The Wall Street Journal recently reported that a single trader, rumored to be J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., holds approximately half of the world's exchange-registered copper stockpile. This single trader's copper holdings are said to be worth about $3 billion.
The WSJ said the price of copper is up 28 percent in 2010. It quoted Barclays Capital as saying that copper demand will outstrip supply this year by about 455,000 metric tons. Of J.P. Morgan, the report said the company "recently had a large position in copper, though it is unclear whether the U.S. bank increased its holdings or whether a new player has taken a dominant position."
As we reported earlier this year, a rise in copper prices is one of several drivers pushing up the price of cable.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
For initial Light Peak, copper may be better than a sharp stick in the optics
CNET's Brooke Crothers is reporting that for its initial version of the much-ballyhooed Light Peak, Intel will use electrical- rather than photonic-based circuitry. To you and me, that means copper rather than fiber.
Light Peak will be a 10-Gbit/sec technology connecting electronic devices, and threatens to supplant USB as the connection-technology of choice. Sony and Apple have supported the Intel technology, which should still roll out as anticipated in the first half of 2011.
I was particularly interested in Crothers's notation that despite the use of copper rather than fiber, Light Peak will still achieve its stated 10-Gbit/sec transmission rate. What do you know about that?
Light Peak will be a 10-Gbit/sec technology connecting electronic devices, and threatens to supplant USB as the connection-technology of choice. Sony and Apple have supported the Intel technology, which should still roll out as anticipated in the first half of 2011.
I was particularly interested in Crothers's notation that despite the use of copper rather than fiber, Light Peak will still achieve its stated 10-Gbit/sec transmission rate. What do you know about that?
Monday, December 6, 2010
With no other bidders, CommScope-Carlyle deal moves ahead
CommScope announced it had not received any alternative acquisition proposals during the 40-day "go-shop" period that followed the company's agreement to be acquired by equity firm The Carlyle Group.
Under the merger agreement struck by the two companies, CommScope had 40 calendar days to solicit better acquisition proposals than the $31.50/share agreement it struck with Carlyle. That period ended December 5.
In its announcement of the "go-shop" period expiration, CommScope said it expects to file soon with the SEC proxy materials related to a special stockholder meeting to approve the deal, which CommScope explains is technically a merger with an affiliate of Carlyle. It expects the deal to close in the first quarter of 2011.
Under the merger agreement struck by the two companies, CommScope had 40 calendar days to solicit better acquisition proposals than the $31.50/share agreement it struck with Carlyle. That period ended December 5.
In its announcement of the "go-shop" period expiration, CommScope said it expects to file soon with the SEC proxy materials related to a special stockholder meeting to approve the deal, which CommScope explains is technically a merger with an affiliate of Carlyle. It expects the deal to close in the first quarter of 2011.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Battle brewing over bend-insensitive multimode fiber
A battle is brewing among makers of optical fiber and fiber-optic cable concerning bend-tolerant or bend-insensitive multimode fiber. Over the past year or so several providers of multimode fiber-optic cable have introduced bend-tolerant/bend-insensitive offerings. The main benefit of this type of fiber-optic cable is that it can withstand tight bends, or even kinks, without suffering significant loss - or any loss in a lot of cases.
Corning Cable Systems was the first to bring this type of cable to market. Corning Optical Fiber - a separate operating unit of Corning Incorporated and a "sister" company of Corning Cable Systems - developed the bend-insensitive fiber that is used in Corning Cable Systems' products. Notably, Corning Optical Fiber also supplies fiber to other cable manufacturers, so its fiber is found in cables from cable suppliers other than Corning Cable Systems.
OFS also manufactures multimode optical fiber, and supplies that fiber to cable manufacturers, including CommScope. Recently, through a white paper, a blog post on its website and other outlets, CommScope has called into question the real value of bend-tolerant/bend-insensitive multimode fiber. In a blog post, Eric Leichter, manager for training and technology with CommScope's enterprise division, openly wonders why bend-insensitive multimode has seen a recent market push. In the post he also raises the issue of compatibility between bend-insensitive and traditional multimode fibers, saying "there are concerns" about such compatibility. He concludes his post by saying, "It might be best to wait for this technology to mature before jumping in."
