Prysmian Group received “R&D Award” by IATT

Prysmian received the award "Research & Development Award" for the project FlexTube, which the jury found "the most prestigious because it scored a world record in broadband telecommunications".

IATT promotes the advancement of scientific and technical knowledge in the field of trenchless (no-dig) technology by facilitating the spread of the technology among Government Organization, Network agencies, Universities, Companies, and among technicians and researchers. Its members include Italy’s largest network agencies, universities, research institutions, manufacturers of no-dig systems, such as Prysmian, specialised firms, consultants and industry professionals that are contributing to the spread of no-dig culture in Italy and elsewhere, through direct, constructive dialogue.

IATT is an affiliate of the international association ISTT – International Society for Trenchless Technology (based in London) – whose members include 26 associations representing 30 countries in Europe and the rest of the world.

Prysmian took part in the competition with four projects that in the last two years innovated the cable sector or considerably modernised production systems. These were:

• "Fast Track" Project – the Prysmian Group’s first "Factory 4.0" project in its optical cable plant in Calais (France). This project represents a step forward in the implementation of the "Fast Forward Operations" programme, aimed at creating smarter plants through leveraging on the interaction between digital knowledge and human expertise.

• P-Laser System 600 kV – Prysmian has launched a breakthrough cable technology for the development of power transmission grids that ensure higher electrical performances, lower costs and better environmental sustainability.

• Pry-Cam Products – this is the Prysmian Group's revolutionary technology for power grids condition assessment and asset management. It allows partial discharge measurements, diagnosis and defect localization, in order to get in-depth information on assets’ conditions: all of this allows to increase uptime, asset longevity and safety, while reducing maintenance costs and risks.

• FlexTube underwater cable – this is the highest fibre count underwater optical cable ever made and is yet another world record for broadband networks bearing the Prysmian Group name. FlexTube cable contains 1,728 optical fibres and provides the broadband connection to Hong Kong.

"Flextube is the integrating product that has been conceived for future, highly distributed optical networks, with a vision that looks well beyond current standards and pushes toward next-generation infrastructures"

stated Claudio Moscardo, Business Director Telecom Solution of Prysmian Cavi e Sistemi Italia.

"Our mission is to innovate constantly both in the cable industry and our production systems, with a strong focus on sustainability. Optimising processes while making the best use of people’s skills, producing increasingly high-performance cables using sustainable materials and creating monitoring systems that do not disrupt the supply of power to our customers: all of these things define the Prysmian Group"

commented — after receiving the award — Carlo Scarlata, Chief Commercial Officer of Prysmian Cavi e Sistemi Italia.