Clearfield(R) Announces 'SmartRoute Troughing' -Enhanced Fiber Management for the Industry-Leading FieldSmart(R)FxDS
Already Leading the Industry in Scalability and Density, the FieldSmart
FxDS
Provides the Ultimate in Cable Route Path Flexibility and Diversity
Chosen as Deployment Platform for One of the Largest
Stimulus-Funded Broadband Projects in History
MINNEAPOLIS, Sept. 13, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Clearfield(R), Inc. (Nasdaq:CLFD), the specialist in fiber management solutions for Fiber to the Premises (FTTp) deployments, today announced the enhancement of the FieldSmart(R) Fiber Crossover Distribution System (FxDS), a custom-configured system of fiber management components that reduces the cost of fiber deployment, while maximizing ease of use and system density. "SmartRoute Troughing" builds upon the FxDS cable management functionality with a sleek method of providing a continuous channel for bay-to-any-bay routing in a safe and efficient manner without increasing jumper lengths. This product will be on display at the FTTH Conference in Las Vegas, Monday, September 13 in Clearfield's Booth #510.
The FieldSmart FxDS is a series of modular components, centered on Clearfield's Clearview Cassette, which provides fully-integrated fiber management for the demands of inside plant deployments -- whether within the central offices of a broadband service provider, the head-ends of a cable operator, or the data center of demanding enterprise environments. Requiring only four SKUs to support hundreds of configurations, users of the FieldSmart FxDS get the ultimate in fiber protection, where it is needed, without the added cost of unnecessary components. Scalable from 12 to 1728 ports across the network, the FxDS supports any application, anywhere.
"Point-to-point networks, in which all access points in the distribution network are now mirrored in one central location, are taxing the methods the industry has conventionally used to manage fiber in the inside plant," said Johnny Hill, chief operating officer for Clearfield. "When thousands of jumpers and the route paths they travel begin to traverse several frames at a time, Clearfield's SmartRoute Troughing feature allows the service provider to carry the distance and weight of these jumpers on a horizontal plane. This spreads the pile-up, and eliminates the long-term effect that cable weight can cause -- namely micro and macro bends."
Smart-Route Troughing Provides Modularity and Flexibility
SmartRoute Troughing uses the same footprint as the existing FieldSmart FxDS frame kit. It can also be easily substituted to allow an additional route path, within the trough, to the rear of the frame where a horizontal trough provides routes in either direction. When used across multiple frames, a continuous channel is created allowing bay-to-any-bay routing in a safe and efficient manner. This does not increase jumper lengths beyond what would normally be used. A jumper leaves the frame from the front-to-the-rear of the SmartRoute and is routed horizontally across the rear channel. It enters rear-to-front of the SmartRoute on the destination frame. Complete utilization of the SmartRoute Trough throughout the FieldSmart FxDS provides for three continuous rear-routing channels across the length of the lineup regardless of the how many frames are deployed.
"We recently switched from a competitive product to the FieldSmart FxDS," explains Kevin Johnson of Granby Telephone, Granby, Missouri. "It had the density and flexibility we were looking for, and at a competitive price. I think Clearfield, itself, is very well-managed and organized. It's big enough to get the job done, yet small enough to be flexible and competitive."
Builds Upon the Fiber Protection Already in Place with the FieldSmart FxDS
The FieldSmart FxDS is dedicated to a 36" x 16" horizontal footprint. With a single part number, it provides all you need to get started. Then, it is multiplied over and over in a lineup (or a series of lineups) to align with your serving area and growth estimates. The FieldSmart FxDS single part number includes a standard 7' frame and all of the necessary components to address all vertical and horizontal cable routing management. Full length "cupboard-style" doors provide for the physical protection, thereby eliminating unnecessary costs of individual front covers and rear boxes that surround the panel. Its full- and open-access to the rear of the frame allows the area behind the interbays to be used for slack storage loops of incoming OSP buffer tubes for patch & splice scenarios. In patch-only environments, this area is used to lace pre-terminated multi-fiber distribution cables as they leave the FxDS frame and route to a fiber entrance cabinet.
Users have the option of purchasing this system fully-loaded or may utilize the grow-as-you-go approach, in which different building block elements are added as the number of homes served increases or take-rates improve. Costs are contained because only the essential protection elements are added based upon the environment served.
FieldSmart FxDS is Part of One of the Largest Stimulus Funded FTTH Projects
Rural Telephone of Lenora, Kansas, was awarded $101 million, one of the largest Broadband Stimulus awards to date, for a three-year FTTH deployment in western Kansas. Clearfield's FieldSmart FxDS will play a major role in the 4,600 square mile deployment, which will cover 23,000 households and businesses in 21 towns.
Rural Telephone Central Office Supervisor Tracer Giess said, "We chose Clearfield's FxDS because it reduced the cost of our overall build. Not having to buy the traditional splice enclosure in the central office, which is very expensive, was significant. The savings, along with the secure management of our fiber jumpers in the central offices, were major factors."
"We've chosen the FieldSmart FxDS because of its ability to grow with us as our networks become increasingly fiber rich," he continued. "We'd recommend the FxDS to any service provider who wants to ensure optimal fiber protection while reducing their cost of deployment."
In addition to the FxDS, Rural Telephone's 11-county FTTH deployment will feature Clearfield's xPAK, Patch & Splice, Active Fiber Management Trough and Vertical Fiber Management technology.
Availability
The FieldSmart FxDS is currently shipping. Please contact your Clearfield representative for more information on ordering for your specific deployment needs.
About Clearview Cassette
As an "Any Application, Anywhere Multiplier," the Clearview Cassette ensures that all the basic principles of fiber management are satisfied without exposure to environmental hazards or human interaction. Integrated cassette components fully nest into the cassette's main-housing to support any application or fiber type desired. Within the cassette, all fibers from the sub-assembly are slack-stored, bend radius protected, and secured against accidental physical damage from handling. Designed to handle the toughest operating environments, the Clearview Cassette provides flexibility and reliable performance in the access network, the central office and in the field.
The Clearview Cassette utilizes a clear outer-housing allowing for quick and easy first step troubleshooting of unacceptable light conditions. Tool-less snap-together nesting covers and a removable 12-pack adapter plate allow for easy access to terminated sub-assemblies for maintenance and cleaning.
About Clearfield, Inc.
Clearfield, Inc. designs the FieldSmart fiber management platform --- the only fiber management platform to be designed around a single architecture for the inside plant, outside plant and access network. Scaling from 12 to 1728 ports, FieldSmart supports a wide range of panel and cabinet configurations, densities, connectors and adapter options, and are offered alongside an assortment of passive optical components. Clearfield provides a complete line of fiber and copper assemblies for inside plant, outside plant and access networks. Clearfield is a public company traded on NASDAQ: CLFD.
The Clearfield, Inc. logo is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=7887
CONTACT: Clearfield, Inc.
Gary Young
612-247-8123
garydyoung@comcast.net
Released September 13, 2010