Service disruption from an outage that occurred due to fiber damage was restored Wednesday, April 19, at approximately 11:30 p.m. Because of the extensive nature of the damage, a temporary fix was put in place while the iFiber team works with its maintenance contractor on permanent resolution. The permanent repair will be completed during a scheduled maintenance window, with customers receiving advance notification.
FEBRUARY 2023 – iFiber’s commitment to maintaining its core sites passed a major test during the ice storm that crippled much of northwestern Illinois Feb. 22-23.
A power outage affected Eastland Middle School, site of the iFiber broadband network’s core distribution site in the Shannon region. When the site lost power, it went onto battery back-up as it is designed to do. But when the generator failed to start as expected, Eric Haan, District Technology Director for Eastland CUSD #308, knew there was a critical issue. Upon investigation and assisted by John Prowant, Director of Operations, Haan discovered an animal had gnawed a hole through the cooling system’s generator cap (see photo).
As President of iFiber’s Board of Directors in addition to his IT Director role, Haan was keenly aware of the urgency of the situation. He and Prowant braved the treacherous weather conditions by locating a replacement cap and coolant at a local diesel repair store. Once installed, the generator was immediately back up and running ensuring no major outages in fiber-broadband service for the iFiber network.
The core site situation was made that much more urgent because Shannon site’s equipment was on its last legs battery-wise, according to projected battery ride time. Haan had the generator operating just as the lights on the equipment were starting to dim.
Other iFiber team members worked behind the scenes to ensure network services would not be interrupted for iFiber customers.
Marc Thorson, who oversees iFiber operations as Executive Director of Regional Technology Services, NIU Division of Information Technology, arranged for a mobile generator if it was needed. Jen Uridil-Dolman, Project Manager and Damage Assessor for NIU/iFiber Broadband, provided information on the battery life and records of the preventative maintenance done. Joe Trickey, Sales Engineer and Project Manager, provided technical information on the generator and site electrical options. He also ensured the details were covered for all contingency options to make sure nothing was overlooked.
iFiber (Illinois Fiber Resources Group, not-for-profit) continually works to provide the best possible platform for its Community Anchor Institutions and Service Provider Partners. Since its inception in 2011, iFiber has completed several upgrades of its core network backbone devices.
iFiber has five core sites which ensure redundancy in service. iFiber’s ring architecture design provides a redundant route out of regional sites through ring protection with its Core and Distribution network. In the event of a fiber cut in one location along one of its major routes, iFiber will continue to provide services through its Core and Distribution network.
iFiber is proud to continue offering an open-access fiber option to serve communities working with our service provider partners. iFiber is dedicated to its commitment to meeting ever-changing communication needs now and into the future.
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Read the Fall/Winter 2022 issue of iFiber’s e-newsletter.
Illinois Fiber Resources Group, NFP (iFiber) joins JULIE, Inc., in recognizing April is National Safe Digging Month.
Homeowners and professional excavators in Illinois are reminded to call JULIE, Inc. (JULIE) at 8-1-1 before every digging project this spring, regardless of the size or depth. This is a free call and service.
JULIE’s helpful call center agents are available to receive and process requests 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 8-1-1. E-Request is also a convenient option for homeowners who prefer to enter their own utility locate requests via www.JULIEBeforeYouDig.com.
When calling 8-1-1, homeowners and contractors are connected to JULIE, Inc., the Illinois One-Call System, which notifies the appropriate utility companies of their intent to dig. Professional locators are then sent to the requested digging site to mark the approximate locations of underground lines with flags, paint or both. Every six minutes an underground utility line is damaged because someone decided to dig without first contacting JULIE.
Striking a single line can cause injury, repair costs, fines and inconvenient outages. Installing a mailbox, building a deck and planting a tree or garden are all examples of digging projects that require a call to JULIE.
The depth of utility lines can vary for a number of reasons, such as erosion, previous digging projects and uneven surfaces. Utility lines need to be properly marked because even when digging only a few inches, the risk of striking an underground utility line still exists. For more information on safe digging techniques, visit www.JULIEBeforeYouDig.com and follow “@JULIE1call” on Facebook and Twitter.
iFiber is committed to excellence in serving new and existing customers with its open-access fiber broadband network throughout Northwestern Illinois. iFiber is a provider of 21st Century high-speed (up to 10Gb) network transport services to both the public and private sector in Northwest Illinois and beyond. It is a mid-mile network offering the opportunity to connect with long-haul networks serving a broad and diverse region.
Board and staff members directing the operations of iFiber and Fiber Ventures (iFiber’s for-profit arm) recently met in person for a planning retreat. Operations and board meetings mostly have been handled virtually during the COVID pandemic. The retreat allowed team members to discuss future plans as iFiber continues its commitment to excellence in serving new and existing customers with its open-access fiber broadband network throughout Northwestern Illinois. Board and team members also proudly modeled new iFiber-logo pullover shirts at the retreat.
General Information: 1-815-753-8113
Technical Assistance: 1-877-753-8100