Adam Churchill
Have you ever played the game Yeti in my Spaghetti?

Laura Seney
I have not ever played that.

Adam Churchill
Okay, so the game is you got to pull out the spaghetti without making the yeti fall into the bowl of spaghetti, right? So it's almost like that. Sometimes it's challenging, sometimes you have to pull that one fiber out of the bottom of the bowl. Sometimes that can be challenging also.

Laura Seney
Welcome to Connected Conversations, the official podcast of Kosciusko Connect. Kosciusko Connect is a subsidiary of Kosciusko REMC. Since 2021, we have been providing fast, reliable fiber to the home internet service to rural portions of northern Indiana. On Connected Conversations, we talk about fiber internet, technology, community, and how to navigate the digital world in which we live.
I am your host, Laura Seney. Thank you for connecting with us today.

Laura Seney
Hello, everyone, and welcome to another episode of Connected Conversations. Today, we are going to be talking about the ins and outs of fiber internet installation here at Kosciusko Connect with our fiber maintenance and splicing technician, Adam Churchill. Hi Adam, how are you doing today?

Adam Churchill
I'm doing great. Thanks for asking.

Laura Seney
Awesome. Thank you for being willing to be a guest on our podcast today.

Adam Churchill
You're welcome.

Laura Seney
What is your position here at Kosciusko Connect and what do you do on a day to day basis?

Adam Churchill
So my position here is I'm a fiber technician. I basically work anything fiber related. I mainly work on touch splicing to repairing fiber, so I get my hands into everything honestly. So I'm excited about that. The company's been great to me, learning all these new fiber positions.

Laura Seney
That's awesome. And you guys definitely do a great job providing internet for our customers on a day to day basis. What drew you into this line of work? Have you always been interested in technology and installation?

Adam Churchill
Well, that's a long story. So I started out, you know, as a college career learning carpentry, and I was working for a carpenter. And he said, hey, why don't you, do some electrical work for me? I'm like, sir, I don't want to know anything about electrical. I don't care to know it. And, he basically told me, he said, hey, if you're going to work for me, you're going to learn it. So I learned electrical, and within like, two weeks, I understood it. Like, I got it. Like it clicked. So from there I got into small voltage, you know, doing DirectTV. And I went to AT&T. So I've been doing it 20 years now.

Laura Seney
Wow. It's really cool to hear how just like a summer job in the summer thing turned into your entire career.

Adam Churchill
Yeah. If I wasn't forced to do something, I don't think I would ever learn to do it. You know what I mean? So I'm glad that guy or the guy I worked for said, hey, you're going to learn it, you know?

Laura Seney
Yeah. That's awesome. It's important to have people who push us to learn how to do new things.So that's awesome.

Adam Churchill
Yeah.

Laura Seney
Can you share any memorable moments or projects from your career so far?

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So I think the biggest moment for us as a company was the time when we first had our first customer installed, and I remember we were so proud as a company, knowing that we finally built it and then finally got something to work, right? So having that first customer installed was a memorable moment for the team, for all of us.

Laura Seney
Yeah, that's awesome. Starting Kosciusko Connect and getting that first customer was definitely a huge accomplishment for our company, and it was a whole new territory that we walked into. And now we have like what? I forget how many thousands of customers that we have now.

Adam Churchill
Yeah we're getting close to 10,000 now.

Laura Seney
Yeah.

Adam Churchill
So we're at 9,400 somewhere around there.

Laura Seney
Yeah. So it has been an incredible journey for sure. For those who might not know, can you explain what fiber optic internet is and how it works?

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So it's a type of broadband connection that uses light to transmit data over a thin piece of glass or, you know, fiber plastic. It works by converting electrical signals into light pulses which travel through the fiber, and then it's converted back to electrical signal. And then it's received at the other end, which is like our ONT. And then from there from our ONT it goes into our router and then it distributes the, Wi-Fi service throughout the house.

Laura Seney
That's interesting. Can you walk us through a typical fiber installation process from start to finish?

