Corning said this week that it opened its new optical fiber manufacturing facility in Mszczonów, Poland. The company announced the facility last year after determining the plant was needed to meet growing demand for fiber optics in the European Union and surrounding regions.
Just as demand for fiber is growing in the U.S., it is also growing in Europe because of the need for fiber for 5G rollouts and 4G densification along with initiatives to bring fiber to more homes and businesses.
Corning already has another factory in Strykow, Poland, where it’s been manufacturing optical cable and connectivity components since 2001. The new facility adds about 250 employees to the company’s workforce of more than 3,000 in the country.
Józef Kurek, mayor of Mszczonów, said in a statement, "High-speed connections will come to more people and more communities in Europe thanks to the fiber that Corning will make here. We are pleased that Corning turned again to this region's talented workforce to bring its innovations to life."
Mike Bell, general manager of Corning Optical Communications, has previously said not only will Corning’s new facility in Poland help meet fiber demand in the E.U., but it will also free up capacity for U.S. demand.
In August, Corning announced it would build a new factory in Gilbert, Arizona, to manufacture optical cable.
There’s a huge demand for fiber optic cables in the U.S., especially since Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJ&A), which will inject about $65 billion to build fiber broadband connections in the country.
Corning said it was building the new plant in Arizona “supported by AT&T and record industry broadband demand.”
A Corning cable manufacturing expansion announced last year in North Carolina is also ramping up.