Did You Know: it can cost an average of between $25,000 and $50,000 to bury just one mile of fiber! Why is the price range so big? Well, there’s A LOT that goes into burying a mile of fiber – so let’s take a look:
As you might expect, the costs break out into two main categories: cost of materials and cost of labor.
The materials include things like the fiber optic cable, the conduit that houses and protects the fiber cables, and the electronics (from the Calix Electronics Family: AXOS E-7 Shelves, ONT’s, and a GIG-A-SUITE of Routers). These costs vary from year to year, as the costs of most things do, but these costs are usually more consistent per mile.
The cost of labor is where it gets a little hairy. These costs include the manpower and equipment used to bury the fiber optic cables and conduits underground. Things like soil type, water ways, existing roads and highways, railways, trees, and rocks, for example, all affect the total cost of labor. Some of these obstacles, like existing roadways and railways require extra care and special measures to ensure they aren’t damaged. Other obstacles, like rocks and trees, make the overall burying process much more difficult. So a mile of fiber that includes a street or a large tree would cost more than a mile of fiber in softer soil without any obstructions.
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