Project Update 9/24/11

• Network fully back up and running after the storm
• Drop and splice crews returning to normal
• 25 subscribers connected to date
• 8 - 10 subscribers expected to be connected next week and 12 - 14  the following week
• ARPU and connections on track to hit the business plan numbers for the year

Project Update 9/12/2011

• The network was restored last Tuesday, 9/6
• Splicers and drop crews were called away for storm-recovery work so we could not immediately resume connections.
• Crews began trickling back on Friday so that we have been able to connect 5 people who had been put on hold.
• By the end of this week we expect to concentrate on getting the complete process –  network splice, drop, drop splice, and installation – back in smooth operation. While this will be our main concern, we do expect to get another 4 – 6 customers connected. Next week we hope to get  8 - 10 customers connected, and hope to reach a steady 10 – 15 per week after that.

Anecdote for this week: Five months ago, a couple who had just built a new home near North Road called Fairpoint for a new phone installation. After setting poles to their house, Fairpoint told them that there are no spare lines in their CO, and that it would not be possible to serve them. Fairpoint did not indicate when (or whether) that might change. Four months ago we began building our network from scratch. Today we connected and “turned on” service to these people. As you can imagine, they were pretty happy.

Project Status 9/5/2011

Thanks to the great work of a number of dedicated people, the ECFiber Network is back up and running.

Project Update, 9/2/11

This update is largely about the effects and aftermath of Irene

• Main fiber across the White River by the Bethel Bridge was severed by debris riding the crest of the flood, Sunday evening. Our cable was approximately 37 feet above the normal level of the river, but the flood rose so high that debris riding on the crest caught our fiber, and the pressure of the water was sufficient to break the cable.
  This was repaired approx. 24 hours later (Monday evening).
• Several poles along Old Rte 12 were severely damaged (snapped, knocked down etc). However, our line was not damaged and continued to “pass light”.
• The Barnard School generator was not turned on at any time during the crisis. As a result, the batteries powering the Barnard node went dead after 8 hours. When the power came back on Tuesday morning, the batteries were recharged.
• As a result of  the above three events,  the network was down for about 40 hours and was brought back up on Tuesday morning.
• On Friday morning, we suffered another setback when a disaster recovery crew working on Old Rte 12 cut the ECFiber cable on that road. This cannot be repaired until the CVPS crews have first repaired their power cables, which is expected to be done by next Tuesday, Sept 6. We expect to repair our cable and have the network back up shortly after CVPS is finished.

Once the network is back up, we will resume customer connections

Anecdote: Our first customer, Gretchen Wilson of Rte 12, Barnard, was in the path of the flood and had to leave her house.  Fortunately the house survived but we feared that the ECFiber equipment in her house would have been destroyed since it was located in the basement and was covered by 5 feet of water for an extended period.  Miraculously, when we brought the network back up Tuesday morning, Gretchen’s system came right back on.

Irene effects:
Only one cut in the fiber itself.  In fact this the first time I (director Tim Nulty) have ever seen a Kevlar-jacketed fiber cable break.

Project Update 08/25/11

• Marketing literature was distributed to Phase I customers on Monday, 8/22. 
• ECFiber was accepting subscriptions as of Monday night.
• The first two “live” subscribers were connected Wednesday afternoon,  8/24
• WCAX did a piece on ECFiber on the evening of 8/24. See  http://www.wcax.com/story/15328005/ecfiber-connects-its-first-customer
• Regular connections will start on Friday 8/26.

Project Update 08/22/11

• Customers on the Phase I route may now sign up for service at www.myecfiber.net

Project Update:  08/18/11

• 7 Beta customers on line, 2 more to come:   Barnard store tomorrow and 9th (last) Beta on Friday
• Barnard Academy (Elementary School) connected and online.
• Voice telephone has been tested and is good to go (i.e. can be installed at time of connection for those customers who want it)
• 159 permissions for installation of drops have been received (72.3% of the those that received request cards requesting such permission**).  Of these 122 have ONU enclosures installed on the side of the premise;  of those:
  35 customers have drops and ONU enclosures in place and are ready for connection; 45 more customers have enclosures and are ready for drops to be built. These should be completed in two weeks; Another  42 customers have enclosures but are not ready for drops  (usually because there is a complication with the drop that requires some special consideration or action)
  Remaining 37 who have given permission are awaiting visits by ECFiber to assess their drops
• Marketing material setting out packages, prices etc. will be delivered on Monday, Aug, 22 to all “up-country” premises**  which are on the Phase I route
• Scheduling of installs for regular customers will begin next week

**  “up-country” means outside the town of Bethel…..i.e. all premises that are on the Phase I route which are south of the junction of North Road and Rte 12/107.
Drop permission request cards were only sent to these premises.    Most of the other premises on Phase I have access to DSL  and/or Comcast and are likely to generate a lower take rate.   For this reason we are concentrating on up-country premises first, most of which are un-served.  Once we have addressed these subscribers we will come back and market to the others.

Project Update:  08/15/11 

• The connection at the Bethel Bridge has been made….there is now full connectivity to Barnard.
• Remainder of the Beta subscribers (those beyond the Bethel Bridge) will be connected up early in the week of 08/15, including the Barnard School.
• Phone service has been turned on and new lines have been ordered for the ECFiber offices. Initial testing will be only by ECFiber. When we are confident that it is working smoothly, we will order lines for the Beta subscribers that intend to purchase phone service.
• Beta tests are going well. If we continue to get the same results, we will consider starting regular subscriber connections in the week of Aug 22.

Project Update:   8/5/11

• 151 drop permissions have been received,  108 NID/ONU enclosures placed on premises, 45 drops completed.
• 4 Beta internet customers are up and running….so far all is going well.
• Service to Beta customers is being monitored for speed, latency and jitter. We will report on results as they become available.  Early indications are that ECFiber service is significantly better on all three parameters than either DSL or Comcast in our service area.
• Phone service has been activated.   Initial testing will focus on ECFiber/ValleyNet and Matrix lines. When these are stable, we will turn up Beta phone customers.