When the clock is ticking and lead times grow longer, solid manufacturer/customer relationships are invaluable.

In his more than 35 years of telecom experience, senior product manager Greg Pierce has seen it all. He reflects in this episode of Fiber Focus on the state of the industry, especially how massive, AI-fueled demand is straining global manufacturing capacity for fiber optic cabling and connectivity products. This scenario is a familiar one for Greg, who offers some advice for customers navigating supply uncertainty.

He underscores the importance of working closely with trusted suppliers, proactively if possible, and having design flexibility. Solid communication, collaboration, and deep product portfolios enable a creative mix of in-stock and custom products to uniquely meet any given network’s requirements and project timetable. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Contact Us: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/contact-us/
Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-pierce-4b977b10/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave

Previously on Fiber Focus, we discussed how artificial intelligence and machine learning are rapidly consuming the industry’s supply of high-performance, high-density network products. Loren Rapp dives deeper in this episode.

As Sumitomo Electric Lightwave’s product line manager for fiber optic cable, Loren has day-in and day-out supply chain experience. Listen in for her insights on the creative workarounds that customers can consider when demand is skyrocketing for particular products. For example, pliable ribbon cable, aka intermittent bonded ribbon (IBR) cable, is a precision-manufactured product optimized for the AI factory projects that are racing to ramp up around the world.

What is a customer to do when the IBR product specified on their BOM has a lead time that could result in costly delays? With a creative, collaborative approach, customers and manufacturers can keep projects moving forward together. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.
Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Regional Sales Managers: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/regional-managers/
Q102-M12+ Fusion Splicer: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/product/q102-m12-plus/
Splicing 200µm to 250µm Fibers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_8zdyjCxkQ
Loren on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/loren-vitter-rapp-a268a61a/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave

A July 2025 Synergy Research Group report projected that hyperscale capacity will increase threefold through the next six years. Josh Seawell, our director of product management, read about the report in Cabling Installation & Maintenance magazine and hopped on this episode of Fiber Focus to discuss it.

While hyperscalers are expected to represent the lion’s share of oncoming demand for fiber optic cabling and connectivity products, colocation providers and private network operators are participating in the AI boom with their own significant infrastructure investments. This demand can certainly strain the supply chain at times, but Josh encourages customers to be aware rather than concerned.

He details several examples of the creative approaches that SEL has taken with customers to troubleshoot extended lead times so they could get their networks up and running (and generating revenue) faster. “Creative” is the operative word. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Report Foresees Hyperscalers Dominating Worldwide Data Center Capacity: www.cablinginstall.com/data-center/press-release/55301410/report-foresees-hyperscalers-dominating-worldwide-data-center-capacity-by-2030
Regional Sales Managers: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/regional-managers/
Josh on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-seawell-09770979/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave

Yuko Agano returns to Fiber Focus for this episode discussing how air-blown fiber (ABF) technologies can help address rising project costs. With labor making up 60-80 percent of the price tag for a typical network build, streamlining the number of installers and reducing their time on-site can yield significant savings.

As Sumitomo Electric Lightwave’s product manager for FutureFLEX® Air-Blown Fiber® Solutions, Yuko has seen time and again the labor savings that network operators can realize with ABF on their bills of materials. Instead of the five or more people needed to pull conventional cable over many hours or even days, FutureFLEX Solutions can be blown through an existing pathway by two installers in as little as 30 minutes.

Tune in to this conversation to learn more, and join us at ACI-NI in October and BICSI Fall 2025 or Winter 2026 to see a demonstration of FutureFLEX Solutions.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Sumitomo Electric Lightwave Tradeshows:
https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/tradeshow-schedule/

FutureFLEX® Air-Blown Fiber®:
https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/product-category/futureflex-air-blown-fiber-solutions/

ACI-NI Registration:
https://airportscouncil.org/conference/2025-annual-conference-and-exhibition/#Registration

BICSI Events:
www.bicsi.org/conferences-and-events/bicsi-events/conference-and-exhibitions

Yuko on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuko-agano-504927106/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave

“This will be the field I retire. I love it. I’d never heard of it before.”

