– Furukawa Solutions’ Laserway, a communications network infrastructure solution designed specifically for the hotel sector, achieves savings of up to 70% in cables, 35% in racks, 80% in plastic, 70% in space, 70% in energy and 95% in network ports.

In the first three months of the year, Spain received 13.7 million international tourists, 41.2% more than in the same period of 2022, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE). This confirms that the hotel sector has a high demand and, therefore, the need to satisfy a demanding customer with what today has become a condition when choosing accommodation: a good Wi-Fi connection throughout the entire hotel.

Laserway, which aims to optimize hotel services, is a fundamental pillar of the digital transformation of the sector.

Advantages of Laserway

A complete cabling solution with quality hardware and software components impacts Internet quality, service customization and data security. In addition, it influences improvement of the marketing strategy, customer satisfaction, the creation of a brand preference and a competitive advantage. Laserway has, among other benefits:

• Simplified infrastructure: the use of compact optical elements throughout the network makes it possible to reduce the size of technical rooms and electrical pipelines.
• Reduced energy consumption: by decreasing the number of technical rooms needed in the local network, the need for cooling equipment and electricity is also reduced. In addition, Laserway equipment has low power consumption when transmitting data through optical media.
• Better bandwidth control: OLTs and ONTs are located at the ends of the optical network, making it easier to control the bandwidth used in each ONT. This feature of traffic centralizing equipment at a central point in the network is also perfectly aligned with the traffic profile of today’s local networks.
• Future-proof network: the distribution network is composed of single-mode optical fiber, splitters and optical accessories, with a transmission capacity in Terabits per Second (Tbit/s). Active teams, over time, achieve significant increases in their data transmission rates. The Laserway infrastructure is ready to support future demand the same day it is implemented. In the future, it will no longer be necessary to change the cabling, just the active equipment will need to be changed or upgraded, depending on the needs of the hotel.
• Green Building network: Many Laserway features are critical for complying with resource efficiency programs, as they contribute to reducing the energy consumption of refrigeration systems and the amount of material used in cabling and accessories.
• Investment economics: Laserway offers a significant reduction in both capital expenditures (CAPEX) and operating expenditures (OPEX).
  • CAPEX: enables optimization of the infrastructure resulting in a reduction in the total initial investment in materials, installation and physical space used.
  • OPEX: the operation and maintenance of the network is simplified thanks to the reduced size and number of technical rooms, less active equipment and a control of all network points served from a single central piece of equipment. Reducing energy consumption, which can be up to 70%, is the biggest impact.

The infrastructure of Furukawa’s Laserway solution is based on passive optical elements, which do not need electricity and allow voice, data and video traffic. With a range of more than 20 km without the need to replicate the signal with intermediate active equipment, Laserway is ideal for large areas such as exhibition centers, tourist areas and hotel complexes, where the control and administration of the network must be concentrated in one place. Thus, it has obvious advantages over traditional copper networks that reach a maximum of 100 meters. In addition, it helps to reduce the cost and time of both deployment and maintenance.

Laserway provides optical networks that add value to hotels by offering quality speed and security in image traffic, access control, property management system, automated check-in/check-out, digital signage, facial recognition for access control and room customization.

Use case

Furukawa implemented the Laserway solution in a hotel complex located in the Maldives. The resort, with more than 150 beach villas, a network with copper wiring and switches did not meet the requirements of the project, due to high investments and difficulty in deploying wireless cable coverage in the villas.

The hotel had different needs to offer customers the best facilities and experience during their stay. Among them were increased bandwidth and network reliability, a scalable solution and future-ready infrastructure with superior flexibility and interoperability, lower CAPEX and OPEX and Triple Play (Internet access, telephone connection and IPTV services via GPON).

Guests are always connected on a daily basis and expect nothing less when staying at luxury resorts. Laserway was a complete Triple Play network, providing guests with access to their favorite channels and high-definition streaming apps with the IPTV system, telephone connectivity and wi-fi in every room.

Diego Martin, Furukawa Electric Group’s EMEA manager, explains: “Furukawa’s Laserway GPON allows all transmissions over the fiber optic network to reach distances of up to 20 km and only use passive elements between the network data center and data points (such as in rooms, for example). The IT team has all the services integrated into a single network, allowing the entire network to be controlled from a centralized point, for much faster analysis and response”.

“When working in remote environments, logistics and renovation are essential. Laserway has a network that lasts more than 25 years, a fundamental advantage over copper solutions that require wiring changes every 5-7 years”.

Furukawa ensures that the implementation and operation of the Laserway solution is carried out smoothly, so that the customer can make the most of its functionalities. It has full support at all stages of the project, from network design (analysis of customer requirements and the environment by engineers and proposal of the most appropriate solution) to implementation (the IT team has a specialist to configure network equipment and services and start up systems) and network operation (the customer is ensured fast and quality support.

Laserway is backed by the best international technical references and offers advantages for both business and hotel guests. Furukawa is therefore an ally for the hospitality sector, providing a robust and integrated communications infrastructure, with high availability and reliability, so that guests can have the best experience.