INTERVIEW: YOFC, the largest fibre company in China, targeted expansion outside of Asia to tap the increasing demand for optical cable, with its eye on Africa and Latin America.

Dan Zhuang, the company’s president (pictured), told Mobile World Live its focus in the past was on China and some Asian markets, but one of its strategies is to go international, taking a step-by-step approach.

He believes 5G represents the biggest opportunity for optical fibre manufacturers because standalone 5G networks will need a dedicated core supported by fibre.

Over the past few years FTTH has been the main driver of growth for fibre, but Zhuang sees that shifting to 5G in the future.

A total of 3 billion km of fibre is forecast to be laid globally in the next five years, data from UK-based CRU Group showed.

He noted it had always had a tight relationship with operators, but with 5G it needs to cooperate even more closely.

In the past, it merely supplied the fibre and guaranteed a certainly quality level, but he explained the network is changing and “we need to provide new fibre solutions” which requires working with partners to solve the challenges they face, from the development stage, to trials to final deployment.

View the full interview here.