Quality telecoms
3M’s telecom division creates products that meet the specialised needs of the utilities, infrastructure, power, electronics and telecommunication industry. And though some are relatively commoditised products, they are often mission-critical and must therefore be made to the highest standards.
3M also makes more sophisticated products, such as underground detection devices. Utility companies all over the world have an ongoing problem in identifying, locating and recording the position of underground services, such as water, power and gas.
Dynatel™ cable and pipe locaters — made by 3M — help utility personnel find the exact path and estimated depth of power conductors, telephone cables, metallic and nonmetallic pipes. Additionally, the 3M system enables utilities to mark their cables and pipes when these are put underground by using electronic markers that can be connected to GPS satellite systems for accurate placement recording purposes.
3M’s channel partner in SA for its power and telecoms business is Tasslelane Technologies. The company holds the distribution rights for 3M telecommunications products in SA and has secured long-term supply agreements with the incumbent operator. Tasslelane Technologies also focuses on providing connectivity products to telecommunications operators, original equipment manufacturers, parastatals, and telecommunication contractors. Tasslelane Technologies is 100% owned by Jasco Electronics Holdings, rated “A” by Empowerdex for its BEE status.
Tasslelane CEO Lloyd Watt says there are eight layers in a typical communications network. The primary layer is the media layer, which contains the building blocks for a network. “All communication processes are dependent upon the media layer,” says Watt. “It forms the basis of the network.”
And as usual with 3M products, high product quality is the watchword. “These are mission-critical components,” says Yemi Fatunla, 3M’s electronics and communications business manager for sub Saharan Africa. “Quality is the key.”
3M and Tasslelane Technologies have a highly symbiotic relationship. Technical solutions functions lie within 3M, and sales and marketing are handled by Tasslelane Technologies. However, many other capabilities lie within both companies. “It’s always a joint effort,” says Watt.
Prospects for both partners look exciting for the foreseeable future, with plenty of other projects on the table.
There are some mega-projects taking place in the telecommunications arena, notably the provision of broadband services by network operators, expected to grow by more than 600% within the next five years. “We’re continuously looking for opportunities with the network operators and helping to reduce their total cost of ownership,” says Fatunla. 3M’s test and measurement solutions come in handy here for the assurance of the media layer for broadband provisioning.
Apart from the ADSL rollout, number portability will also drive expansion in the market. “The incumbent operator will spend a lot of money on the media layer to accommodate the second network operator, as some form of co habitation and/or network unbundling will be required by the two,” says Watt.
And even beyond these large projects, there are lots of opportunities outside the state corporations and in the rest of sub-Saharan Africa.
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