Bangor, Wales – British Fibre Networks has appointed two additions to its senior team, to help deliver on its aim to connect more than 35 per cent of new build homes to pure fibre by 2020.
Fibre entrepreneur Elfed Thomas founded the company in 2017, to offer a genuine pure fibre alternative to house builders and homeowners. 24,000 new homes have since been signed up to pure fibre-to-the-home connectivity, in partnership with 50 housing developers.
Fibre expert Jim McBride has been appointed as technical and process director, and will be responsible for ensuring that all British Fibre Networks equipment is above specifications, and will reach connectivity on relevant networks. He previously worked with Thomas on the fibre technology for i3 Group, where he was instrumental in the design, research and development, and training and installation of the products that led to Bournemouth becoming the UK’s first FibreCity. More recently, he was Head Technical Council at SiFi Networks, a fibre optic network developer based in New Jersey.
Jim commented: ‘When we first created i3 Group, we were well ahead of the market – and now we have the opportunity to go even further as the market changes rapidly, and the methods and tools used evolve. We understand the challenges of working with pure fibre and the incredible benefits we can bring to communities, especially in how we can help less-urban areas achieve connectivity when they have previously been neglected.’
Also joining the British Fibre Networks team is new commercial director Liam Doorey, a consumer electronics specialist with more than 20 years of experience in branding, product development, marketing and sales. He was previously head of product marketing at Philex Electronic Ltd, where he successfully remodelled the core product, marketing and design strategies. Liam will be driving the company’s partnerships with housing developers and construction firms, and exploring new product potential in the home automation field.
He commented: ‘The UK is facing serious connectivity issues – currently standing at 35th in the global ranking of broadband speed. I have recently moved house myself, so I’m well aware of the struggle to find Internet access that not only meets the necessary, fast speeds for life today, but is also future-proofed. Copper cable is simply not sustainable with the pace of technological development. This is why we are offering installations that provide customers with a quality alternative, truly ultra-fast speeds, and, uniquely, a choice of Internet Service Provider (ISP).’
British Fibre Networks has begun installing pure fibre to a new build development in North Wales, and is set to begin works soon on developments in the North West of England.