AFL Offering Custom Splicing Services and Solutions

20/01/2014

Spartanburg, SC – AFL, the exclusive provider of Fujikura products in North America, is now providing fusion splicing solutions via engineering support, splice optimizations and engineered services that include custom hardware or software design, process improvement consultation, advanced splicer training, maintenance service agreements and fabricated splice components.

“AFL has a highly-knowledgeable and skilled team that has been providing 24/7 technical support for our customers for 30 years now,” commented Greg Pickeral, product manager for AFL’s fusion splicing systems division. “By adding splicing optimization and engineering support, AFL is now a full-service provider that can manage the challenges our customers face on a daily basis.”

With AFL’s optimization services, optimal settings can be determined for any combination of fiber types in any Fujikura splicer, minimizing splice loss and keeping splices physically robust. This process involves changing over 50 splicer machine parameters, ranging from splicer arc power to fiber movement rate. These parameters change significantly with fiber characteristics such as fiber diameter, refractive index profile and dopant composition.

In the Fujikura FSM-100 fusion splicers and LAZERMaster™ laser splicing system, splice optimization plays an important role in maximizing the benefits of sweep arc technology, which minimizes the effects of differences in mode field diameters in a pair of fibers, thereby minimizing splice loss. Splice strength can also be enhanced by splice optimization. AFL’s engineering team can help you increase manufacturing production and process efficiency.

Since splicers also include loss estimation functions, a separate loss estimation optimization can be performed to maximize the accuracy of the loss estimation function on the machine to provide the most accurate splice loss readings. All of the parameters can be easily downloaded into a fusion splicer once complete.

For companies developing a new optical component and/or requiring a critical splice, AFL can fabricate spliced components, such as dissimilar fiber splicing, ball lens, tapers, TEC, combiners and MFAs. Or AFL can rent equipment time for the LAZERMaster™ laser splicing system for customers to conduct experimental research and development.

Fujikura is well-known around the world for providing the technologically advanced fusion splicers and AFL is the exclusive provider of these products in North America. AFL offers an extensive lineup of fusion splicers for specialty splicing applications including the latest addition, the LAZERMaster laser splicer which uses a CO2 heat source to perform splicing adiabatic tapering and other glass-shaping operations. Covering a wide range of applications, Fujikura’s ARCMaster™ series are suited for both R&D and production needs, and can easily adapt to suit diverse splicing requirements

For more information on AFL, its products and services, visit www.AFLglobal.com.

About AFL
AFL provides industry-leading products and services to the electric utility, broadband, communications, enterprise and OEM markets as well as the emerging markets of oil and gas, mining, nuclear, avionics, renewables and transportation. The company’s diverse product portfolio includes fiber optic cable, transmission and substation accessories, outside plant equipment, connectors, fusion splicers, test equipment and training. AFL’s service portfolio includes market-leading positions with the foremost communications companies supporting inside plant central office, EF&I, outside plant, enterprise and wireless areas.

Founded in 1984, AFL is proud to offer engineering expertise, exceptional products and reliable service that help our customers improve their critical and electrical infrastructure. AFL has operations in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Europe, Asia and the South Pacific. The company is headquartered in Spartanburg, SC, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fujikura Ltd. of Japan. For more information, visit www.AFLglobal.com.

Contact
Greg Pickeral
Product Manager
AFL
864.433.5937
Greg.Pickeral@AFLglobal.com
 
Corie Culp
Public Relations Manager
AFL
864.433.5409
Corie.Culp@AFLglobal.com