A Universal Jointing System

The Universal Jointing and Universal Coupling (UJ/UC) system has been developed to solve the complex and expensive problem of repair jointing the many and varied types of submarine optical fibre cables now in existence. Telstra was instrumental in introducing this technology into the Pacific Ocean region (TASMAN 2, PacRimWest and PacRimEast Cables utilise this repair technology) and its later deployment globally.

The UJ/UC System is one that:
* Will join any fibre compatible cable (Universal Joint)
* Will join any cable to any Repeater Housing (Universal Coupler)
* Standardises jointer training
* Offers flexibility in selecting spare cable types for repairs thus facilitating the sharing of spare cable stocks

Submarine cable owners benefit from:
* Significant savings today and particularly in the future as many more different cable types continue to be installed
* More efficient maintenance and repair operations

The UJ/UC Jointing System has evolved from a need to rationalise the equipment and components necessary to maintain and repair the increasingly complex submarine optical fibre communications systems now being installed worldwide.

In 1987/8, AT&T and BT sponsored their respective research laboratories to assess the possibility of standardising jointing techniques and equipment. The objective was to create a jointing system which has sufficient flexibility built into the design to permit interconnection of a large variety of optical fibre cable types. The need for a flexible jointing system became particularly relevant when planning the TAT 9 transatlantic cable. This was to be supplied by three leading submarine cable manufacturers and would thus have three fundamentally different cable types deployed in its construction.

The UJ/UC development work now involves other companies and a Consortium was formed to introduce the UJ/UC system worldwide.

The Consortium is comprised of BT Marine, AT&T, KDD and Alcatel Submarine Networks. These Companies are all highly respected leaders in the field of jointing technology and their resources have now been combined to create the best multi-capability submarine cable jointing system available.

The UJ/UC is now available and provides cable owners, like Telstra, with a common construction equipment, standardised piece parts and simplified jointer training requirements.

This new technology offers significant advantages to all cable owners when planning the long term operation and maintenance of optical fibre submarine cable systems.

UJ/UC Hardware
The UJ/UC System consists of precision engineered equipment designed specifically for use in a marine environment, a feature often overlooked by cable manufacturers who sometimes offer factory systems unsuited to shipboard use.

The joint or coupler itself is produced as a modular kit of components, selected from a parts list, that will match specific cable types and repeater housings. This significantly reduces the number of whole joint kits required to be kept on hand in order to conduct a maintenance or repair operation. It also reduces the need to stock many different types of spare cable and offers scope for sharing between systems.

Jointer Training
Jointer training has become more streamlined with the introduction of standard procedures, with training courses and facilities available worldwide.

Standardising procedures and jointing techniques also offers the benefit of improved quality control and technician performance thus ensuring the highest possible jointing standards in the field.

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Last Modified: 01-09-2000
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