CommScope has officially opened its Fiber Architecture Solutions Technology (FAST) Track – a site where service providers can test and experience demos for fiber architectures.

Located in Catawba, North Carolina, the site features a working FTTH network that doubles up as a testing site. Visitors can watch outdoor demos of architecture in action, as well as work with the CommScope team to test interoperability across systems.

“The outdoor innovation and testing lab allows us to collaborate with customers in real-world conditions where we can help service providers and contractors shorten learning curves, accelerate design validation and test deployment strategies, ultimately reducing field time and improving rollout efficiency,” said Michelle Hogan, CommScope’s GM of North America Broadband.

The site has already started hosting previews for customers in October, with providers now able to book tours and tests.

It features nine distinct fiber innovations for visitors to experience, including a centralized split, to showcase fast, flexible outside plant deployments using the vendor’s FDH 3000 cabinet.

Also at the FAST Track is a distributed edge demo, where a single-level split is distributed throughout the testing network to showcase simplified deployments, as well as what CommScope called cascaded indexing: A plug-and-play PON approach that accelerates builds, simplifies installation, reduces costs, and scales easily as demand grows.

There’s also an air-blown fiber cable installation in a simulated suburban topology. Here, visitors can experience the installation process firsthand across 200-foot lot lines with 10-foot setbacks, where 11 pedestals are simulated by attaching duct vertically to fences. Each pedestal location includes four 90-degree bends and one 45-degree bend, demonstrating real-world installation challenges in suburban environments.

Danielle Marlow, a product line manager at Netceed, was among the earlier visitors. They said the site helps to “sharpen our perspective as we help service providers design and deliver the networks of tomorrow.”

“Seeing real-world network deployments up close brought broadband innovations to life, showing how every connection we build makes a difference for our customers,” Marlow added.