UK National Grid selects EXFO for fiber health monitoring pilot project
by CM staff
EXFO's AI-based analytics solution will amalgamate and correlate data from both the fiber optic network and weather system inputs, and predict, detect, and prevent outages and impairments in the network that might otherwise go unnoticed.
EXFO is correlating fiber optic network and weather system inputs for the UK National Grid’s fiber health monitoring pilot project currently underway. (Photo: CNW Group/EXFO Inc.)
QUEBEC — EXFO announced that National Grid, has selected EXFO for a pilot project to provide monitoring for its ongoing fiber network health assessment in the UK, supporting the UK’s goal of becoming net-zero by 2050.
National Grid has deployed an overhead fiber optic operational telecommunications network across its electricity transmission infrastructure that carries information essential for secure and efficient utility operations. EXFO’s technology will help assess the operational condition of the fiber network, while predicting its remaining technical lifespan and identifying potential points of weakness or failure.
“EXFO is pleased to support a national-level provider like the National Grid,” said Wim te Niet, Vice-President, EMEA, EXFO. “Our remote, proactive fiber testing and monitoring solution provides complete visibility across the fiber network, with capabilities to predict and detect potential outages in real time. Coupled with weather sensing equipment, we can help ensure network reliability so the lights stay on for everyone.”
EXFO will collect data from Intellisense Systems micro weather station (MWS®) Internet of Things (IoT) devices being deployed to measure the specific environmental impact of wind, humidity and meteorological events. EXFO’s AI-based analytics solution will amalgamate and correlate data from both the fiber optic network and weather system inputs, and predict, detect, and prevent outages and impairments in the network that might otherwise go unnoticed.
National Grid anticipates that EXFO’s monitoring and fault detection can deliver a net benefit of as much as £2.9m (approx. $3.5 million USD) derived from failure avoidance and extending the lifespan of the existing network.
EXFO will measure, analyze, and report results from an 80 km span of the National Grid network — in one of the most challenging areas of the UK for weather issues – over a 12-month period. Deployment of test equipment and Intellisense devices got underway in October 2022.
“Operational telecommunications networks are an important part of our critical national infrastructure and play a key role in enabling our transition to a net zero economy by 2050,” said Tom Charton, Senior Innovation Engineer at the National Grid. “Large parts of our fiber network are reaching an age where failures may become more frequent and more difficult to address. We are therefore exploring new ways to monitor and model fiber health and its evolution over time to enable optimized planning of refurbishment and replacement interventions.”
