Birla Furukawa Fibre Optics Sees Higher Capacity Networks as Essential to OFC Evolution

With the wire and cable industry running at par with the demands of the nation, Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) increasingly stands out as a key driver across multiple application segments, including FTTH, BharatNet and data centres. Moving beyond its primary demand driver—the telecom industry—OFC is finding an increasingly important place in rapidly expanding data centres across geographies, catering to rising data consumption, cloud services and AI-led applications. In an exclusive interview with Wire & Cable India, Mr. Kapil Mehta, Chief Executive Officer, Birla Furukawa Fibre Optics Pvt. Ltd., shares insights into the evolving technical requirements, OFC design and construction, and ambitions of the segment amid expanding digital infrastructure demand. He highlights the growing commercial importance of higher fibre-count cables within optimised cable diameters, increasingly stringent performance and qualification requirements, and the industry’s focus on OFC designs that deliver higher fibre density, improved installation flexibility and long-term optical reliability while making optimum use of existing ducts, pathways and network infrastructure.

Wire & Cable India: India’s fibre deployment is expanding across FTTH, 5G backhaul, data centres, BharatNet, enterprise networks and other segments. Which application segments are currently shaping product development and manufacturing priorities the most, and how do their technical requirements differ?

Kapil Mehta: India’s optical fibre and cable market is being shaped by multiple application segments, including FTTH, 5G/Mobile backhaul, BharatNet, data centres and enterprise networks. Historically, telecom segment has been the primary demand driver for the industry, supported by the continued expansion of last mile connectivity. However, the rapid growth in data consumption, cloud services, AI-led applications and the increasing need for data storage and processing has led to significant investments in building data centre across geographies. The need for specialized fibre and cable solutions for these data centres is now shaping product development and manufacturing priorities.

Technical requirements for fibre and cable design used in data centre applications are significantly more demanding than those for conventional telecom deployments. Fibre and cable solutions require tighter control of optical parameters, improved bend performance, higher fibre density, compact cable constructions and reliable performance at higher transmission speeds.

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WCI: Over the past three to five years, what manufacturing capabilities or process improvements have become commercially essential for OFC producers that were previously considered optional? Which market, technological or customer requirements have made these capabilities increasingly critical?

KM: Over the past few years, cable construction supporting higher fibre counts within an optimized cable diameter has evolved from being a value added feature to a commercially essential capability for OFC manufacturers. Increasing network capacity requirements, coupled with space constraints in existing ducts and cable infrastructure is driving the demand for such cables. Higher fibre count cables enable operators to maximize the utilization of available duct space, reduce the number of cables required for a given network capacity and improve the overall economics of fibre deployment.

This requirement has also increased the importance of manufacturing capabilities around reduced geometry fibres, tighter dimensional control and advanced cable designs, enabling manufacturers to achieve higher fibre density without proportionately increasing the overall cable diameter.

CPO Driving Next-Generation Data Centre Cable Designs
Next-generation data centre requirements are increasingly centred around Co-Packaged Optics (CPO), which processes data across massive parallel lanes to keep pace with AI workloads. This changes how cables are structured.

Instead of running individual, round fibre cables, data centres are moving towards high-density fibre ribbon cables and rollable ribbon cables. These designs pack 12 to 24 fibres into a flat, thin ribbon, while hundreds of such ribbons can be bundled into a single master cable, allowing thousands of fibres to run through standard data center conduits without clogging them.

WCI: Network operators today expect higher reliability, faster deployment and longer service life. Which product attributes, quality parameters or qualification requirements have become significantly more demanding? How have manufacturers responded?

KM: Network operators today are emphasizing on long term reliability of their optical fibre cable network in order to support higher traffic volumes.

Key product attributes that have gained importance include low attenuation, improved bend performance, geometry control of the fibre parameters, mechanical strength, resistance to environmental stresses and long term reliability of the cable construction. Qualification and testing requirements have correspondingly become more stringent, with greater focus on environmental ageing, temperature cycling, water penetration, tensile and crush performance, bending performance and long term optical stability.

Fibre and cable manufacturers, including the M.P. Birla Group, have responded through sustained investment in advanced fibre drawing and cable manufacturing technologies, tighter process controls, automated inspection and testing, improved material quality and enhanced in-house qualification capabilities.

