The goal is to double Furukawa's optical fiber production capacity by 2019 (compared to 2016) and also increase its optical cable manufacturing capacity, creating more than 400 new jobs over the next two years. Between 2014 and 2016, Furukawa expanded its global optical fiber production capacity by 20%, and a further 20% increase was planned for 2018.
In his presentation at the Furukawa Summit 2017, Pierre Marty, Vice President of Sales at OFS, a subsidiary of the Furukawa Electric Group, discussed Optical Networks of the Future and the new technologies being developed to meet the market's explosive demand for bandwidth, driven primarily by the expanding use of cloud services, social media, ultra-high-resolution video streaming, Internet of Things applications, and future 5G networks. “The path from 4G to 5G is paved with fiber optics,” Marty stated at his conference.
“With this announcement, Furukawa is preparing to meet the ever-increasing global demand for fiber optics expected in the coming years,” said Foad Shaikhzadeh, President of Furukawa Electric LatAm and Senior Corporate Vice President of the Furukawa Electric Group. He added that an investment made this year in Brazil expanded fiber optic production capacity by 25%, currently at 2.3 million kilometers of fiber per year. “We also made significant investments in our factories in Argentina and Colombia, where we currently produce optical cables,” concluded Foad Shaikhzadeh.

Source: ITware LATAM