After serving in the U.S. Navy, Andrew Degidio embarked on a new career journey in telecom. He got his start as a field service engineer without ever laying eyes on a fusion splicing machine, and now he is Sumitomo Electric Lightwave’s senior technical manager focusing on fusion splicer development and support.

In this episode of Fiber Focus, Andrew shares his perspective on how well the military prepares people for stable, well-paying industry roles. Beyond the training, troubleshooting, and hands-on experience that Andrew gained in the Navy, his demonstrated willingness to learn and rise to challenges primed him for industry success. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Be Part of a Global Company: https://sumitomoelectric.com/careers
Fusion Splice Training and Certification: https://fiber-aws.pearson.com/fusion-splicing-micro-register
Andrew on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-degidio-094bb896/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave

Meet Lauren Deloatch. She was the marketing director for a golf club when she was recruited by Sumitomo Electric Lightwave nearly 10 years ago. Since then, Lauren’s contributions to the telecom industry have included the free, two-day Fusion Splicing Certificate Course that she developed in collaboration with AWS and Pearson.

Join us for an engaging conversation about Lauren’s career-pivoting experience, telecom’s widespread growth, and a rapidly accelerating demand for new industry workers. She encourages people of all backgrounds and education levels to consider getting their start (and earning a livable wage) as a fusion splicing technician. Hands-on training and certification are easily accessible first steps. Upward mobility opportunities are plentiful. Soft skills, attention to detail, reliability, and a willingness to learn and adapt are especially valuable traits during this transformative era in telecom. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Helpful Links
Fusion Splice Training and Certification: https://fiber-aws.pearson.com/fusion-splicing-micro-register
Be Part of a Global Company: https://sumitomoelectric.com/careers
Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) Education: https://fiberbroadband.org/education-and-certification/fba-optic-path/
Fiber Optic Association (FOA) Approved Training: https://www.thefoa.org/foa_aprv.htm
Lauren on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ldeloatch/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwaveave - YouTube

Fiber Focus welcomes Dwayne Holst to this episode for a preview of the next breakthrough in data center network design. A data center optical communications researcher with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave, Dwayne is currently working on “digital twinning,” creating network simulations that enable data center operators to view and optimize a virtual version of their complete physical networks before ordering a single part.

The roadmap for this capability is full of promise; next-generation data center network design automation will be able to generate hyperaccurate bills of material, output construction work orders for network builds, send testing instructions for human verification, and analyze network performance for learning and improvement. Not since the commercialization of electronic data automation (EDA) in the 1980s has there been such a game changer in interconnect automation. Tune in to this conversation to learn more.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Helpful Links
History of Computer-Aided Design Tools: www.computerhistory.org/siliconengine/computer-aided-design-tools-developed-for-ics/
Dwayne on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dwayneholst
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwaveave - YouTube

In the 30+ years that air-blown fiber (ABF) has been deployed in North America, industry results show that it is the ideal installation technology in specific scenarios. Yuko Agano, Sumitomo Electric Lightwave’s product manager supporting air-blown fiber and cable technologies, returns to this episode of Fiber Focus to outline installations where ABF can deliver better installation speed, labor savings, and future-readiness than traditional deployment methods – especially for network operators who place value on being able to keep their facilities up and running without disruption during network expansions and upgrades.

Is ABF uniquely positioned to deliver the strongest ROI for your next project? Sumitomo Electric Lightwave’s engineers can help. Tune in to this conversation to learn more and check out the resources in our show notes.

Fiber Focus is a Sumitomo Electric Lightwave podcast. Subscribe, share this episode, and follow Sumitomo Electric Lightwave on LinkedIn and X.

Episode Links
Contact Us: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/contact-us/
FutureFLEX® Air-Blown Fiber®:
https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/product-category/futureflex-air-blown-fiber-solutions/
Yuko on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuko-agano-504927106/
Meredyth on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/meredythneilly

Connect with Sumitomo Electric Lightwave
Website: https://sumitomoelectriclightwave.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@sumitomoelectriclightwave