OPtical LAN for California apartments

TE Connectivity has teamed up with Qypsys, a premier infrastructure integrator, and Zhone Technologies, a global leader in fibre access transformation, to deploy TE’s Optical LAN Solution for residential high-speed internet access at Park Square at Seven Oaks. This newly completed 224-unit upscale apartment development in Bakersfield, Calif. offers an innovative, micro-community based broadband model, where residents pay a flat monthly fee of $25, without the hassles of signing up for service, waiting for an installer or committing to long-term contracts.

“The gigabit speed of the network ignites an incredible ‘wow’ reaction, and that’s saying a lot because many of our residents are tech-savvy professionals, consultants and telecommuters,” says Andrew Fuller, president of Fuller Apartment Homes and principal at Presidio Capital Partners. “Park Square at Seven Oaks is conveniently located with easy access to top-line amenities including the Seven Oaks’ Country Club with its 27-hole championship golf course, schools, hospitals, and restaurants. On top of this, we’ve built a turbo-charged, instantly accessible information superhighway to our residents’ doorstep – and lowered their toll fee in the process.”

For Heather Gold, president of the FTTH Council, the positive reaction to fibre-based broadband is not surprising. “Location may be key in real estate, but we’ve found that having fibre to the home increases the value of a $300,000 home by $5,300 to $6,500,” she said. “Residents and homeowners clearly recognise and appreciate the value of ultra-fast broadband.”

“Fibre optic networks are fast becoming the gold standard both at work and at home,” says Alan Bertsch, president of Qypsys. “Wireless networks such as Wi-Fi and 4G distributed antenna systems also use fibre to carry the traffic from smartphones and tablets. Fuller Apartment Homes is unique in that they build, operate and maintain the network themselves, and in doing so, pass on the savings to their residents. The technology is future-proof and the business model gives them a true competitive advantage.”

The TE Optical LAN Solution (OLS) is perfectly suited for the sprawling 14-acre Park Square at Seven Oaks community environment because fibre optics have a 12.5 mile reach, compared to 300 feet for a traditional copper cabling solution. “TE’s OLS has many advantages. Besides unparalleled reach and speed, it can save up to 50 percent in equipment costs, 66 percent in power consumption and 80 percent in space requirements, compared to a traditional copper LAN network,” says Jaxon Lang, vice president and general manager, Broadband Network Solutions at TE Connectivity.