TecHnoLoGy - Broadband Properties

Charles Industrieswww.charlesindustries.com847-806-6300San Jose, California, Cisco reported revenues of $34.9 billionin 2007, up from $28.5 billion in 2006.Key Products: Outside plant fiber optic distribution pedestalsand enclosures, extended-reach DSL systemsSummary: Charles Industries designs and manufactures burieddistribution pedestals for fiber optic applications. The companyintroduced nonmetallic fiber pedestals to the industry in2001 and has continued to provide new solutions for virtuallyall fiber deployment architectures. Charles Fiber DistributionPoint (CFDP) pedestals offer GR-771-compliant closedarchitecture protection of both ribbon fiber and loose buffertube fiber. CFDP pedestals can accommodate loop-throughand stub-out distribution cable, branch and drop splices, andfusion, mechanical or preconnectorized splicing. BDO openarchitecturefiber pedestals offer a lower-cost alternative forcost-conscious deployments. Charles Industries, which is headquarteredin Rolling Meadows, Illinois, has about 500 employeesand manufactures all of its products in five US facilities.Cisco Systemswww.cisco.com770-236-5000Key Products: Ethernet equipment and a new DOCSIS-PONarchitecture for fiber-to-the-home deployments; digital set-topboxes and accessories, cable modems, headend equipment andaddressable network management systemsSummary: Cisco Systems has long provided much of theequipment that supports the Internet backbone, but in the lasttwo years it has moved into the access network as well. Cisco’sE-FTTH (Ethernet fiber to the home) solution, which hasbeen deployed by several European providers, includes Ethernetaccess switches, aggregation routers and optical networkterminals. Cisco SPVTG (Service Provider Video TechnologyGroup), formerly Scientific Atlanta, also supplies set-topboxes and cable modems, transmission networks for homebroadband access, and digital interactive subscriber systems forvideo, high-speed Internet and VoIP networks. SPVTG is focusedon the convergence of the PC and TV and is extendingmultimedia broadband applications to new platforms. In April,SPVTG introduced tru2way hardware and software, includingits Digital Network Control System Release 4.0 series, Axiommiddleware implementation and set-top boxes. Last month,the company announced new compact, high-density PrismaII optics products to improve the performance of existing fiberin cable networks as well as a new DOCSIS Passive OpticalNetwork (D-PON) architecture that is intended to help cableoperators upgrade to FTTH technology. Headquartered in26 Clearfield Inc.www.clearfieldconnection.com763-476-6866Key Products: Fiber optic management and associated componentsfor independent and rural telcos, cable TV providers,utilities and municipal networksSummary: Clearfield provides fiber management and connectivitysystems for independent telephone, cable televisionand municipal networks. Clearfield, formerly APA Cables &Networks, designs and manufactures the FieldSmart fibermanagement platform, which includes its latest-generation FiberDistribution System (FDS) and Fiber Scalability Center(FSC). The FDS and FSC product lines support a wide range ofpanel configurations, densities, connectors and adapter optionsand are offered alongside an assortment of passive optical components.Clearfield provides a complete line of fiber and copperassemblies for controlled and outside plant environments.Products are designed for optical performance, harsh environmentperformance, stability and port density. Headquarteredin Plymouth, Minnesota, the company has customers that includemore than 400 rural ILECs, MSOs, utilities, municipalitiesand enterprises. Clearfield had revenues of $20.7 million in2007 with 110 employees.CommScopewww.commscope.com800-982-1708Key Products: Cable and connectivity products includingfiber enclosures, hybrid fiber coaxial cable, fiber optic andwireless integration productsSummary: Founded in 1953 as a telephone cable company andnow a member of the NYSE, CommScope had 2007 revenuesof $1.93 billion and is a leader in the design and manufacture offirst-mile cable and connectivity solutions for communicationsnetworks. It is also the world’s largest manufacturer of coaxialcable for hybrid fiber-coax (HFC) applications. Backed by strongresearch and development, CommScope combines technical expertiseand proprietary technology with global manufacturingcapability to provide customers with high-performance wiredand wireless cabling solutions. CommScope has five major manufacturingfacilities in North Carolina and additional facilitiesin Alabama, Nevada, Texas, Brazil, Belgium, Australia, IrelandJuly 2008 | www.broadbandproperties.com | BROADBAND PROPERTIES | 51