Speaking of sister organizations, our sister publication Lightwave recently published commentary from fiber-maker OFS that also raised questions about bend-insensitive multimode's compatibility with traditional multimode. (Page 5 of this Lightwave issue.)
In the January issue of Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine, we're going to publish two sides of this topic. (I'd say "both sides," but for all I know there could be more than two. I'm currently aware of two sides, I guess I'll put it that way.) One article, contributed by researchers from Panduit, will discuss results of an intermateability study conducted by Panduit. The results, the article says, show potentially significant losses when a signal travels from a bend-tolerant multimode fiber into a standard multimode fiber. Panduit's study yielded different degrees of bend-loss improvement among the various manufacturers whose products were tested.
In that vein (and likely in that vein alone) the information from Panduit and that which will be presented by Corning Optical Fiber coincide. Two engineering managers and a product manager from Corning Optical Fiber will contribute a separate article to our January issue. Within that article they say, "Not all bend-insensitive multimode fibers are created equal. Differences in designs of bend-insensitive multimode fiber result in differences in performance." The technical detail in the article boils down to the notion that a well-designed bend-insensitive multimode fiber will not have compatibility or loss-performance issues.
It kind of sounds like they're both saying the same thing, but I don't think that's the case. The organizations I've named here have gone toe-to-toe in the past over issues related to multimode fiber. Most recently, they sparred about the most effective way to measure multimode's bandwidth while the OM4 fiber specifications were under development. Corning Cable Systems and Corning Optical Fiber favored the EMB(c) method while OFS and Panduit favored the DMD mask. Ultimately, the standard recognized both measurement methods as valid.
The current wrangling over bend-insensitive multimode fiber is the latest in a history of companies lining up on opposite sides of technical issues surrounding optical-fiber transmission. Frankly, I see this current spat to be more relevant to fiber-cabling system users than the one over EMB(c)-vs.-DMD mask, because that one was waged primarily in the figurative smoke-filled rooms of standards-making committees. This one focuses squarely on users who are making decisions today about what type of fiber-cabling plant to install. As always in these debates, each side makes a convincing case. If I heard just one side's compelling story, I'd feel well-informed and confident in what the right choice would be. But then I hear the other side's compelling story and am left with a tough choice. That's just hypothetical for me, because I won't have to choose which type of multimode fiber-optic cabling system to install anytime soon. You very well may have to.
My real hope is that providing two sides of the situation in our January issue will do a service, rather than a disservice, to anyone who uses Cabling Installation & Maintenance to help them make decisions about cabling. I'm sure there are more charts, graphs, simulations and the like - on each side - than we could put into the magazine, and these cabling-system providers would be happy to show them to you. In all sincerity, I hope that bringing this topic to your attention equips you with the knowledge that it exists, and helps you prepare to ask the questions you need answered when you are making these important decisions.
Corning Cable Systems was the first to bring this type of cable to market. Corning Optical Fiber - a separate operating unit of Corning Incorporated and a "sister" company of Corning Cable Systems - developed the bend-insensitive fiber that is used in Corning Cable Systems' products. Notably, Corning Optical Fiber also supplies fiber to other cable manufacturers, so its fiber is found in cables from cable suppliers other than Corning Cable Systems.
OFS also manufactures multimode optical fiber, and supplies that fiber to cable manufacturers, including CommScope. Recently, through a white paper, a blog post on its website and other outlets, CommScope has called into question the real value of bend-tolerant/bend-insensitive multimode fiber. In a blog post, Eric Leichter, manager for training and technology with CommScope's enterprise division, openly wonders why bend-insensitive multimode has seen a recent market push. In the post he also raises the issue of compatibility between bend-insensitive and traditional multimode fibers, saying "there are concerns" about such compatibility. He concludes his post by saying, "It might be best to wait for this technology to mature before jumping in."
Speaking of sister organizations, our sister publication Lightwave recently published commentary from fiber-maker OFS that also raised questions about bend-insensitive multimode's compatibility with traditional multimode. (Page 5 of this Lightwave issue.)