Adam Churchill
So when a customer calls in for our service, normally we'll have a drop. Usually at that time it takes about two weeks because they got a call locate. And then our drop crew will run fiber to their house. I think one of the time for a customer get excited is when they see utility flags in their yard and you know, they're getting close to getting our service, right? So you see our flags, you know, you're getting close to getting our service. You know, be excited. So from there, once they get the drop crew done and the fiber to the house, a question I always get is fiber all the way to my house. And yes, it is, it's all the way inside the house. Then a home installer comes out there. There's three of us techs in-house, and there's two contractors that help us. So we, basically once you have your job done and we come to your house, we'll figure out where's the best spot in your house for your service, right? So typically we like to look at a center location of your house so the internet can distribute all equal. So like a common spot for internet service would be like in your living room. I know most people don't want to see it, but they give the best service throughout the whole house. It kind of needs to be centrally located right? So from there, if you need a mesh extender, we offer extenders, say if like your garage is not getting good service or, you know, like in your bedroom or your bathroom, you know, it's important to get service throughout the whole house. And another thing is the pole barn. People like to say, hey, my pole barn, how do I get internet to our pole barn? That's a question. You know, we have to do a site survey and take a look at it, see how we can get you internet to your pole barn.

Laura Seney
That's interesting. And, yeah, getting internet to all the different areas of your house can be a challenge. And a lot of people, I've heard that they think they can stick their internet router, like, in the basement, but then, you know, then they can't get signal everywhere that they need in their house. So that's why we have technicians like you that know all the ins and outs of this and can help our customers get everything set up correctly, make sure they have good, solid internet connection everywhere in their house that they need to, or even their pole barn.

Adam Churchill
Yes. And I want to add to that, sometimes, you know, walls affect the Wi-Fi signal. And some people think microwaves also affect a signal. So windows, anything that can block the signal. Every house is different. So that's why you need a professional installer to basically find out the best location and see where you have the best signal for everything.

Laura Seney
Yeah, exactly. And that's why Kosciusko Connect is the place to call because we'll come out. We'll help you set it up. We'll get everything set up correctly rather than trying to set it up yourself, when you don't know all of these different factors that can affect your internet signal.

Adam Churchill
Yes. Correct.

Laura Seney
That makes sense. What are the biggest benefits of fiber optic internet compared to other types of internet connection?

Adam Churchill
Yeah, that's a good question. So fiber is more resilient. It's more reliable. What I really like about fiber is it can go 100 miles without repeating it. Like if you deal with coax, coax, you can only go so far. Right? So an average length of a coax is like three 50ft or 300ft. And then you have to repeat it with fiber. I think the most we got right now is like 25 miles, right? So if you go up to 25 miles without repeating it.

Laura Seney
Out of curiosity, like how many other different types of internet connections are there available on the market, do you now?

Adam Churchill
So it's it started out with dial up, then it went to DSL. So there's different connections out there. I know there's companies out there use phone lines. And then some companies use coax. So fibers to the next best technology today right?

Laura Seney
Yeah. It makes sense that it's the best because it travels at the speed of light. So obviously it's the fastest that we can provide to our customers.

Adam Churchill
Yes. Correct.

Laura Seney
What's a day in the life of a fiber install technician like? Are there any surprises or challenges that you face on a regular basis?

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So you have your daily tasks that you do between us three techs, we all have our specific tasks that we're doing that day. I think what can be challenging in the day is if you're on a task and just say something, one of the main lines gets cut. People are down, right? So when we see people down, we see people upset. And so we kind of drop everything that we're doing for that day to get everybody back on line. So it's challenging because you got to pull off what you're doing and then go back to it later on. Hopefully, you know, you can finish that task, but there's some times that you'll have to work late nights, like there's nights that the fiber damage was done throughout the day. Well, we just got them up and running, but that night we're going to have to cut it out that bad section and redo it throughout the night process. And working through the night is a challenge sometimes. Also, it's harder to see, sometimes it's colder. Obviously the lighting is not as good. You don't have that daily light.

Laura Seney
Yeah, because you have to get the fiber internet back up regardless of, you know, weather or time of day. So we definitely appreciate our fiber optic technicians who, you know, work really hard to keep our customers internet up and running.

