In only 9 short months, the Marshall FiberNet team has managed to accomplish a tremendous amount of success. Starting in April, we have managed to design and begin construction of a state-of-the-art Fiber to the Premise(FTTP) network. This effort involved the extensive site analysis and careful engineering studies that go into the final design and construction process required before each individual “phase of construction” can be bid, awarded, and completed.
So far, the FiberNet project has completed the “backbone” phase of the project, and is nearing the halfway mark of the second phase, which we call “Aerial-East”. This name derives from the construction associated with building a network that is mounted on utility poles. This is typical of construction throughout a substantial portion of the city as opposed to areas where the network will follow underground routes. The Aerial-East phase covers approximately 40% of the entire city.
Some fun facts about the network construction so far include: Over 12 miles of Fiber Optic cable have been placed. Over 3 miles of “laterals and terminals” have been placed, and 3 separate “electronics hub-sites” have been built and activated. These fundamental building block steps will be repeated throughout each subsequent phase of the project, eventually allowing for ultra-high speed fiber connectivity available to every premise within the city limits.
Many people are naturally wondering “When can I start service at my house/business?” An excellent question, one for which there are a few different factors unique to almost everyone. The first factor is “Where do you live?” This determines which phase of construction will bring the network to you. As mentioned, we are in the first of two aerial phases, which will be followed by the second aerial and the “underground” phases. Laid over the top of those phases will be the downtown business area and the tie-ins included in that section. The second factor is determined by answering “Is the network complete to your neighborhood?” Our construction partners have been criss-crossing several neighborhoods routinely during the many steps involved, but until everything is in place and connected, we can’t complete the last steps of installation. The good news there, is that starting January 2nd, we will be welcoming into the FiberNet department two outstanding individuals as installation/customer service technicians! These gentlemen will be setting a very high standard for customer service and technical installation practices. They are as eager to complete the final steps as you are!
In conclusion, we have approximately 30 more miles of fiber and laterals to install, and 24 more electronics sites to place around the city. We will build upon the 7 “beta” customers that we have online at the moment, and be going full force installing customers within the next few weeks. Marshall FiberNet looks to have the bulk of all installations substantially completed by the end of 2018. We cannot thank the people and business community of Marshall enough for your continued support and patience! We firmly believe it will be well worth the wait!