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Experimentation with the use of fibre optic cables begun as far back as 1790, but wasn’t commercially tested until the summer of 1970, when one team of researchers began experimenting with fused silica, a material capable of extreme purity with a high melting point and a low refractive index. They found that it was capable of carrying 65,000 times more information than copper wire.

Laying of the undersea cable starts with a marine survey, a topographic survey of the ocean floor, to determine the most benign route to follow. This even looks at the seismic activity under the water, to avoid the cable being exposed to underwater earthquakes. Then that data feeds into software that gives out a manufacturing specification for the cable itself. The cable is then manufactured completely on land per the specs of the marine route, after which it is loaded onto large vessels that lay it on the ocean floor.

• The use of fibre optic technology has certain distinctive features over other means of communication e.g. satellite, telephone twisted pair wires, coaxial cables, etc.
• Fibre optic systems offer users more potential bandwidth than any other type of transmission medium.
• Fibre optic cables are capable of transmitting very large volumes of data, audio and other multi media applications.

Fibre will cover the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Hurlingham, Lavington, JKIA, Langata up to Wilson Airport, Upperhill, Gigiri, Thigiri, and Industrial Area (150km in Nairobi).