Corning’s new Trivium manufacturing campus in Hickory, NC, USA. [Image: Corning Inc.] [Enlarge image]
At the end of March, the US Department of Commerce (DoC) announced a significant uptick in US fiber optic cable production, spearheaded by the activities of two major fiber and communications firms, CommScope and Corning Inc.
DoC noted in particular that the two firms are investing nearly US$550 million in manufacturing capacity in the area of Hickory, NC. Those moves, according the department, will create “hundreds of new jobs in America to build the fiber optic cables that will help close the digital divide.”
Infrastructure meets “Internet for All”
The expanded fiber investment flows in large part from two signature initiatives of the Biden administration. One is the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the behemoth five-year, US$550 billion measure billed by the government as “the largest long-term investment in our infrastructure and economy in our nation’s history.” Among other things, the infrastructure law requires the use of “made in America” materials for federally funded infrastructure, including material for broadband internet deployment.
The other component is the administration’s US$65 billion Internet for All initiative, a key objective of which is helping to “close the digital divide” across the US—where, according to the administration, some 24 million households lack internet access. The Internet for All initiative seeks to address that gap through a variety of grant programs to fund planning, infrastructure and adoption efforts, especially in rural areas.
Making cable for rural deployments
For its part, CommScope announced that it would make a US$47 million investment to boost fiber optic cable production capacity at its two North Carolina production facilities. The increases will focus on production of the company’s HeliARC line of small, lightweight cable.
These cables, according to the company, are “specifically designed for the needs of rural deployments,” and allow for “faster installation and lower cost of deployment.” The company believes the expansion in HeliARC cable production could support fiber-to-the-home deployments for half a million homes, “hastening the deployment of broadband to underserved communities.”
Corning, meanwhile—which has manufactured fiber and cable in North Carolina for four decades—announced the formal opening, on 29 March, of two new manufacturing facilities at its new Trivium fiber optic cable manufacturing campus in Hickory, NC. The company said the new facilities are part of “a series of investments” in new fiber capacity since 2020 that total some US$500 million.
The two new facilities, according to Corning, “will help provide US network operators with the cable they need to bring high-speed fiber connectivity to underserved communities, particularly in rural America.” In February, Corning also announced a strategic collaboration with NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association to set aside a share of cable and other connectivity tools to support the buildout of rural networks.