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Above: This is a fiber splicing junction in an IDF, where a fiber trunk is
spliced to the home-run drop fibers going to the units.
Above: A chassis of 1x32-way optical splitters (that is, with one line in and
32 out). Each output fiber carries phone, cable, and Internet, and eventually
feeds an ONT in each living unit.
From the SWB in the unit, we
have home-run wires to each wall
plate using one coax, one Ethernet
and one phone cable. There are
as many as eight wall plates within
a unit.
Why did you choose this distribution architecture?
Stability, flexibility, future
proofing and redundancy.
What is the FTTH technology and who’s
the electronics vendor? This is a fiberto-the-unit
framework, deployed
over PON equipment from Calix.
Are you using MDU or SFU ONTs? We
deployed the Calix 720G ONT,
which is a single-family unit. Each
home has its own ONT with one
Ethernet port, two phone ports and
one cable port. The cable port feeds
an 8-way splitter, and each phone
port feeds all drops within the unit.
The Ethernet port is preconnected to
the kitchen jack.
How was the technology installed to reduce
cost and protect the aesthetic? All cabling
is within riser closets, hallway
drop ceilings, and free wired in the
walls to the structured wiring box
during preconstruction.
Have you provided wireless signals within
units, or are residents free to set up
their own wireless access points? Broad-
Star wireless service is offered in the
common areas, and owners have the
The structured wiring box located in each unit
contains the ONT, battery backup, fiber tray, coax
splitter, phone punch-down board and blue Cat
5 Ethernet cable running to the wallplates.
option of adding their own wireless
router within their units. When
that’s the case, we try to educate the
customer on password-protecting
their connection.
How much square footage did you have
to dedicate to the network inside the
building? Could closets be shared with
other utilities, or did you need to create
a dedicated maintenance space? Our
headend space is a dedicated room
that’s about 10’x 15.’ Our IDF space
is shared and only takes 3’ x 3’ of
wall space.
If your property has multiple buildings, is
the network distributed between them
via aerial or underground means, or
both? Two 4-inch underground conduits
have been laid to connect the
two towers when complete.
Services
Does the building have triple play services?
Yes.
Can residents subscribe to IPTV?
Russell Bell: No, but the distribution is
capable of offering it. We have chosen
to provide a digital QAM service
offered through Dish Network. We
went in this direction because they
offer a larger selection of ethnic programming,
and because the technology
can be serviced by a traditional
cable technician who doesn’t have to
be trained in IP networking – which
translates into lower overall service
costs to BroadStar for the network
as a whole.
The upgrade option supports
standard and hi-def receivers, as well
as standard and hi-def DVR/receivers.
The equipment cost and time to
26 | BROADBAND PROPERTIES | www.broadbandproperties.com | April 2009