In the January issue of Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine, we're going to publish two sides of this topic. (I'd say "both sides," but for all I know there could be more than two. I'm currently aware of two sides, I guess I'll put it that way.) One article, contributed by researchers from Panduit, will discuss results of an intermateability study conducted by Panduit. The results, the article says, show potentially significant losses when a signal travels from a bend-tolerant multimode fiber into a standard multimode fiber. Panduit's study yielded different degrees of bend-loss improvement among the various manufacturers whose products were tested.
In that vein (and likely in that vein alone) the information from Panduit and that which will be presented by Corning Optical Fiber coincide. Two engineering managers and a product manager from Corning Optical Fiber will contribute a separate article to our January issue. Within that article they say, "Not all bend-insensitive multimode fibers are created equal. Differences in designs of bend-insensitive multimode fiber result in differences in performance." The technical detail in the article boils down to the notion that a well-designed bend-insensitive multimode fiber will not have compatibility or loss-performance issues.
It kind of sounds like they're both saying the same thing, but I don't think that's the case. The organizations I've named here have gone toe-to-toe in the past over issues related to multimode fiber. Most recently, they sparred about the most effective way to measure multimode's bandwidth while the OM4 fiber specifications were under development. Corning Cable Systems and Corning Optical Fiber favored the EMB(c) method while OFS and Panduit favored the DMD mask. Ultimately, the standard recognized both measurement methods as valid.
The current wrangling over bend-insensitive multimode fiber is the latest in a history of companies lining up on opposite sides of technical issues surrounding optical-fiber transmission. Frankly, I see this current spat to be more relevant to fiber-cabling system users than the one over EMB(c)-vs.-DMD mask, because that one was waged primarily in the figurative smoke-filled rooms of standards-making committees. This one focuses squarely on users who are making decisions today about what type of fiber-cabling plant to install. As always in these debates, each side makes a convincing case. If I heard just one side's compelling story, I'd feel well-informed and confident in what the right choice would be. But then I hear the other side's compelling story and am left with a tough choice. That's just hypothetical for me, because I won't have to choose which type of multimode fiber-optic cabling system to install anytime soon. You very well may have to.
My real hope is that providing two sides of the situation in our January issue will do a service, rather than a disservice, to anyone who uses Cabling Installation & Maintenance to help them make decisions about cabling. I'm sure there are more charts, graphs, simulations and the like - on each side - than we could put into the magazine, and these cabling-system providers would be happy to show them to you. In all sincerity, I hope that bringing this topic to your attention equips you with the knowledge that it exists, and helps you prepare to ask the questions you need answered when you are making these important decisions.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
What I'm thankful for
As we approach Thanksgiving, here's a list of things for which I'm thankful. Appropriately, the list is kind of all over the place because there are reasons everywhere, within and outside of the cabling trade, to give thanks. The list is therefore incomplete as well. I'd sincerely appreciate the opportunity to add your thoughts to the list. You can share them by commenting on this post.
For now, here's my (partial) list.
1. Volunteerism. This is one of the intentionally "all-over-the-place" items. Whether it's at the soup kitchen in your hometown or in a standards-creation meeting in some farflung location, our culture is filled with people who enthusiastically give their own time and energy for the benefit of others.
2. Individual freedom. I voted on November 2. For whom I voted is quite irrelevant. That I live in a society in which I can vote is what really matters. Nine days after election day we observed Veterans Day here in the U.S. I'm eternally grateful to everyone who, at any time in history, stood up and demanded and/or defended freedom, thereby giving me the opportunity to live in a society in which we all are promised life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
3. Contributors to Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine and cablinginstall.com. It's a tall order to author an article or create a webcast presentation. Yet so many cabling-industry professionals with technical expertise put their business agendas aside (or at least, in the background) and produce content that is meant to help you do your jobs better, faster or more-efficiently. There are stories behind every one of those contributions, like the one resulting from a miscommunication to a webcast presenter who believed they were supposed to deliver a fifty-minute presentation rather than a fifteen-minute presentation. They found out the real story about 20 minutes before their scheduled presentation time. Go ahead and watch all the webcasts we've done over the past six months. I bet you won't be able to tell which one I'm talking about. And that's exactly the point, because this individual changed some plans on the fly and the presentation went off without a hitch. The professionals I'm fortunate to work with make serving you, our audience, both a pleasure and a thrill. I'm thankful for the opportunity.
