The submarine cable world is growing once again, and we are approaching another high in terms of projects and laid route kilometres. More importantly than this though, SubOptic recognises and is reacting to the fact that this growth is being driven to a significant extent by activity in new regions and markets, and in new market segments - Essentially bringing new users & investors into the fold.
SubOptic is composed of members from all parts of the industry, including suppliers, operators, marine experts and bandwidth users giving us an unparallel view of our industry. This is the first of a series of working groups that will be formed over time, to ensure that SubOptic serves the industry in an enduring and supportive manner while at the same time fostering debate in between the three year conference /convention cycle. The promotion of the working group concept will also provide a mechanism for new topics, debates and progress to be made by the industry in a more enduring manner.
Taken together SubOptic hopes that this work will contribute to the continuing improvement of cable system implementation, so enhancing the reputation and bankability of this key industry in today’s Web 2.0 World.
Framework and Guideline for a Standard Submarine Cable Construction Contract
This first Interim Activities Working Group has been formed to specifically develop a framework based on best practice for a Standard Submarine Cable Construction Contract and an associated Guide. These documents are being developed to provide insight into a critical but often misjudged and misunderstood part of all that makes up a submarine cable project.
This Construction Contract Framework is not intended to be used as the de-facto finished agreement – however, it will provide a sound introduction to the structure and the purpose of the Contract for the novice, and it will form a baseline for discussions and negotiations helping to deliver clarity and speed to this critical project phase. The Construction Contract Guide will provide the reader with the perspective of both the supplier and the buyer, and understand what collateral activities and dependencies have to be taken into account to ensure success.
We expect that a draft of these two documents will be made available to the wider industry, for review on our website, in the latter part of this year.