PROFILE JOHN GUEST


@fibresystemsmag | www.fibre-systems.com


Connecting the past to the future


Since starting out as a zinc die casting company more than 50 years ago, John Guest has diversified into many areas and is now very active in the blown fibre push-fit connectors market. Tim Gillett reports


for more than a decade – but he can scarcely have imagined that his invention would one day be used in state-of-the-art telecommunications systems. Tis family owned and managed company was


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founded in 1961 in West Drayton, Middlesex, UK, serving industrial applications including pneumatics and zinc die casting. Some 54 years later – and still having its headquarters and manufacturing based in West Drayton, the company has expanded on a global scale and diversified to serve industries including plumbing and heating, automotive, drinks dispense and pure water, compressed air services – and, more recently, fibre optics. Gary Hall, the company’s UK divisional director


Gary Hall


for special products, explains that the key to being successful in these markets – and a major reason behind the firm’s overall success – was the invention and development of the original push-fit connector, a simple but critical collet-gripping mechanism that allowed John Guest to penetrate such a wide variety of markets. Founded upon a highly disciplined, quality driven, world-class UK manufacturing facility, the company has retained in-house design and tooling capabilities; an increasingly unique principle in an age of outsourcing. Tough the guidance of light by refraction, the


Fibre installation has reduced significantly in complexity over the years – the aim is to fit and forget, providing ‘sleep at night’ confidence


12 FIBRE SYSTEMS Issue 6 • Winter 2015


principle that makes fibre optics possible, was first demonstrated in the middle of the 19th century, it was not really until the 1980s that the use of fibre for communications became widespread, John Guest was proud to be involved at the forefront of blown fibre system development in the UK, working in conjunction with what was then British Telecom, the UK’s national telecommunications provider. Hall toldFibre Systems: ‘Fibre optic


communication systems needed to be industrialised, evolving from lab to real-world use – and John Guest became involved in this development because of our recognised expertise


Push-fit technology in action


by British Telecom in push-fit technology. John Guest developed the first push-fit connectors specifically for fibre optics, for use with micro-duct systems utilising blown fibre installation methods. It was very much a bespoke product because there was no standard at the time – John Guest established the ‘standard’. ‘Tese specialised connectors, which needed to accommodate and protect delicate fibre bundles, were based upon our traditional Speedfit design, with certain enhancements for fibre-optic capability,’ said Hall. Te fittings still use the original collet concept that was first patented in the 1970s; the collet gripping mechanism remains the critical component and has stood the test of time, with billions of John Guest push-fit connectors in use in a wide variety of applications being the company’s strongest endorsement. Of course, in fibre optics, accuracy and


reliability are all-important. Hall continued: ‘Our connectors are used with


blown fibre or mini-cable, with distances between the fibre distribution points (FDPs) and the premises potentially running as far as two kilometres. Te duct (conduit) is usually made up of several sections joined using push-fit connectors, and the fibre is physically blown, using compressed air up to 15 bar pressure, fibre being further motivated through the duct using pinch rollers. Te air effectively making the fibre float within the duct thus reduces friction, while the pinch rollers aid momentum and provide a means to monitor the installed fibre length. ‘Te accuracy and smoothness of the duct’s internal gallery is crucial to avoid disruption of the


hen John Guest himself invented the Speedfit push-fit fittings in the 1970s, he had already been running an engineering company


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