Tied in Knots
Tied in Knots

At the upcoming PowerGen trade event in Orlando (December 11-13, 2012), OFS is proud to demonstrate HCS® (Hard Clad Silica) optical fiber, cable and field termination technology. Unlike telecommunications grade optical fibers, you can tie our products in knots. While we don’t recommend this in practice, seeing it first hand will help you understand just how rugged these industrialized glass optical fibers are. HCS technology was developed for harsh environments like those found in electric utility installations. HCS optical fibers provide enhanced strength when compared to traditional telecommunications optical fibers. Cables produced with HCS fibers are ideal for utility environments where installations in climate controlled buildings cannot be guaranteed. If your installations are subject to fluctuating temperatures, high vibration, industrial chemicals, UV exposure, electrical noise and difficult conditions for connectorizing, HCS may be right for you.

Coupled with the Crimp & Cleave termination system, OFS provides an end-to-end optical link solution that can be learned in minutes.

During PowerGen we will show traditional, step-index HCS products with crimp and cleave connectorization. We will also introduce revolutionary, new GiHCS™ optical fiber products. Building on the legendary harsh condition design of HCS, we now offer a version containing an improved bandwidth graded-index core. Offering both 62.5 and 50 micron core sizes coupled with an enlarged cross-section 200 micron cladding and 230 micron hard coating, GiHCS provides a solution that satisfies harsh condition installations while supporting Fast and Gigabit Ethernet protocols. It’s compatible with industry standard 850 and 1300 nm transceivers making the transition to Ethernet in your utility network easier or more reliable.

Drop by booth 4451 to see how much abuse our HCS optical fibers will take. Tie your own knot with HCS and while you’re there, try your hand at field termination with HCS Crimp & Cleave connector system. Compete in our “Crimp, Cleave & Leave” challenge to win a substantial gift card just in time for the holidays.

Written by,
Mike Hines


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