In May 1936, South Central Power Company connected its first members to its newly built electric system. Eighty-eight years later, thanks to a BroadbandOhio grant, South Central Power launched connectSCP initially to some members in the New Market and Somerton areas, offering high-speed, fiber-optic internet service.
Defining fiber internet
The term fiber-optic internet, or even just “fiber,” refers to bringing internet service to your home or business with ultra-thin strands of glass fibers bundled inside an insulated casing. The fibers transmit data using light pulses instead of electric currents. Unlike the copper wire of phone or cable connections, or the wireless signals of satellite connections, the data transmitted over fiber-optic cables is coming to you at the speed of light!
The network construction process
As in the early days of electric construction, building a fiber network requires materials, talent, and, perhaps the most precious commodity of all, time. Since last September, our engineering and construction contractors have designed and built more than 1,000 miles of fiber lines. And, our network continues to expand every day.
The home installation process
Once fiber-optic lines have been connected to the poles, we can start connecting residences and businesses to fiber internet service. We run fiber lines all the way into homes and/or businesses to an optical network terminal. These lines typically follow our electric lines so that if electric lines are buried, fiber internet lines are also likely to be buried. From there, internet service can be connected to devices by either a wired or Wi-Fi connection.
Where we are now
We are currently connecting fiber internet service to homes and businesses in the New Market and Somerton area. We are also building out our fiber network in the Beallsville, Duckwall, Lamira, and Sinking Spring areas, and if we aren’t taking orders there by the time this magazine reaches your mailbox, we will be soon!
Benefits to all electric consumers
connectSCP is connecting our substations using fiber technology. This will allow South Central Power to detect and restore power when outages happen faster and more accurately than ever before. Even if your community isn’t slated to receive fiber internet service from us soon, the smart electric grid will be a benefit to you.
What’s next
connectSCP continues to apply for grant funding to extend our fiber network into additional unserved and underserved communities in our service area. Understanding what areas of our membership are interested in receiving fiber internet service helps us in our planning and future grant applications. If you’d like to receive fiber internet, let us know by completing our interest form at connectSCP.com or by calling us at 800-282-5064, option 2.
From the July 2024 issue of Ohio Cooperative Living.