Launch of the Sustainable Optical Fiber and Cable Industry Alliance (SOFIA)

Borealis is one of six members of the optical cable industry that have now launched the Sustainable Optical Fiber and Cable Industry Alliance (SOFIA), an initiative dedicated to promoting sustainability across the entire optical fiber and cable value chain. Partners are Covestro, Heraeus, Nextrom, Teijin Aramid, and Umicore.

SOFIA aims to foster enhanced collaboration, clear communication, and standardized methodologies to support the transition to a more sustainable future. As key industry players, we are committed to sharing our experiences to improve sustainability within our companies. Our goal is to establish best practices across the industry and inspire other industry members to join us in this effort.

Key Objectives and Focus Areas of the SOFIA Initiative:

• Creating Transparency and Common Understanding: The industry often lacks clear information and a unified understanding of the sustainability of optical fibers and cables. SOFIA aims to address this gap.
• Improving Industry Communication: We strive to enhance the clarity of communication regarding progress towards greater sustainability, providing stakeholders with better transparency on future developments.
• Developing Standardized Assessment Methods: Various methods for specifying carbon content can lead to uncertainty in their application and the resulting published values. SOFIA is working to establish consistent assessment standards.
• Accelerating the Transition: We support practices that foster a steady and controlled transition to more sustainable products within the industry.

At the upcoming events, we will outline SOFIA’s goals and initial working model, beginning with sharing our individual experiences.

• WEBINAR | September 17, 2024 | 3:00–4:00 p.m. CET (2:00–3:00 p.m. BST) | 👉 REGISTER HERE
  Organized in collaboration with CRU. From Borealis, Paul Keller will present more details about Borealis’ sustainable solutions for fiber optic cables including Bornewables™ and Borcycle™ M.
• IWCS 2024 Cable & Connectivity Industry Forum | October 17, 2024 | 10:00–12:00 EST | Providence, Rhode Island, USA, and online?
  Panel discussion on sustainability with SOFIA and further industry members.
• CRU World Optical Fibre & Cable Conference | October 10, 2024 | Shanghai, China
  Panel discussion on sustainability with SOFIA members.We aim to gather feedback from participants during these events, initiate joint discussions, and spark interest in deeper collaboration.Let’s join forces to promote sustainability within our industry!