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PRYSMIAN GROUP | DIRECTORS’ REPORT
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monitoring systems and will be included, in a simplified version, in the control software of the
Pry-Cam®
Portable
system.
Achievements in the Telecom business are described below.
Optical Fibre
.
In the field of single-mode optical fibre, several of the Group's factories were made ready for
full production of bend-resistant BendBrightXS fibres (BBXS), which have much better micro- and macro-
bending performances than competitor products. Its bending performance and small diameter allow this fibre
to be used in the manufacture of smaller cables used in the different layers of FTTH (Fibre To The Home)
networks. A number of improvements were also made at several factories, leading to a significant reduction
in fibre production costs.
In the area of multimode fibre, WideCAP OM4 has confirmed Prysmian Group's leadership in this sector.
This fibre is capable of supporting four 25Gb channels or even four 50Gb channels with wavelength-division
multiplexing from 850 nm to 950 nm. The international standard-setting committees have adopted this fibre
in a record time, which will help reduce the number of 40, 100 and 400 Gb/s cables used within data centres.
Another important innovation was made using "Few Mode" fibre technology. In the same way that digital
information is encoded and travels on a single mode of light with single-mode technology, with "Few Mode"
technology several individual light modes are able to transmit the digital information. The first 4-LP-Mode
fibres are now being tested by academic laboratories and small companies. Preliminary transmission trials
with different partners have been successful in the fields of Datacom (100Gb systems with 10G signals
transmitted at a 1310 nm wavelength for each single mode) and access networks (PON, Passive Optical
Network, at 1310 nm).
Optical Cables
.
In the field of optical cables, the technology used in the Flextube cable family has proved the
most efficient for optimising and reducing the size of high-fibre-count cables. In addition to Flextube micro-
module technology, another success factor has been BendBrightXS 200 micron fibre. The 23 mm 1728-fibre
cable with 4.2 fibres per mm² already in this family has been joined by a new 2112-fibre version. These
products are an excellent solution for use in ducts congested with other cables. A typical field of application
is for connections between mega data centres. New types of "nano cables" have also been developed using
"micropipe" technology and BendBrightXS 200 micron fibre. A record density of more than 5 fibres per mm²
has been achieved in the 96 to 288 fibre cable range. This allows a considerable reduction in the diameter of
ducts in which cables are installed using blown technology, resulting in a considerable reduction in space
occupied.
Our platform for dry/dry technology has been further expanded with the development of reduced diameter
ribbon cables specially for the Australian market, of new series of dry/dry Flextube cables and bufferless pipe
cables in South America, of a new 864-fibre central pipe cable based on a 36-fibre ribbon in North America,
and 1728-fibre applications for data centres.
These developments reflect the need for ever shorter installation times, thus reducing overall installation
costs.