Corning's Evolv® Field-Installable Pushlok® Connector

Corning’s new Evolv® Field-Installable Pushlok® (FIPL) connector is the first connector to integrate the flexibility and convenience of a field-installable solution with award-winning push-and-click Pushlok® technology unlocking increased network deployment speeds, ease-of-use, and sustainability. With the broadband industry facing an unprecedented amount of uncertainty in labor availability, material costs, and government funding, FIPL enables operators to deploy networks easier and cheaper, turn up subscribers faster, and train new installers quicker.

The Field-Installable Pushlok connector removes the constraints of factory-terminated drop cables while enabling operators to create a customizable drop cable solution in a flexible, easily terminated connector. The success and survival of a small network operator can be decided by how quickly and inexpensively they turn up a subscriber or repair a damaged connection. FIPL is the first outside plant (OSP) grade field-installable connector requiring no specialty tools for termination. FIPL increases installer productivity and reduces installation cost with no polishing, no pricey termination tools, and no tabletop fusion-splicing set up necessary. The simple FIPL connection process takes 5 minutes or less to complete, which is up to 2x faster than comparable OSP field-installable connectors.

The uncertainty in governmental broadband funding and rising material costs from tariffs will require network innovations to reduce the cost and complexity of deploying a network. FIPL is designed to reduce labor costs with an easier and more reliable field-installable solution, but it also decreases material and inventory costs. Corning’s FIPL connector is reusable at least once to reduce wasted material, a unique feature in the market. It is also backwards compatible with SC and OptiTap® connector ports with the SC or OptiTap® adapter enabling seamless integration with existing network infrastructure. FIPL also helps operators keep their labor onboarding and training costs down with a simple and quick-to-learn process taking only up to 1 hour to train a new installation tech.

As Broadband Service Providers (BSPs) try to limit their costs and continue turning up subscribers, FIPL provides advantages in the field and back at the garage. Corning’s customers are capturing the benefits from less expensive repairs and more content customers with shorter outages when using FIPL to repair damaged cables compared to splicing or other field-installable connectors. Also, FIPL reduces the number of SKUs needed to deploy a network when used as a complete home connect solution with bulk cable. Instead of stocking many different drop cable lengths, BSPs only require bulk cable with FIPL to connect a home. This simple solution reduces required warehouse space and minimizes inventory management complexity at the garage and on each truck. Using FIPL with bulk cable also creates a much more efficient home connect solution when compared to a full pre-con solution with connectorized jumpers that are always longer than they need to be. FIPL allows for completely customizable drops for every unique location removing costs from wasted extra jumper cable length.

Source: Corning, Inc.