Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1192126
40 I ICT TODAY One of the key distinctions between conventional cabling and blown fiber is that the initial installa- tion of the tube cable fiber pathway infrastructure is the only time that there will be physical disruption to the OSP and buildings for optical fiber projects. Because the installers blow the fiber bundles in the main distribution frame (MDF) room and intermediate distribution frame (IDF) rooms where the TDUs are typically located, there is no need to ever re- enter the tube cable infrastructure, walls or ceilings. The physically nondisruptive attributes of the blown fiber system may be of interest to healthcare facility customers, espe- cially as it pertains to the infectious control mandates of the infection control risk assessment (ICRA) since dangerous pathogens often lurk in the ceiling tiles. With the blown fiber system, upgrades, MACs, fiber path rerouting and other fiber-related projects can be done anywhere and at any time, discreetly out of view of employees and visitors while preserving the aes- thetic beauty of buildings if that is a pertinent customer goal. It also eliminates overtime fiber projects (e.g., 5:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.), con- struction permits, and vetting large crews for physical and cybersecurity often associated with conventional installations. Because any type of fiber bundles can be blown in and out of the network continuously, there is no end to the fiber and band- width life cycles. Some blown cabling systems may make the above claims as well. Both conventional and blown fiber offer many options for termi- nation of the fibers from single and FIGURE 7: Installation steps in the blown fiber system: Step 1: Create an end-to-end tube cable pathway that consists of tube cable (e.g., OSP, riser, plenum, armored) Step 2: Install/blow the fiber bundle through the tube cable pathway (2, 4, 6, 12, 24, 48, or 72 fiber counts) (e.g., SMF, MMF, LOMM) Step 3: Terminate the fiber bundles at fiber termination units. multi-fiber connectors (e.g., LC, SC, ST and MPO) to splice-on-connector options. Pre-connectorized plug-and- play options are available with con- ventional cabling but are not with the blown fiber system. Whether conventional or blown fiber is used, manufacturers require certified and/or licensed technicians to perform the installations to assure proper techniques are used and for warranties to be validated. In most cases, manufacturers of both require technicians to attend classes to receive these certifications and require that the certifications be renewed at certain intervals to keep the installers up to date on the most current techniques. This is critical in working with any manufacturer as most offer a 20 to 25-year war- ranty on their systems when prop- erly installed.