WCI: From preforms and optical fibre to cable manufacturing and testing, where has the Indian industry made the most significant progress towards technological self-reliance? Which critical gaps still remain?

KM: India has made significant progress towards technological self-reliance across the OFC value chain, particularly in optical fibre and cable manufacturing. Industry has developed substantial domestic capabilities in optical fibre and cable manufacturing, with several Indian manufacturers now possessing the scale, technology and process expertise to cater to both domestic and international markets.

India also has well established capabilities in testing and qualification, with manufacturers operating in-house laboratories for optical, mechanical and environmental testing in accordance with international standards. These capabilities have enabled Indian OFC products to meet the increasingly stringent quality, performance and reliability requirements of telecom operators and global customers.

However, preform manufacturing remains one of the key areas where India has historically had limited domestic capacity, resulting in fibre manufacturers relying on imports either from their overseas partners or independent OEM suppliers.

Encouragingly, this gap is now being addressed, with several leading fibre and cable manufacturers announcing investments in greenfield preform manufacturing facilities in India. These investments are expected to strengthen domestic preform availability, reduce import dependence, improve supply chain resilience and further enhance India’s position as an integrated global manufacturing base for optical fibre and cable.

WCI: Recent investments across the industry suggest a growing emphasis on automation, quality assurance and manufacturing scale. In your view, which investments have now become standard expectations or industry necessities, and which continue to provide a tangible competitive advantage?

KM: Online monitoring and inspection, process traceability, automated testing and robust quality management systems are increasingly becoming standard expectations. Alongside these developments, there is also an increasing use of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in areas such as material handling, in-process movement and packaging. These capabilities are essential to ensure consistent optical and mechanical performance, minimize process variation, improve manufacturing yields and meet the increasingly stringent qualification requirements of customers.

Investments in advanced process automation continue to provide a tangible competitive advantage, particularly in enabling consistent dimensional and optical performance in reduced-geometry fibres and high-fibre-count compact cables — a level of process control and manufacturing expertise that is not yet widely commoditised. Advanced analytics, real-time process monitoring and predictive quality systems can further improve yields, reduce variability and enhance overall manufacturing efficiency.

WCI: The economics of OFC manufacturing are evolving with increasing investments in capacity, technology and quality. In your view, which factors now have the greatest influence on the commercial viability and long-term competitiveness of OFC manufacturing?

KM: The commercial viability and long-term competitiveness of OFC manufacturing are increasingly influenced by several factors acting together, rather than any one in isolation.

Scale and capacity utilization remain fundamental to the economics of OFC manufacturing. The industry is relatively capital intensive and achieving competitive costs requires efficient utilization of fibre drawing and cable manufacturing capacities.

Raw material costs, energy efficiency and manufacturing yields are also significant factors. Improvements in process efficiency, automation and yield can have a meaningful impact on unit economics, particularly in a competitive and price sensitive market like India. In house preform manufacturing and other specialized materials can further improve supply chain resilience and reduce exposure to import related risks.

Investments in R&D and advanced manufacturing capabilities would also contribute to long term competitiveness. Quality and reliability are equally important; particularly as Indian manufacturers increasingly participate in global markets.

Overall, the long term competitiveness of an OFC manufacturer will depend not simply on having additional capacity, but on achieving scale with high utilization, better manufacturing yields, technology led product differentiation, consistent quality, supply chain resilience and access to international markets.

WCI: Beyond manufacturing capacity, what factors now determine a manufacturer’s ability to secure large telecom, infrastructure or data communication projects? How have procurement expectations evolved?

KM: OFC manufacturer’s ability to secure large telecom, infrastructure and data communication projects is determined by a combination of product quality, proven field performance, delivery capability, technical support, financial strength and supply chain reliability.

Procurement expectations have evolved significantly from a primarily price and capacity driven approach to a more comprehensive assessment of the supplier’s ability to deliver consistent quality at scale over the entire project lifecycle. Large customers increasingly evaluate qualification track record, adherence to international and customer specific standards, product consistency, reliability, traceability and demonstrated performance in comparable network deployments.

