3/31/00 Optical fiber supplier Corning Inc. (Corning, NY) and cable provider Alcoa Fujikura Ltd. (Brentwood, TN) announced today that they have been selected as the primary fiber and cable suppliers for the New England network expansion of NEESCom (Westborough, MA). Comprised of All-Dielectric, Self-Supporting (ADSS) fiber-optic cable supplied by Alcoa Fujikura Ltd., the network will also contain Corning's SMF-28 and LEAF optical fibers.
NEESCom, the telecommunications subsidiary of National Grid USA, recently completed a 325-mile fiber optic network expansion in eastern Massachusetts. Major cities and regions connected along this route are Lawrence, Lowell, Metro West Region, Attleboro, Brockton, Pawtucket, Providence, and Quincy. This expansion complements NEESCom's existing facilities that connect Springfield to the Metro West region through their Worcester underground fiber-optic ring network.
NEESCom has completed the first of two underground metro rings in Providence, RI, and has additional projects scheduled for Massachusetts and Rhode Island that will build out the NEESCom network to more than 700 miles by the end of this year. Construction of a 25-mile fiber-optic ring to Salem, NH is also scheduled for completion by June.