How do the Patch Panel (LIU) look like ?

These are currently in co-design stage with a local structured cabling equipment manufacturer. Once prototypes will be ready, we will be happy to share pictures as well as show physical samples of the same.

In the interim, here is a drawing and similar box illustrations:

The above box houses only optical fiber couplers, cables and terminations, but the Patch panel box designed by our team can house cables, connectors and couplers along with small lengths of rodent safe conduits for all three cable types viz. optical fiber, ethernet and telephone cabling (hybrid LIU) and is fully modular.


UPDATE: 02-Aug-2016
The engineering sample is now ready and pilot pulling required cables/terminating and using is now planned over the weekend. This is not the final item but will be similar (some minor rework will be done in production sample after pilot results).  Here are some images of the sample piece:

Front Fascia (Cover Closed) - Flat side on left with lock, right side is latch based SP Patching

The Patching side opens independently of flat side cabling section.

The internals of an unloaded box

Bottom Fascia (for cable entry)

The cabling seems to be the most important part of solution. So why we should go for Patch panel ?

No doubt, the fact that all three kind of service distribution networks (Telephone wire, data cable, fiber optic cable and coax cable) are recommended to be inserted in each flat together is a very key part of the patch panel solution. But it alone is not enough. Just like the car engine might be rated by most as one of the most important part of the car. But by itself it is not the car. And most of us do not go to the market and buy a good engine and keep it. We buy the car (solution) as solution is what it is usable. The full Patch Panel solution is that car.

Comparisons aside, just putting cables only has some serious drawbacks:

1. If you put cables in conduits and let them hang around exposed, then they are susceptible to damage (for eg., rats in shaft, by construction workers ins haft, pulled by accident in apartment by kids, maids, interior workers, natural insulation degradation etc) potentially risking the integrity of the entire cable. Telecom cables are not as robust as electrical wires (especially optical fiber and cat6)
2. It does not help resolve the conduit per flat identification problem. 
3. Fiber optic cables and connectors need to be housed in dust free environments, otherwise they become useless. This can only be achieved by terminating the ends and housing them in dust free housings (Patch panel and wall faceplate)
4. If not connectorized, the connection change process still takes more time, due to splicing and connectorized jobs. 
5. Not connectorizing and terminating cables leads to greedily keeping long cable lengths on shaft side to eliminate risks of length being short and this causes lot of cable wastage. 
6. Some SP keep Floor distribution boxes at every floor (ACT and Airtel) but others like Pursuit keep one every 3 floors (to save ONT cost). So we do not know for sure how much cable length we should keep spare in shaft.  Their is no reliable way to join copper, cat6 and fiber cables unless they are housed in a proper junction box.

Bottom line is keeping spare cable lengths and just laying cables is not a good medium to long term solution, if at all it is a solution in the first place.

The unique business value of the Patch panel solution for residents is to convert the entire process of taking a  new connection or changing service providers ( a basic need and right of residents) a "plug and play" affair.  Just like if you buy a car, you can just drive it off, rather than buying an engine and lugging that around in another transport.

What are the real costs of the patch panel solution ?

At present the cost is around Rs. 3000/- per apartment for the basic cable package (parts + labor included). The top-level cost breakdown is illustrated below:

We are only collecting half this amount from owners (Rs. 1500/-), the rest will come from cost sharing by the builder and the service providers (Airtel, ACT and Pursuit).  

In particular one serious complication arises when deciding money to be  collected from owners:

1. No ISP is willing to out-rightly fund the entire patch panel solution for 1426 flats in our complex, especially when their is no guarantee on specific market share of business. But they are willing to share costs for the subscribers they connect. So the association has to seed the investment and then recover the costs from the service providers, necessitating a slightly higher fund collection per apartment than what may actually be required
2. In many floors, only one owner is a member of association. The other 3 are unknown and therefore they cannot be made to share costs immediately but will ultimately pay 1-2 years down the line. Still we need to provide the solution to the known member (resident or non-resident owner) while at same time trying our best to keep costs for those who pay early in control.

We hope all owners would appreciate these challenges and come forward to co-operate for community's good.