Pulse Broadband and CommScope drive Lake Region Electric Co-op EPON FTTH trial

Hulbert, OK-based Lake Region Electric Cooperative will embark on a trial of EPON-based fiber to the home (FTTH). Pulse Broadband will design and manage the construction of the FTTH network build, which will use EPON gear from CommScope Inc.

Pulse Broadband will base the network design on a distributed tap architecture, which it says reduces fiber and labor costs during installation as well as subsequent maintenance expenses, particularly in low-density applications. The distributed-tap approach extends four to eight fibers from the central office to “taps” in the field. Single-fiber drops from the taps connect to individual subscribers.

“Our fiber-to-the-home broadband project is all about the commitment we have as an electric cooperative to improving the lives of the members we serve,” stated Hamid Vahdatipour, CEO of Lake Region Electric Cooperative. “Members in our trial area don’t have sufficient high-speed Internet options, so they’ve shown overwhelming support for this initiative. We evaluated several broadband technologies with Pulse Broadband and chose fiber-to-the-home using distributed tap and CommScope’s EPON solutions because the combination provided the bandwidth, scalability, interoperability, and affordability we needed to make this project successful over the long run.”

“We applaud the Lake Region management team and board of directors for having the leadership and foresight to approve a fiber-based solution for their broadband trial,” said Bill Shreffler, CEO at Pulse Broadband. “Lake Region is another compelling example that fiber-to-the-home networks are financially viable for electric cooperatives in rural America.”
CommScope recently announced a new line of GPON and EPON products (see “CommScope launches EPON and GPON product line”).

“We are thrilled that Lake Region will be one of the first electric cooperatives in the United States to take advantage of a combined distributed tap and EPON architecture for their broadband network,” said Ric Johnsen, senior vice president, broadband, CommScope. “Pulse, with its engineering and management expertise, has pioneered making broadband profitable for low-density network operators like Lake Region through this compelling solution. We are pleased to work with them and Lake Region Electric to make broadband services available to the co-op’s customers.”