4. Medical professionals. Maybe it's because Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine is in the midst of putting together a special report on cabling healthcare environments that will be published in December and January. Maybe it's because I have seen firsthand the miracles that take place in hospitals or have been eased through more than one nerve-racking trip to the doctor's office. Maybe it's because I'm the son of an emergency medical services first-responder. Whatever the reason, I give thanks for those who are professionally trained to help, and in many cases save, lives. Many of them will be working this Thanksgiving Day, just in case any of us need them.
5 (and 6 and 7 and 8). My wife and three children. Despite the fact that I'm barely awake to write this blog entry because it took all my energy (and a few Jedi mind tricks) to get my three kids to bed ... I can't imagine any different a lifestyle. I've learned that it's an economic system of extreme proportions with kids. They take more of your energy and give you more joy than you ever would have thought possible. My wife, of course, has given our kids the greatest gift of all--life. But I also see it this way: She gave us all to each other. The multiplicity of that level of giving is truly overwhelming.
9. People who include the word "Thanksgiving" when talking about the parade. One of my pet peeves is hearing people call it "The Macy's Day Parade." Has the holiday been renamed? It's not Thanksgiving Day anymore, it's Macy's Day? It's a little bit like when people say "NIC card," "VIN number" or "ATM machine." Oh, sorry. I was becoming cranky there for a minute and this is supposed to be about giving thanks. So I'll circle back around to being thankful for all five or six people who DO, correctly, call it the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
10 through 25,309. You. That number's based on how many people subscribe to Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine. So I know it's an approximation. Not everyone who reads the magazine looks at this blog; some who look at this blog don't get the magazine. I know all that. But this is a numbered list, after all. And I think it's appropriate that such a list reaches a number like 25,309 rather than 5 or 9 or 10. Everyone who read this, or anything else put forth by the Cabling Installation & Maintenance franchise, is my customer. You've invested time in reading or hearing what we have to offer. I'm grateful you've done so, and hope that we've made it time well spent.
For now, here's my (partial) list.
1. Volunteerism. This is one of the intentionally "all-over-the-place" items. Whether it's at the soup kitchen in your hometown or in a standards-creation meeting in some farflung location, our culture is filled with people who enthusiastically give their own time and energy for the benefit of others.
2. Individual freedom. I voted on November 2. For whom I voted is quite irrelevant. That I live in a society in which I can vote is what really matters. Nine days after election day we observed Veterans Day here in the U.S. I'm eternally grateful to everyone who, at any time in history, stood up and demanded and/or defended freedom, thereby giving me the opportunity to live in a society in which we all are promised life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
3. Contributors to Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine and cablinginstall.com. It's a tall order to author an article or create a webcast presentation. Yet so many cabling-industry professionals with technical expertise put their business agendas aside (or at least, in the background) and produce content that is meant to help you do your jobs better, faster or more-efficiently. There are stories behind every one of those contributions, like the one resulting from a miscommunication to a webcast presenter who believed they were supposed to deliver a fifty-minute presentation rather than a fifteen-minute presentation. They found out the real story about 20 minutes before their scheduled presentation time. Go ahead and watch all the webcasts we've done over the past six months. I bet you won't be able to tell which one I'm talking about. And that's exactly the point, because this individual changed some plans on the fly and the presentation went off without a hitch. The professionals I'm fortunate to work with make serving you, our audience, both a pleasure and a thrill. I'm thankful for the opportunity.
4. Medical professionals. Maybe it's because Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine is in the midst of putting together a special report on cabling healthcare environments that will be published in December and January. Maybe it's because I have seen firsthand the miracles that take place in hospitals or have been eased through more than one nerve-racking trip to the doctor's office. Maybe it's because I'm the son of an emergency medical services first-responder. Whatever the reason, I give thanks for those who are professionally trained to help, and in many cases save, lives. Many of them will be working this Thanksgiving Day, just in case any of us need them.
