Hull ISP KC Strike Recycling Deal to Help Rid Itself of Dirty Old Copper Lines

Hull-based incumbent telecoms provider KC, which is currently replacing a large portion of its old fixed line broadband and phone network in East Yorkshire (England) with new fibre optic cables, has struck a recycling deal with local scrap metal dealer John Brocklesby Metal Management, which will put its dirty old copper lines to good use (£££).

Copper lines, which are ultimately responsible for many of the biggest consumer annoyances with broadband reliability and speed, are slowly being replaced by KC as part of its region-wide deployment of 350Mbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) technology (some slower hybrid-fibre FTTC is also being rolled out but not to the same level).

In fact KC recently confirmed that its new network, which has been given the nickname “Lightstream“, has now passed 32,000 premises with 9,000 customers connected (here). But that still leaves a lot of old copper cable to deal with and thankfully the metal is worth quite a bit of money as scrap, which is sadly also why so many thieving scumbags try to steal it.

Until recently KC had used an out-of-town supplier to recycle the redundant copper cable but there’s now so much of it coming out of the ground that they’ve reached a new deal with JBMM, which will take on the bulk of KC’s old copper cable and recycle it in an environmentally friendly way. As a result JBMM will need to create new long-terms jobs, expand its premises and add new equipment in order to deal with it all.

Andy Whale, KC’s Engineering Director, said:

“With the creation of new jobs and investment in new equipment and premises, this is not just an important deal for KC and Brocklesby’s but also for Hull and East Yorkshire. We’re delighted to do business with a local firm and help it to grow and develop further. As a local responsible business we have a role to play in supporting the region’s economy and stimulating business growth.”

This is why it’s important to never forget the value of copper as a commodity, which once sold can help to pay for rolling out new methods of connectivity. It’s also really annoying for thieves, many of whom will find that the low value of the replacement fibre optic cabling makes it practically worthless to steal.

As a side note, KC’s strong involvement with local businesses is also one of the reasons why Ofcom has been reluctant to more aggressively break open the incumbent’s network for use by rivals; for fear that it would harm East Yorkshire’s economy. Indeed the operator claims to contribute more than £150m to the local economy each year and underpin more than 1,400 full-time jobs in the area.