Author
Rob van Dijk
Field Application Engineer
Amsterdam is famous worldwide for its picturesque urban architecture, including its famous rows and rows of vintage, low-rise tenement buildings. This would be called a walk-up apartment building in the United States, but in the Netherlands, it is referred to as a portiek, which translates literally to “porch building” in Dutch.
These cozy, classical multi-tenant residences are living history, where aesthetic impact must co-exist with the highly-connected families that dwell there. Fortunately, CommScope® innovation provides a way for these homes to remain true to their past—while their residents enjoy connectivity of the present.
Open Dutch Fiber (ODF) wants to connect 23,000 homes in the heart of Amsterdam to the fiber-optic—a vast project that requires complex and thorough preparations.
Amsterdam's porch buildings, with their shared front-doors and central halls, represent a unique architectural charm. However, their distinct structure also presents a unique challenge for modern fiber optic network installations. CommScope, a global leader in network infrastructure solutions, in partnership with system integrator Netceed Netherlands and Circet Netherlands, offers an innovative approach to connect these homes seamlessly and efficiently.
ODF recently contracted Circet Netherlands to facilitate FTTH connectivity for porch buildings in Amsterdam Old West area of 23.000 homes to meet the unique needs of these deployments—minimal aesthetic disruption, shared entry points, working with complex hall and stairwell environments between units and the need for flexibility and scalability, in addition to top-tier fiber performance—Netceed, a leading distributor for CommScope, partnered with us to leverage the new NOVUX® solutions available for these tricky installations.
Less mess, more bandwidth
Netceed Netherlands found CommScope’s FTTH products to be a highly effective solution. Our NOVUX CSC closures enable the connection of multidrop cables with a centralized distribution approach. This design is specifically engineered for shared spaces, making it particularly well-suited for historic porch buildings.
Alongside CommScope’s FIST® EDSA2 drop closures, modular front patching system (MFPS) fiber panels and HFTP units, Netceed Netherlands, together with Circet Netherlands, designed an FTTH architecture that could be installed quickly and easily.
This centralized distribution approach starts with a basement- or mechanicals closet-installed closure that enables flexible, scalable connectivity to individual residences, as needed. The NOVUX CSC closure houses a multiple fiber termination unit (MFTU) acting as the central hub connecting each building.
From the MTFU, internal connectivity over fiber-optic cables run to each unit—either inside existing conduits or via new paths, as needed. These preterminated cables are designed for quick, easy and error-free installation. Once in the apartment, CommScope’s HFTP units are installed, ensuring top FTTH performance all the way to the wall connections.
In addition, CommScope’s FIST-EDSA2 FTTH drop closure manages both feeder and drop cables efficiently, ensuring the transition from the main network to the MFTU NOVUX CSC100 is seamless and reliable.
From there, CommScope’s MFPS performs the critical job of providing the interface between network and point-of-presence (PoP) internal distribution system. In Amsterdam Old West, CommScope’s MFPS solution was particularly effective due to its exceptional management of high-density fiber connections and maintenance accessibility.
“Deployment in this kind of building is difficult, where we must connect discrete units without compromising aesthetics and historical charm, indoors or out,” says Peter Van Den Heuvel, technical director of Netceed NL. “CommScope’s end-to-end fiber solutions, along with the flexibility offered by the NOVUX enclosure, turned a hard job into a quick one—and a successful one.”
Historically beautiful results
“One of the greatest challenges with constructing FTTH is installing the fiber in residences. Using the MFTU, we prepare the network so that it’s not required to enter each individual home, while retaining full flexibility and most importantly lead times for our end users if they want an internet connection from one of our partners,” Bas of ODF says. “With the MFTU, resources are used effectively to connect end users with active connections, allowing for a much quicker and effective initial rollout, maintaining flexibility and short lead times when connecting consumers and businesses to the internet.”
CommScope’s partnership with system integrator Netceed Netherlands and Circet Netherlands was instrumental in helping Open Dutch Fiber connect Amsterdam’s modern digital life with its historical heritage. We take pride in supporting Open Dutch Fiber’s efforts to preserve these unique homes and ensure they remain vibrant, relevant and functional for generations to come.
To learn more about how CommScope’s end-to-end fiber solutions can benefit your network or to schedule a consultation, contact us at www.commscope.com. Let’s build a smarter, more connected Amsterdam together.
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