to support the cabinet, including pads and other supporting structures
• Localcodes:permitsandotherregulatorysteps
• Evaluation of current infrastructure’s ability to support existing services and an examination of service records
• Locationevaluation,whichmayrevealparticularneedsasto cabinet size or aesthetic considerations
• Understanding of the business case: how many homes aretobepassedandwhatistheplannedtake-uprate?
• Laborevaluation:willcontractorsorcompanypersonnelbeusedforcabinetplacement,splicingandjumpering?
• Identification of rehab or expansion solution for the specific location – by the block, by the frame, or by the cabinet
Application Considerations for DSL Deployment
8 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
CabinetexpansionforremoteDSLAMinjection
The overriding goal in selecting an expansion and rehab cabinet is to ensure the integrity of the original cabinet and/or
base and copper components. The cabinets must open from the front fully, slide into place, and should include discreet
port or bread pan cabling solutions. Optional expansion/RHB blocks and frames enable the installation to be conducted
block-at-a-time or frame-at-a-time.
Pad mount conversion cabinets and kits are designed to increase pair count. The cabinets can be expanded in either
height or width, and may be expanded from single sided to double sided cabinets. Selecting expansion and rehab
products that are designed to upgrade cross-connect pair count in a manufacturer’s cabinet is crucial. This is a best
practice that helps to provide cost-effectiveness as well as installation efficiencies.
9 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
900-pairexpansionframe/blocksontopand side of cabinet
Retainedtheexisting1800-pairframe/blocks with no interruption of service
Existing frame mounted in a new cabinet
PadMountExpansionCabinet–Existing1800-paircabinetwitha900-pairexpansion
Expansion and Rehabilitation Gallery
1800-pairexpansionframe/blocks;900-pairperside
Retainedtheexisting3600-pairframe/blocks with no interruption of service
Existing frame mounted in a new cabinet
Utilizes the existing pad
PadMountExpansionCabinet–Existing3600-pair,double-sidedcabinetwithan1800-pairexpansion
10 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
900-pairfutureexpansionframeonsideof cabinet
Maintaintheswingoutframes/jumpersandaccess to splice chamber
Retainedexisting1200-pairframe/blockswith no interruption of service
Utilizes the existing pad
PadMountExpansionCabinet–Existing900-paircabinetwitha900-pairexpansion
900-pairexpansionframe/blocksontopand side of cabinet
Maintaintheswingoutframes/jumpersandaccess to splice chamber
Retainedexisting1200-pairframe/blockswith no interruption of service
PadMountExpansionCabinet–Existing1200-paircabinetwitha900-pairfutureexpansion
400-pairexpansionframe/blocks
Retainedtheexisting900-pairframe/blockswith no interruption of service
Expansion kit added to existing cabinet, maintaining features of the existing cabinet
PadMountExpansionCabinet–Existing900-paircabinetwitha400-pairexpansion
11 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
Retainedtheexisting600-pairframe/blockswith no interruption of service
300-pairexpansionblocksaddedtothetop&bottom of cabinet
Existing frame mounted in a new cabinet
Retainedtheexisting600-pairframe/blockswith no interruption of service
750-pairexpansionframe&blocksaddedtothe side of cabinet
Existing frame mounted in a new cabinet
PoleMountExpansionCabinet–Existing600-paircabinetwitha750-pairexpansion
PoleMountExpansionCabinet–ExistingFullyoperationalXPcabinetwith1200-pairexpansion
12 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
FullyoperationalXPcabinetwith1200pairexpansion FinishedProduct
13 3M Communication Markets Division www.3M.com/Telecom
SummaryExpansion cross-connect solutions enable network operators to focus broadband investment toward
services that help increase revenue in one of the fastest and least expensive ways. Key benefits of
expansion and rehabilitation of cross-connect cabinets to leverage the copper network include:
• Substantially reduced labor, material, and other related costs typically associated with cutovers
• Fastertimetomarketandreducedwaitforcustomers,whichprovidesacompetitiveadvantageinthemarketplace
• Virtuallyeliminatesoftencostlyandtimeconsumingright-of-wayandpermittingissues
• Improves and accelerates return on investment prospects
• Helps to deliver enhanced services to more people in more places
Accelerate broadband network deployment and improve speed-to-market by empowering your existing
copper infrastructure to quickly and cost-effectively deliver broadband services customers demand.
References1. “FAST Copper for Broadband Access” by Mung Chiang, Jianwei Huang, Dahai Xu, Yung
Yi, Chee Wei Tan, Raphael Cendrillon, Electrical Engineering Department, Princeton University, Marvell Semiconductors. 2005-2006 overview paper.
2. “Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs achieves industry first: 300 Megabits per second over just two traditional DSL lines.” News release issued by the Alcatel-Lucent Press Office, Paris, April 2010.
3. “The Costs of Deploying Fibre-Based Next-Generation Broadband Infrastructure.” Study conducted by Analysys Mason, commissioned by the Broadband Stakeholder Group. September 2008.
4. Study for the Hellenic Ministry of Transport and Communications, AT Kearney. May 2008.
5. “Broadband 2.0: How Technology and Economics Make Copper Ideal for the Next Wve of Advanced Services,” Ikanos Communications. 2010.
6. “Want broadband access? Save copper infrastructure” by Heather Burnett Gold, senior vice president of external affairs for XO Communications. The Hill, July 26, 2010
7. “BSG publishes costs of deploying fibre based superfast broadband.” News release issued by Broadband Stakeholder Group, September 8, 2008.
8. “Cable vs. Fiber” by Catherine Yang, Tom Lowry, Roger O. Crockett, Peter Burrows, and bureau reports. Bloomberg Businessweek, November 1, 2004.
9. “‘Last mile’ broadband access key to small-business growth” by Carl J. Grivner. The Hill, January 25, 2010.
10. “Copper wire as fast as fiber?” by Nate Anderson. Arstechnica.com, October 2006.
11. “Fiber-optic speeds achieved over copper lines” by technology/telecom staff reporters. Physorg.com, April 28, 2010.
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3
Communication Markets Division6801 River Place Blvd.Austin,TX78726-9000800/426 8688Fax800/6260329www.3M.com/Telecom
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