CityFibre Boost UK Gigabit Rollout with Visual Automation

CityFibre’s has today moved to boost their £4bn rollout of a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based broadband ISP network by implementing Deepomatic’s Visual Automation Technology throughout its end-to-end network operations. Cost savings and faster installations for homes and businesses are expected.

At present CityFibre has already deployed their “full fibre” network to cover 1 million UK premises, and they currently aim to have 8 million premises “substantially completed” – across around 285 cities, towns and villages (c.30% of the UK) – by the end of 2025 (here). This may rise further if they’re successful in securing some funding from the UK Government’s £5bn Project Gigabit programme.

However, such operators are always looking for new ways to boost their builds and cut costs (i.e. operational efficiencies), and the new deal with Deepomatic looks as if it might be able to help by deploying a mix of image recognition and AI technology – implementing it throughout the operator’s end-to-end build operations.

Under this approach, CityFibre’s engineers will use an app-based interface to upload images of network build, upgrade or maintenance-related work prior to closing a job. The images are then analysed in real-time to either validate the work as complete or highlight issues that need addressing before leaving the site.

The visual record and any associated notes will also be stored to provide a searchable history of build information and maintenance activities, which can then be accessed on-demand by the operator’s network management and quality assurance teams.

David Tomalin, Group CTO at CityFibre, said:

“Deepomatic’s Visual Automation Technology is a key part of the Better By Design approach to deliver a world class network and service experience for our partners and their customers. It is helping us ensure quality standards are consistently met, reducing human error while empowering our people, and minimising repeat engineer visits. As well as delivering operational efficiencies and customer benefits from day one, it will enrich our network asset and records management over time, support predictive analysis work and inform our future network upgrade decisions.”

Augustin Marty, CEO at Deepomatic, said:

“CityFibre is currently at the forefront of providing the new generation of Full Fibre infrastructure for the UK. We are delighted to support their visionary team in scaling quality and reliability to new heights. Thanks to visual automation, CityFibre will roll out fibre technology in a much faster way, grasping all the insights it needs to deliver an operationally premium network.”

The operator has already conducted an “initial pilot” of the solution, which was run to test its implementation and live use. A nationwide rollout is now underway, with the technology already being used across their Midland and Southern regions. CityFibre said they were also evaluating the potential of this system for use during the final installation of services to customer premises.

The current rollout is expected to complete by the end of 2022.