Software simplifies FTTH design

Rala Infratech AB has launched buildfibre.com, billed as a user-friendly online guide to planning and delivering a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) project.

The FTTH design software has been developed exclusively by Rala, a Swedish supplier of passive equipment and FTTH project management. Sweden is one of the most advanced countries in Europe for FTTH; data collected by the FTTH Council Europe shows that the country is expected to have 20% of households subscribing to fiber connections by 2014.

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“We want to make it as easy as possible to get started with an FTTH project,” comments Tobias Ahl, CEO of Rala. “With buildfibre.com you add properties, interested property owners, and access points in your community as you go -- simply by pointing on a map. The service helps any project manager to keep track of the project as it grows.”

Rala estimates that in the UK alone between 30 and 40 community projects are at an early stage of development where detailed and accurate plans would pay off, both in securing funds and saving money over the duration of the network installation.

“We wanted to make designing an FTTH network as simple as using a kitchen planner -- you sit down at home, design your dream kitchen, or in this case FTTH network, and get a detailed break down at the end of the process," adds Rala's Ahl. "Our experienced network project planners are also on hand to offer the right advice and suggestions."

The buildfibre.com service runs on both Windows and Mac platforms as well as tablet formats. The software will be demonstrated at the FTTH Conference 2013 in London, February 19-21.

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