ANALYSIS & OPINION: FIBRE & 5G NETWORKS


MICHAEL O’SULLIVAN, FIBRE PLANNER, 4SITE


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I


have been a fibre planner for three years. I wanted to get an overall perspective of the industry, so I started out as team lead on the surveying of fibre infrastructure, then


progressed to the design department on the CityFibre project, where I was able to apply the on-the-ground skills I acquired into my designs. Day-to-day, I oversee the designers, where I


interact with the client, manage quality control and address any on-the-ground queries that may arise. Tere is a good mix of graduates and senior level staff working on the project, which gives me time to ensure all graduates understand the infrastructure and design needs of the clients. Te most satisfying part of my job is


visualising a design, puting it on paper and then seeing it built. Tere is no greater feeling than this. I particularly enjoy when I am approached with a difficult design and I must


come up with an innovative solution. I’d have to say the most challenging aspect


can be maintaining our high design standards, while in tandem meeting the clients schedule. Quality is key and we won’t let a design out of the door if we are not happy. In terms of some of the biggest issues


affecting my role, we all know that there are numerous operators that are willing to serve urban areas with fibre, but the deployment of fibre universally is ultimately hindered by cost. If you live in a rural area, it’s just not


financially viable to run hundreds of metres of fibre to serve one or two premises. Sharing of network infrastructure would be one of the main solutions, with a recent example being BT opening its network to others in the UK. Looking forward in the short term, I think


like many others that the industry is going to continue to build fibre connections to more populated areas, which is undoubtedly going


to be a positive thing. Although I’d love to see the more rural areas get connected. Long term, I’d love to see the industry unite to achieve 100 per cent connection in the UK. It has already begun with the sharing of networks but if there was a neutral host network in place, it would be beneficial to both the operators and end-users. I couldn’t recommend a career in fibre


highly enough. Skilled people are hard to find and it’s a career where you, as a designer, are future-proofing an area and in turn you are making a difference for thousands of people and businesses. If you have an analytical and inventive mind, then this is the career for you. On a daily basis you are designing the


infrastructure that’ll enable our future smart cities to function. Tere are constantly new technologies being implemented by planners which means it’s always an interesting and exciting job. n


THIS IS A VERY DYNAMIC


ENVIRONMENT


AND YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO THINK FAST AND REACT, PROVIDING


SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS


Long term, the industry should unite to achieve 100 per cent connection in the UK 32 FiBRE SYSTEMS n Issue 25 n Autumn 2019 www.fibre-systems.com @fibresystemsmag


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