HERNDON, Va., August 20 -- The National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (NEMI), an industry-led consortium focused on strengthening the North American supply chain, is launching a new project to improve optical fiber splicing. An informational meeting is scheduled for September 18 at the National Fiber Optic Engineers Conference (NFOEC) in Dallas. The goal of the project is to develop industrywide splice-quality criteria and test methods that will allow for systematic investigation of variability, comparison of equipment and procedures, improved yield and lower costs. "There are no widely agreed-upon acceptance criteria for fiber splices, and specifications often differ significantly between OEM, EMS, supplier and customer," said Peter Arrowsmith, advisory scientist for Celestica Inc. and chair of the NEMI Fiber Optic Splice Improvement Project. "One critical area is the splicer insertion loss estimate. Different splicer vendors use different techniques for estimating insertion loss, and the accuracy of these estimates is often insufficient to know whether the splice is acceptable, particularly when really low losses -- less than 0.05 dB -- are required. Industry would benefit from standardized criteria for estimating insertion loss, and this is one of the areas the project will address." The project will also develop standardized procedures and requirements for strength criteria and test methods; splice protection, such as coating and sleeve; strip, clean and cleave effectiveness; fiber handling for prep and splicing; and fiber reliability assessment methods, Arrowsmith said. Anyone interested in participating in the project should contact David Godlewski at dgodlewski@nemi.org. For more information about NEMI, visit http://www.nemi.org.