LaserCleave

OpTek Systems has launched the second generation of its bench-top tool for termination of optical interconnects. The company says the LaserCleave is a compact, production-ready platform designed to maximise productivity in optical connector manufacturing. Central to the LaserCleave-1500 technology’s core value is the elimination of mechanical scribing, which is prone to fibre chips and hackle, and the reduction of mechanical polishing steps that are used in the traditional finishing of connectors. OpTek says that elimination of operator variability in scribing, coupled with dramatic savings in consumable materials, labour and polishing equipment, leads to a direct reduction in manufacturing costs. Moreover the OpTek laser cleaving process is accurate and reproducible, improving first-pass yields and overall productivity. The LaserCleave-1500 platform supports a range of tools for cleaving simplex connectors, bare fibres, and multi-fibre connectors, including ribbon fibre. 'With the rapid evolution of short reach and active optical interconnectivity, combined with continued pressures on factory costs, market conditions definitely favour next generation manufacturing platforms,' says Duane Dinkel, president of OpTek Systems' US business.