5 (and 6 and 7 and 8). My wife and three children. Despite the fact that I'm barely awake to write this blog entry because it took all my energy (and a few Jedi mind tricks) to get my three kids to bed ... I can't imagine any different a lifestyle. I've learned that it's an economic system of extreme proportions with kids. They take more of your energy and give you more joy than you ever would have thought possible. My wife, of course, has given our kids the greatest gift of all--life. But I also see it this way: She gave us all to each other. The multiplicity of that level of giving is truly overwhelming.
9. People who include the word "Thanksgiving" when talking about the parade. One of my pet peeves is hearing people call it "The Macy's Day Parade." Has the holiday been renamed? It's not Thanksgiving Day anymore, it's Macy's Day? It's a little bit like when people say "NIC card," "VIN number" or "ATM machine." Oh, sorry. I was becoming cranky there for a minute and this is supposed to be about giving thanks. So I'll circle back around to being thankful for all five or six people who DO, correctly, call it the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
10 through 25,309. You. That number's based on how many people subscribe to Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine. So I know it's an approximation. Not everyone who reads the magazine looks at this blog; some who look at this blog don't get the magazine. I know all that. But this is a numbered list, after all. And I think it's appropriate that such a list reaches a number like 25,309 rather than 5 or 9 or 10. Everyone who read this, or anything else put forth by the Cabling Installation & Maintenance franchise, is my customer. You've invested time in reading or hearing what we have to offer. I'm grateful you've done so, and hope that we've made it time well spent.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Fishermen cry foul over undersea cable
European news agency Panorama is reporting that there's trouble brewing in Spain between fishermen and telco Telefonica. Undersea cables are at the center of the disagreement.
According to this Panorama story, when Telefonica began replacing some submarine fiber-optic cables four years ago, fishermen who used the area in which the cables were laid had been promised payment of 6,000 euros as compensation for their inability to fish in those waters at that time.
Apparently the project took more time and was more expensive than originally anticipated. (Who ever heard of such a thing?) And not only did the fishermen not get paid the promised 6,000 euros, but Telefonica has been pointing the finger at the fishermen as the reason the cables needed replacing in the first place. The telco claims it was the fishing vessels that initially damged the cables.
Check back in with Panorama occasionally, as I bet they'll follow the story. We'll do the same.
According to this Panorama story, when Telefonica began replacing some submarine fiber-optic cables four years ago, fishermen who used the area in which the cables were laid had been promised payment of 6,000 euros as compensation for their inability to fish in those waters at that time.
Apparently the project took more time and was more expensive than originally anticipated. (Who ever heard of such a thing?) And not only did the fishermen not get paid the promised 6,000 euros, but Telefonica has been pointing the finger at the fishermen as the reason the cables needed replacing in the first place. The telco claims it was the fishing vessels that initially damged the cables.
Check back in with Panorama occasionally, as I bet they'll follow the story. We'll do the same.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Speculation about another bidder for CommScope
On Thursday, October 28 after the U.S. markets closed, the Wall Street Journal found it curious that CommScope's closing share price was $31.64, which is 14 cents higher than the price that equity firm Carlyle Group agreed to pay to take the company private.
That the closing price was more than the agreed-upon acquisition price made WSJ reporter Shira Ovide wonder if there is another bidder for CommScope. Ovide pointed out that the agreement between Carlyle and CommScope permits the cabling-systems market-share leader to hear offers from other bidders until December 5. If CommScope accepts such a bid it will owe Carlyle a $43.3 million fee, Ovide reports.
That the closing price was more than the agreed-upon acquisition price made WSJ reporter Shira Ovide wonder if there is another bidder for CommScope. Ovide pointed out that the agreement between Carlyle and CommScope permits the cabling-systems market-share leader to hear offers from other bidders until December 5. If CommScope accepts such a bid it will owe Carlyle a $43.3 million fee, Ovide reports.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
