Wayleave and beyond

Hi all just a quick bit of advice if anyone can help.

I am connected the Brentwood Exchange EABRW - I live in a block of 36 flats. We have just had the surveyors in from sub contractor SITEC on behalf of Openreach to conduct a site survey for Direct Fibre (10th Dec 2019). After a blocked duct and some suspicious looking panelling which may have been abestos but luckily wasn't all went well.

Yesterday we receiving the survey summary doc with photos of ducts and specs of kit to be installed, photos of the interior all ready for openreach. We as directors have approved the survey and SITEC responded with confirming they will come back with a date of confirmation of works to begin.

Now my main question is I know for a fact openreach have not put a fibre link passed our flats. We are a mixed estate of flats and detached houses. We have had the FTTC service for 7-8 yrs now, as Sitec site engineers confirmed there is no fibre running past our premises. Now with the wayleave etc in mind would we expect to see Brentwood or at least parts of the area announced for FTTH rollout? I may have missed it can someone verify this I wouldn't know where to look.

Also anyone else been at a similar stage and could suggest a timeline for install as I need to advise rest of the residents at some point.

If Openreach are approaching for way leave permission, that contact is the best one to give you any idea of a timeline.

All we the randoms of the Internet can say is that Brentwood is on the Fibre First programme and they expect to start building in the next 3 months. So might be a couple of months or could be 12 months before it goes live. If they get all paper work in place and they went all out it could be just a matter of a week or two.

Fibre First usually means a sizeable proportion of the exchange area will get access to direct fibre (full fibre - FTTP - FTTH).

Allyjspurs

Mr Saffron has given the answer, but thanks for confirming that bocks of flats are covered by Fibre first ( where wayleaves are given) as some people doubted it.

Hope it doesn't take too long before you are live.

Always wondered what happens in a scenario where the local BDUK team has already signed a contract with Openreach to upgrade broadband in an exchange area and before the work is carried out Openreach come along and announce that exchange area is being fast tracked as a Fibre First exchange.

I suspect Openreach still pocket the money rather than the BDUK team being allowed to redistribute the money to others exchange areas that are not covered by Fibre First.

In reply to a post by kitcat:

thanks for confirming that blocks of flats are covered by Fibre first

Hi kitcat,

It wasn't clear to me from the OP's post how the flats were being done, possibly Fibre First or BDUK programme.

I wonder if the OP could confirm

Edit: to make more sense

Edited by deleted (Fri 17-Jan-20 11:12:27)

Dect

As he already has FTTC I assumed that this could only be a Fibre First project as Brentwood is on the fibre First programme. ( I would be very surprised if there was any further BDUK spend in that area.)

I am pretty sure that BT have to inform the BDUK team that the area is now in scope for commercial rollout and therefore BT would get no BDUK money for it (contractually and legally they cannot receive money for premises within a commercial project).

In reply to a post by ian72:

I am pretty sure that BT have to inform the BDUK team that the area is now in scope for commercial rollout and therefore BT would get no BDUK money for it (contractually and legally they cannot receive money for premises within a commercial project).

Thanks, didn't know if Openreach would simply exclude those properties in the BDUK contract from the Fibre First commercial rollout plans to get around it.

In reply to a post by kitcat:

I would be very surprised if there was any further BDUK spend in that area.

I know of at least a dozen property where a local VDSL cab was added via BDUK funding (speed weren't as good as expected) and within 12 months the same properties got FTTP also via BDUK funding. Appreciate this is rare but it does happen.

BT only get the money on production of invoices, i.e. after work has been done.

So if they roll-out commercial FTTP ahead of any BDUK work then there should be no BDUK invoices to raise.

Of course BT could still raise the invoices and the onus then would be on the council to check what the invoices cover, one would hope that they do this already. If your council is not checking invoices for this, then what other invoices are they blindly paying for other services.

What should happen if the BDUK contract was to provision 5,000 premises with superfast, and they commercially cover 1,000 with FTTP is that the 5,000 target remains so BT would need to find another 1,000 premises elsewhere.

Thanks, it was purely a hypothetical question but was interested in understanding what would happen.

FTTP infill for areas of a VDSL2 cabinet that are below 30 Mbps are a lot of the current BDUK work.

Very few VDSL2 cabinets are going live for the first time these days.

thanks for all the replies.

I can actually upload the documentation to one of the site admins if they are interested. Please PM me I will double check there is no private data in there but has some great camera shots of kit and what they note down for other people's interest.

I have checked (thanks Mr Saffron) for confirming the Brentwood exch is on the fibre first. My Flats are 3 floors (including ground) and 3 blocks including an ajoining studio apartment. The same contractors all did the same way leave site survey for the other set of flats 1/4 mile away but will be on the same main fibre off shoot as we are (relativley new build) i.e 1991 with orderly cable installs i.e all the telecoms and utils are well regimented throughout the estate.

The SITEC chaps did say there is no main fibre laid yet going past the flats on the estate which will of course have to be done but they also did an inspection of the nearet fibre trunk at the main road exit and the ducting around the estate has been certified as fibre ready. Very advanced tec they use by they way they pull a stiff rod through and attach a blue bit of rope on the end which when openreach turnup they can then attach to aforesaid rope and help pull through from the next manhole cover - how very 21st Century

just further to add...

There is 0 cost to us for this installation. The Openreach project to is deliver POP to the inside of each stairwell. The final run of the fibre will be from the box ( EZ Connect Module) they are installing in each stairwell split off to each individual flat then the fibre is run into each flat to the agreed interior location from the EZ Connect Module. They show these to be fitted somewhere around the front door - the connected fibre is 1-2mm and total around 5mm thick and can be covered over with sealant making it virtually invisible.

Once done, the openreach part is complete, the activation part of the install will be done by the flat owners selected ISP. Which we will probably recommend as BT retail to keep it simple to start with. They will then do the final run from the EZ connect fibre and run that into the premises to where the owner wants the final router/plate.

So for flats which can as we know be a nightmare getting everyone at home to be in for, for this part of the work Openreach only need access to the communal areas, there is NO access to each flat needed at all they are merely bringing the fibre EZ connect module to their front doors. The ISP will then be doing the last part.

Kit used listed

Basement/BUDI box installed at ground level to the main fibre intake duct. 220x150x50mm
EZ connect module splicer taking each strand off to each flat. 152x41x16mm

Flat fitting quote

'Run COF250 inside and come out at head height to feed cable to Basement Box. Invisilight Cable 1 runs from RDT at high level to flat 20 EZ Connection module, then doubles back thru dry riser cupboard to flat 19 EZ Connection module.' 19 and 20 are ground floor.