On time delivery and supply assurance have also become critical. Large infrastructure projects operate on tight deployment schedules and customers increasingly expect manufacturers to demonstrate sufficient capacity, robust supply chains, inventory planning and the ability to respond quickly to changes in project requirements. Local manufacturing and shorter supply chains can therefore provide an important advantage.

Technical capability is another key differentiator. Customers are increasingly looking for suppliers that can offer application specific solutions. The ability to provide engineering support, product customization and assistance during installation and deployment is also becoming increasingly valuable.

WCI: As fibre networks become denser and applications more diverse, how are cable designs evolving? In your opinion, which developments, whether in fibre count, cable construction, miniaturisation, bend performance, installation practices or other aspects, are becoming commercially important today?

KM: Optical fibre cable design construction is getting increasingly focused on achieving higher fibre density, improved installation flexibility and reliable optical performance. The objective is to accommodate significantly higher network capacity while making optimum use of existing ducts, pathways and other infrastructure.

One of the most commercially important developments, discussed earlier in the context of manufacturing priorities, is the continuing increase in fibre count within a reduced or optimised cable diameter. From a design standpoint, this is being achieved through finer sheath and buffer tube constructions, improved fibre packing arrangements and more efficient use of the cable cross-section.

Improved bend performance is another significant development, particularly for FTTH, access networks and high density applications where cables are routed through constrained spaces, cabinets, closures and buildings. Bend-optimized designs help simplify installation while reducing the risk of optical losses caused by tight bends and handling during deployment.

Cable designs are also evolving to support faster and easier installation. Depending on the application, features such as lightweight constructions, improved stripping and access characteristics, flexible designs and installation friendly cable configurations can reduce deployment time and labour requirements. These factors are becoming increasingly important as network rollouts move into more challenging and densely populated environments.

At the same time, cable manufacturers are developing application specific designs rather than relying on a one size fits all approach. Data centres, for example, require very high fibre density, compact form factors and precise optical performance, while FTTH and telecom access networks place greater emphasis on installation flexibility, cost efficiency and field robustness.

Overall, the direction of cable development is clearly towards more fibres in less space, improved bend performance, lighter and more installation friendly constructions and application specific designs.

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WCI: Looking beyond demand growth, what do you believe will distinguish the most competitive OFC manufacturers over the next few years? Please draw upon broader industry developments and the capabilities that will matter most, such as manufacturing excellence, technology, quality systems, engineering expertise and supply-chain resilience.

KM: Beyond demand growth, the manufacturers that stand out over the next few years are likely to be those that bring several of these capabilities together, rather than excelling in just one.

Manufacturing excellence will increasingly be expressed through strong yields, automation, process discipline and continuous technological improvement and advancement, building on the scale and capacity utilisation discussed earlier. This will be critical for maintaining cost competitiveness, particularly in high-volume telecom and FTTH applications; manufacturers that achieve greater consistency and productivity while maintaining quality will have a structural advantage.

Technology and product innovation will become increasingly important as networks move towards higher fibre density, higher transmission speeds and more constrained deployment environments. Capabilities in reduced geometry fibres, high fibre count cable constructions, bend-optimized products and application specific cable designs will enable manufacturers to address emerging requirements in the network infrastructure.

Engineering and customer support capabilities will provide another source of competitive advantage. Customers are increasingly looking for suppliers that can provide application specific solutions, technical support, customization and faster response to evolving network requirements. The ability to work closely with customers from product development through deployment can create stronger and more durable customer relationships.

Finally, supply chain resilience and vertical integration will become increasingly important. In house preform, fibre and cable manufacturing, can improve quality control, cost management, supply security and responsiveness.

Localisation of critical inputs and diversification of sourcing will also help manufacturers manage geopolitical, logistics and commodity related risks.

Overall, the leading OFC manufacturers are likely to be those that can bring together scale, operational efficiency, advanced technology, uncompromising quality, engineering expertise and a resilient supply chain. The competitive advantage will increasingly come from the ability to deliver the right product, at the right cost and quality, with assured supply and technical support rather than from manufacturing capacity alone.

At the M. P. Birla Group, including Birla Furukawa, we have been deeply invested in building capabilities across these areas and will continue to play a leading role in such developments, setting benchmarks and contributing to higher standards across the industry.