FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TIA FOLS Elects New Officers

 
Arlington, Va., Feb. 23,2004: The Fiber Optics LAN Section (FOLS) of the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) has elected officers. FOLS serves as an educational resource, providing information to users about the benefits of fiber in customer-owned networks.  
 
John Struhar, director, fiber structured cabling system solutions at Ortronics, Inc. (New London, Conn.) was re-elected as Section Chair. "I am delighted to chair FOLS again in 2004," he said. "Last year we made significant progress by expanding our charter beyond fiber-to-the-desk applications to include additional customer-owned networks. This year we see great promise in the emerging zone cabling standard, which offers users another cost-effective way to deploy fiber in their networks."  
 
In addition to Struhar, the following other leaders in the fiber optic industry have been elected:  
 
- Vice Chair, Gary Cawley, Optek Technology, Inc.  
- Communication Subcommittee Chair, Rodney Casteel, CommScope, Inc.  
- Membership Subcommittee Chair, Robert Reid, Panduit Corp.  
- Standards Subcommittee Chair, Herb Congdon, Tyco Electronics  
 
Struhar predicts that 2004 will be a strong year for the deployment of fiber in customer-owned LANs. "The cost for deploying all-fiber LANs is lower than it's ever been," he said. "In many scenarios it's now very competitive, or even lower, than the cost of installing UTP copper cables." Struhar referenced the interactive cost model developed by FOLS and Pearson Technologies (http://www.fols.org/resources/costmodel_reg.cfm), which allows users to compare the installed first costs of an all-fiber network to a fiber/UTP copper network. "The cost model has generated a great deal of interest over the past six months. It's a powerful tool that allows users to model the cost for their own networks and shows them where fiber is cost effective to install today." He added that the FOLS and Pearson Technologies are already working on the next update of the model.  
 
Now in its 11th year, FOLS was originally founded to provide information on the use of fiber in the backbone and horizontal portions of premises networks. To meet the emerging needs of end users, FOLS members decided in 2003 that it would expand its scope to cover customer-owned LANs such as data centers, storage area networks and industrial applications.  
 
More information on the use of fiber can be found on the FOLS Web site at www.fols.org.  
 
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Note: The opinions expressed in this release are those of the Fiber Optics LAN Section of the Telecommunications Industry Association and are not necessarily those of the entire TIA membership.  
 
The FOLS focuses on educating end users and influencers about the technical advantages and affordability that optical transmission brings to local area networks and fiber-to-the-desk applications. FOLS members are leading fiber cable, component and electronics companies including, AMP/Tyco Electronics, Berk-Tek, CommScope, Corning, Corning Cable Systems, Fluke Networks, Leviton Voice & Data, OFS, Ortronics, Optek Technology, Panduit, Sumitomo Electric Lightwave and Transition Networks. Visit the FOLS at www.fols.org.  
 
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) is the leading trade organization serving the communications and IT industry, with proven strengths in standards development, domestic and international public policy, and trade shows. Through its worldwide activities, TIA facilitates business development opportunities and a competitive market environment. The association provides a forum for its member companies, the manufacturers and suppliers of products and services used in global communications. TIA represents the communications sector of the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA). Visit us at http://www.tiaonline.org.