On May 23, Benoit MEREL, Deputy Managing Director of TDF, and Robert VALIERE, Managing Director of TDF subsidiaries Val d'Oise Fibre and Yvelines Fibre, inaugurated the Centre Technique National de la Fibre.
Located at 12, avenue des Béguines, in Cergy-Pontoise (Val d'Oise), this new site is a concrete expression of TDF's commitment to anchor itself in the territory of its first Délégation de Service Public.
The event was attended by Marie-Christine CAVECCHI, President of the Conseil Départemental du Val d'Oise, Arnaud BAZIN, Conseiller Départemental and Senator for Val d'Oise, Pierre-Édouard EON, Conseiller Départemental délégué au Numérique and President of Val d'Oise Numérique, and Rachid ADDA, Managing Director of Val d'Oise Numérique.
TDF's expertise at the national fiber optics technical center
Spread over 430 m_, the center houses TDF's fiber engineering teams, design office engineers, project managers, auditors and field controllers, as well as the general management of the Val d'Oise Fibre and Yvelines Fibre project companies. Some thirty employees are based there, working day in, day out to deploy optical fiber in low-density areas in the heart of territories where TDF is implementing a public initiative.
TDF, a partner of local authorities
The installation of the Centre Technique National de la Fibre in the Val d'Oise department is a concrete expression of TDF's determination, as a partner of local authorities, to make the deployment of fiber optics a lever for the economic development of these regions. Following the example of the VORTEX public service delegation awarded to TDF by the Val d'Oise Numérique public-private partnership in 2017, where the majority of subcontractors are Val d'Oise residents, the work is most often carried out by local companies.
The first homes in the Val d'Oise to be connected to optical fiber this summer
Just over a year after the award of the VORTEX public service delegation, fiber is gradually arriving in Val d'Oise businesses and homes. Marketing will be launched from July 1, 2018 for the 15,000 outlets already built, with a target of 40,000 by the end of the year in line with Val d'Oise Fibre's commitments.
A neutral and open operator, TDF has already signed partnerships with BOUYGUES TELECOM, VITIS and OZONE so that these Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can offer their services to individuals and businesses on all the public-initiative networks operated by TDF.
TDF, an established player in the fiber market
Nearly a year after winning the Réseau d'Initiative Publique (RIP) in Val d'Oise, the Appel à Manifestation d'Engagement d'Investir (AMEI) in Yvelines, at the end of December 2017, the public service concession in Indre-et-Loire and Loir-et-Cher, and in January 2018, the Réseau d'Initiative Publique du Maine-et-Loire, TDF confirms its position in the Fiber market as well as its strategic positioning aimed at providing Very High Speed Broadband coverage to territories located in rural areas. In all, TDF will be deploying more than 700,000 outlets by 2022.
Marie-Christine CAVECCHI, President of the Val d'Oise Departmental Council:
I'm proud that the Val d'Oise department is one of the most advanced in France in terms of digital coverage on such a scale. As the spearhead of territorial and human solidarity, the Département has more than just a role to play here: it has a responsibility. The establishment of TDF's Fiber Technical Center in the Val d'Oise will contribute to local economic development and is a powerful lever for the attractiveness of our region.
Pierre-Édouard EON, President of the Val d'Oise Numérique mixed syndicate:
"TDF had undertaken to set up its national fiber technical center in the Val d'Oise. A promise kept! This strong signal clearly demonstrates the ambitions of the Val d'Oise to be at the forefront of very high-speed broadband deployment and the development of new digital uses throughout its territory".
Benoît MÉREL, Chief Operating Officer, TDF:
"With this new site, TDF is strongly reaffirming its commitment to local communities. More than just an operational center, it is a further demonstration of our determination to anchor our activities as close as possible to the field.