Belden has introduced the FiberExpress Brilliance Universal 250-micron connector boot “for faster termination of outside-plant (OSP) loose-tube fiber-optic cabling in data center, central office, and FTTx applications,” the company said when announcing the new product.

The company further explained: “OSP loose-tube 250-micron fiber-optic cabling must be terminated within 50 feet of entering a facility, and breakout kits are commonly used to build the cable up for protection and termination to 900-micron connector boots. The optional Brilliance Universal 250-micron connector boot allows for direct termination, eliminating the need for a breakout kit. … Used inside splice cassettes to protect the 250-micron terminations and fiber, the 250-micron connector boots allow data center and service provider technicians and installers to take full advantage of Brilliance Universal’s faster no-epoxy, no-polish, no-crimp fiber terminations.”

Dwayne Crawford, product line manager for Belden, further explained, “While indoor/outdoor 900-micron fiber popular in campus environments prevents having to perform service-entrance splicing to in-building cable, 250-micron fiber is still the norm in most outside plant and service provider applications. By eliminating the need to use expensive and laborious breakout kits to termination 250-micron fibers, the new Brilliance 250-micron connector boot allows entrance room terminations to be accomplished much faster. This can help significantly cut cost and speed network deployment in data center and fiber-to-the-home applications.”