Find the outside plant fibre cable that suits your route, ranked from a library of manufacturer datasheets, with aerial ADSS spans checked against the published sag and tension table.
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Walkthrough
An aerial installation needs a self-supporting cable, so only ADSS constructions pass. Duct, direct buried and in building installations raise advisory notes instead, such as an unprotected cable in a trench.
Enter the ambient temperature range, a maximum cable diameter and any LSZH, rodent or termite requirement. Flat cables have no single diameter, so they are flagged for a manual duct check.
For ADSS cables, enter the pole span and the datasheet sag and tension table is shown with the matching row highlighted. A span close to the longest rated span carries a warning to confirm it with the manufacturer.
Read why the top cable was chosen, compare it with a lighter alternative or the top three side by side, and check the datasheet panel with the original manufacturer wording.
Fibre count and grade inputs, with the ranked result updating as you type.
Overview
Choosing an outside plant fibre cable is rarely about the glass. A loose tube cable and an ADSS cable of the same fibre count often carry the same G.652.D single-mode fibre. What separates them is whether the cable can carry its own weight between poles, survive a trench in termite country, fit the sub-duct already in the ground and meet the fire performance a building needs. Those are mechanical and environmental questions, and they are the ones this tool answers.
The selector reads a library of manufacturer cables from the noIM₃ component catalogue and checks each one against what you asked for: fibre count, fibre grade, installation method, LSZH sheath, rodent and termite protection, ambient temperature range and maximum diameter. Cables that fail are listed with the reason rather than quietly dropped, so you can see how close the near misses were. Passing cables are ranked by datasheet facts in a fixed order: fewest spare fibres, then smaller diameter, then lighter, so the recommendation does the job without over-buying.
For aerial work, ADSS datasheets publish stringing examples for an everyday condition and several severe wind and ice cases. The selector reads those tables, finds the shortest example span that covers your pole span and reports its sag, tension and cable strain at its most severe condition, with the wind and ice that example assumes. The tool does not calculate optical loss, because the datasheets behind the library publish mechanical data only.
Every cable in the library is checked, not just the ones that pass. Failures are labelled in plain language, such as too few fibres, not self-supporting or too large for duct, so you can see which constraint removed a cable and decide whether to relax it.
For ADSS cables, your pole span is matched against the sag and tension table printed on the datasheet. The table is shown as printed, with the matching row highlighted. Each example has its own wind and ice loading, so the tool names it for you to check against your site.
A common selection error is ordering far more fibre than the job needs. Passing cables are ranked by fewest spare fibres first, then by smaller diameter, then by lower weight, all from the datasheets, with no weighted score.
Armour, sheath, rodent and termite protection are described in prose that varies between datasheets. The tool derives a class from that wording to drive the filters and shows the manufacturer's original text beside it, so you can check what the sheet actually says.
Filter on maximum cable diameter for duct or sub-duct clearance, and see the estimated cable weight over your route length. Flat cables, which have no single nominal diameter, are flagged for a manual check rather than passed or failed.
The top pick comes with a plain language explanation of why it won, a lighter alternative where one exists, and notes on the datasheet facts that matter for your install, such as no stated rodent or termite protection in a direct buried trench, or a non-LSZH sheath indoors. The top three passing cables can also be compared side by side.
Each cable's physical characteristics are reproduced from its datasheet, with optical figures where the sheet carries them and the specifications the manufacturer lists. If a cable you need is missing, you can request it from inside the tool and attach the datasheet.
Inputs and outputs
Inputs 9
Outputs 9
Use cases
No. The outside plant datasheets behind the library publish mechanical and environmental data, and manufacturers usually hold attenuation figures in a separate optical document. A loss figure here would be invented rather than sourced. Use the PON Optical Budget and Connector and Splice Loss calculators for the loss calculations, with the attenuation for your chosen fibre grade.
ADSS datasheets publish stringing examples for an everyday condition and several severe wind and ice cases, each with a span, sag, tension and cable strain. The tool finds the shortest example span that covers your pole span and, at that span, the condition with the highest tension. If no example covers your span, the cable fails on span. Each severe example has its own wind and ice loading, which the tool names, so check it against your site loading and ask the manufacturer for a sag and tension calculation where it differs. Table rows are never interpolated.
Some cables are ordered from a part number template in which a code selects the fibre type, so one product covers several grades. The tool does not claim a fitted grade for these cables. It lists the grades the code allows and reminds you to confirm the grade when ordering.
They are derived from the datasheet wording, which varies a lot between sheets. The derived class drives the filters so the library can be searched, and the manufacturer's original text is shown beside it in the datasheet panel.
Flat cables have no single nominal diameter, so a diameter comparison does not apply to them. Rather than pass or fail them on a number that does not exist, the tool flags them so you can check the cross-section against the duct yourself.
Not without separate support. ADSS cable is built to carry its own weight between poles, while loose tube, micro core and axial cables are not self-supporting and would need lashing to a messenger wire or catenary. Choosing an aerial installation therefore fails every non-ADSS construction.
Yes. You can request a cable from inside the tool, with your notes and, if you have it, the manufacturer datasheet. Accepted submissions are added to the shared library.
Your inputs are remembered in your browser between sessions. The cable library is loaded from the noIM₃ component catalogue, and a cable request is sent to noIM₃ only when you submit one.
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