Difficult terrain, a low budget for trenches, and, in many cases, the issue of existing utility poles which must be shared between power and telecommunication companies. In a country like Nepal, which has seen the launch of a telecommunications infrastructure company by the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) very recently to speed up FTTH and fiber expansion, in that context the choice of cable technology plays a large role in which solutions will be implemented quickly and at lower cost.
In recent years telecom operators and infrastructure companies in growing markets have turned to ADSS (All-Dielectric Self-Supporting) fiber for their aerial fiber needs.
What Makes ADSS Different
ADSS cables are put up between poles or towers with no support from a messenger wire. The cable’s tensile strength is a result of aramid yarn, which is in its structure, and steel or copper is not used. This dielectric-through-and-through design brings in three very important benefits for large-scale telecom deployments:.
No grounding infrastructure required: Since the cable is free of any conductive elements, there is no path for lightning and thus no requirement for bonding or surge protection at each pole. This in itself is seen to reduce installation cost per kilometer by 15-25% when compared to traditional aerial fiber that has steel messenger wire.
Safe co-location with power lines: With the use of anti-tracking (AT) jacket material, ADSS is able to share pole space with transmission lines up to 500 kV. In countries which have power and telecom infrastructure that run parallel to each other, this removes the need for separate pole lines.
Long span capability: Double-stranded ADSS which supports spans of up to 1500 metres between poles — ideal for river crossings in mountainous terrain and rural areas which have low density of poles.
Why This Matters for Infrastructure Sharing
Nepal’s NTA has put forth a policy which includes a range of fiber optic networks from fiber ports to OLT ports, dark fiber and point-to-point data services. The regulation puts forward a plan for what may be termed ‘passive infrastructure sharing’ in which many operators will be able to use the same fiber cables and pole routes.
ADSS is a good fit for infrastructure sharing which also sees wide adoption in telecom. What ADSS does is put forth a very low structural load into shared poles. In terms of weight per span this is lower than what is seen in steel-armoured options, which in turn reduces the engineering work related to ageing pole infrastructure. For companies like NEA which are into both power transmission and now telecommunications, ADSS may be added to the existing telecommunication towers without the need for structural reinforcement.
Global Adoption Trends
ADSS has been the primary aerial fiber cable in developed markets for decades; it is the standout solution for utility communication networks in North America, Europe and East Asia, which follow IEC 60794 and IEEE 1222 standards. What has been seen to change in the past five years is adoption in developing markets. There is growing adoption in countries in South Asia, South-east Asia and Africa which are specifying ADSS for national broadband projects as a result of lower install costs, better compatibility with present utility infrastructure and proven field performance in various climate settings.
For telecom planners evaluating aerial fiber options, understanding the technical specifications of ADSS optical cables — including span ratings, sag-tension calculations, and jacket material selection — is a necessary step in the procurement process. A cable that does well in a temperate European climate may not do the same in the monsoon and high-temperature settings, which is what is seen in South Asia.
A Practical Option for Rapid Rollout
Speed and present infrastructure. Trenching fiber runs 1-3 per foot. For a country which is rolling out thousands of kilometers of fiber backbones, that difference means tens of millions in capital expenditure savings and months or years of faster deployment.
As global development shifts to greater digital infrastructure investment, ADSS fiber optic cable is at the core of that growth. In terms of manufacturers and suppliers which are putting out these solutions to these markets, ZTO Fiber Cable reports IEC 60794 standards, and their solutions are available in a wide range of spans from 50 to 1500 metres and also offer PE and AT jacket options which are used in all types of deployment from temperate highlands to tropical lowlands.
