FiberLight, the Alpharetta, GA-based fiber infrastructure provider, will invest $20 million in a 100-mile fiber optic project along State Highway 130, near Austin, TX. In collaboration with the Autonomy Institute, a 501c3 nonprofit public-private partnership, FiberLight’s investment will create the region’s first intelligent infrastructure economic zone. Autonomy Institute members include companies such as Hewlett Packard Enterprise, NVIDIA, Raytheon, Cisco, and Ericsson. The total project cost is $80-90 million, all of which is privately-funded, Ron Kormos, FiberLight Chief Strategy Officer tells Inside Towers.
For its part, FiberLight is providing high speed 10 GB connectivity initially, and as much as 100 GB if needed, to Public Infrastructure Network Nodes (PINNs) across approximately 92 miles of State Highway 130. These PINNs are large equipment cabinets that house FiberLight’s fiber terminals and a power supply of up to 10 KW. The PINNS can accommodate Autonomy Institute partner company-supplied hardware with software to manage autonomous systems, and mobile network operator radios and antennas for 5G, WiFi or satellite connections.
When complete, the FiberLight network will support autonomous cars, trucks, industrial vehicles and drones along with AR/VR and other edge computing applications. The SH130 project advances the concept of connected smart cities, similar to other projects in the U.S. and internationally, Kormos added.
“To realize the goal for safe and reliable use of automated vehicles, fiber optic placement – delivered by PINNS – is critical,” explains Bill Major, FiberLight CEO. “For this project, our fiber infrastructure will deliver 10 and 100GB connectivity of capacity or more to each of the more than 240 PINNs, situated every 2,000 feet, across State Highway 130, and provide a resilient solution that will drive economic expansion and job growth for the region.”
“SH130 is the modern-day equivalent of Route 66, supporting dozens of communities, and enabling 21st-century solutions,” says Jeffrey DeCoux, Chairman and Autonomy Fellow at the Autonomy Institute. “Intelligent Infrastructure touches the day-to-day life of each of our citizens and is crucial to competitiveness and prosperity. Fiberlight has helped deploy critical digital infrastructure statewide, and their expertise will build a stronger and more connected Texas.”
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
Reader Interactions