HUBER+SUHNER is strengthening its close collaboration with Microsoft Azure Fiber with further planned investments in its production capabilities to accelerate the rollout of Hollow Core Fiber (HCF) cable and connectivity solutions supporting cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. As part of the cooperation, HUBER+SUHNER expects progressive growth in manufacturing volumes as Microsoft deploys HCF across more Azure regions.
Since 2017, HUBER+SUHNER has worked closely with the Azure team in Romsey, UK, (formerly the University of Southampton spin-out Lumenisity), to develop and manufacture innovative HCF cable and connector solutions. These solutions are already deployed in the Azure network, with higher-capacity variants under development to support Microsoft’s future scaling of its HCF‑enhanced cloud infrastructure.
HUBER+SUHNER and Microsoft have developed and qualified a series of ruggedized outside plant (OSP) and inside plant (ISP) cable solutions, certified for field deployments. In parallel, the collaboration is progressing its next-generation, higher-density HCF cable designs to support future Azure network requirements. At the HUBER+SUHNER manufacturing plant in Herisau, Switzerland, special processes have been established to integrate HCF into stranded multi-fiber loose-tube (MLT) cables, with capacity to grow as Microsoft’s ecosystem collaborators expand fiber manufacturing at scale.
Additionally, the company has created an innovative mode‑converting HCF connector specifically engineered for the demands of hyperscale and metro‑optical environments. These patented HCF connectors are in series production at HUBER+SUHNER’s Cube Optics facility in Mainz, Germany, and the company is investing to further scale manufacturing capacity to meet accelerating demand. With qualified designs in both HCF cables and connectors, HUBER+SUHNER is now extending its HCF product portfolio to enable fully integrated, end‑to‑end connectivity solutions.