How Our Fiber Technology Center Drives Advancement and Innovation

If you listen closely, the industry is telling us all something important: Fiber plays a big role in the future.

The emerging technologies our customers are preparing for—artificial intelligence, machine learning, manufacturing automation, and augmented and virtual reality—need the bandwidth, data rates and speed that fiber optic systems can provide.

Compared to other network infrastructure options, fiber supports more bandwidth and longer reach, handles vast amounts of traffic, can be smaller and lighter to install than other cabling options, and has built-in noise immunity for better performance.

For the past five decades, we’ve invested in fiber research, design, development and manufacturing so we can confidently offer the high-performance solutions our customers need. Our fiber innovations have come a long way already, but we’re just getting started.

Fiber Technology Center: A Hub of Advancement

We’re excited to continue our fiber investments at an even higher level this year, with the opening of our new, state-of-the-art Fiber Technology Center in Tucson, AZ. This multifunctional hub of advancement gives our fiber experts a place to lead optical fiber cable and connectivity innovation, research and development.

Our people play a big part in our success, and our fiber group will expand as we continue to build an impressive team with unmatched skills, experience and insight. In this space, these talented and experienced fiber experts will continue to create distinctive solutions that other fiber manufacturers struggle to match.

It will also support warehousing, distribution, administration and manufacturing as we continue to grow our optical fiber capabilities.

Amplifying Belden’s Success in Fiber

Reliable, available and configurable: That’s how we describe our fiber solutions. Belden’s 50+ years of experience in delivering optical fiber systems lets our customers know they can connect with certainty.

All of our fiber systems come with a unique collaborative approach to service and support. Because we own our manufacturing processes, we can also ensure reliability. As a result, our fiber is known for its:

• Excellent quality and cost effectiveness
  
  
• High levels of configurability, led by our application engineers, so it will work in unique customer environments
  
  
• Availability and accessibility, thanks to major investments in inventory

Building on Belden’s established and unmatched reputation for performance, the 300,000-square-foot Fiber Technology Center will amplify the work already being done in our existing fiber facilities and test labs around the world, including eight manufacturing plants and two research and development sites.

Located near airports, freight terminals and major logistics hubs, the Fiber Technology Center will help streamline and strengthen Belden’s supply chain and increase production of U.S.-based optical fiber manufacturing. By enabling us to accelerate lead times when possible, you’ll get the products you need quickly.

The Fiber Technology Center is also located close to the University of Arizona and the area’s talented tech workforce, giving qualified engineers an unrivaled opportunity to join our quest to lead in optical fiber as digital transformation accelerates demand for the bandwidth it offers.

What Does This Mean for Our Customers?

The Fiber Technology Center brings many new benefits to customers, which we’re excited to share:

• Because Belden products will be distributed closer to the U.S. West Coast, customers in those areas will be able get the products they need faster.
  
  
• FiberExpress fiber assemblies will be made and shipped in two to five business days.
  
  
• Same-day shipping will be available on eligible fiber cables and connectivity.
  
  
• Prototyping capabilities provide you with the best fiber solutions possible for your application and environment.

Standing at the Forefront of Fiber Technology

This is one of the biggest fiber investments Belden has ever made—and it’s another step on our journey to stand at the forefront of fiber technology, allowing us to be faster, more automated, more accurate and more competitive.

Belden offers an extensive line of indoor and outdoor cable products for a variety of applications—from data centers and backbone infrastructure to fiber-to-the-desk and horizontal and centralized cabling systems. Our vast line of fiber connectors helps end-users increase ROI on fiber projects, and our fiber patching systems are designed to support various levels of fiber density and a wide range of applications.

As more companies continue to move toward fiber to support their business objectives, Belden’s optical fiber solutions—backed by exceptional service and support and our new Fiber Technology Center—will play the lead role in helping them connect in an increasingly digital and tech-forward world.

Learn more about our fiber systems.

Related resources:

• How Do Fiber Optic Cables Work? Your Question Answered
• 4 Ways Integrators Are Impacted by the Increase in Fiber Demand
• 2 Big Mistakes to Avoid During Fiber Cable Installation