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So and another challenge too. I'll throw this in there is the environment. Sometimes it can be super cold out or it could be a hard rain or it could be windy. So the environment is a challenge too, because you know, the fibers are like the size of a hair. So you're dealing with a size of a hair and then you have the wind blowing at you and you're like, okay, wind, please stop. So I can really focus on these fibers, stop blowing around. So yeah. So that's a little bit discouraging at that time. You know, when you see your fibers moving and you want to get everything finished.

Laura Seney
And yeah, that sounds extremely challenging.

Adam Churchill
Yeah.

Laura Seney
This is why we hire talented people who can overcome these challenges because that sounds extremely difficult.

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So have you ever played the game Yeti am my spaghetti?

Laura Seney
I have not ever played that.

Adam Churchill
Okay, so the game is you got to pull out the spaghetti without making the Yeti fall into the bowl of spaghetti. Right. So it's almost like that. Sometimes it's challenging. Sometimes you have to pull that one fiber out of the bottom of the bowl. And sometimes that can be challenging.

Laura Seney
Yeah, that does sound challenging. I'm sure you've had lots of practice, but still challenging. Are there any myths or misconceptions about your job that you'd like to clear up for our customers?

Adam Churchill
A common myth is that the fiber is fragile and can break easy. Fiber cables are designed to be durable and can stand various environment conditions, so it's actually pretty tough. The fiber is if you bend it more than 90 degrees, it could possibly break on you, and then if it breaks, then you have to start all over. So it is durable. It's reliable.

Laura Seney
That makes sense. What tools are technology do you rely on the most when you're out in the field?

Adam Churchill
Yeah, so the tools I use the most are basically my hand tools. Just regular tools. Screwdriver, side cutters, those are the common ones. But the one I probably use the most is my fiber splicer. So in order to get connection to a certain location or house or a new location of a subdivision, I always have to pull out my splicer. And a lot of times you'll see me on the side of the road with a table, you know, open, sometimes with an umbrella. If it's raining, you know, fusing splice fiber back together or into a new location. So that is one of my main tools that I use. There is a tool that we have is a OTDR, which stands for a optical time domain reflective meter. Basically what that tool does, it sends pulses of light down the line, and it could tell me exactly where the brake is at on the fiber, or how long the fiber is like how many feet. Sometimes it's challenging to find out where that break is at. So once I figure out the footage of the breakage, then I have to go on the map and try to figure out, you know, the break. But anyways, the OTDR is something we use to find any anomalies in the line. Like if there's a broken fiber or if it's bent too hard, or if you have poor signal. So that's what we use that tool for.

Laura Seney
That makes sense, especially if you have like miles and miles of line and you have to find one little spot that has a little break or something, somewhere that would be an extremely valuable tool to have.

Adam Churchill
Yeah, yeah. Especially when it's getting late and you're trying to find that, that line where it's broke out or I get service back on to the customer's. So. Yeah. So it's a great tool to have.

Laura Seney
It makes sense. Out of curiosity, what types of weather conditions or what types of situations causes a line to break? Because you said it's pretty durable. So what generally is the thing that will cause it to break or go out?

Adam Churchill
Yeah, normally the fiber will break when the weather changes. What we're finding out is when it turns hot or cold or cold or hot, like extreme, sometimes the fiber will break. Normally it's not supposed to. But I think what happens is when they're doing construction and they're when they're being cut in the fiber, I think they nick it. And then when they nick it, it doesn't heal itself. So then it just breaks with that extreme pressure or of the barometric pressure. That's probably the correct word I'm really looking for.

Laura Seney
That makes sense.

Adam Churchill
So, it doesn't happen very often, but it could happen. It probably happens, maybe once or twice a year. So those can get challenging to find the broken fiber.

Laura Seney
That makes sense. What has been the most rewarding part of your job?

Adam Churchill
I think the most rewarding part of my job is knowing that I work for a company that I believe in. There's not too many places you can go and say, I'm proud of this service or I'm proud of my employees. Like it's a very rewarding job.

Laura Seney
Yeah, I think that is a sentiment shared pretty widely at our company. Like everyone who works on the Kosciusko Connect side, they're confident that they're providing quality service to our customers and that what they're doing is valuable and important, and it's well done and it's quality. And to be able to have that pride in what you're providing to the community is, is really awesome. And I think it's really rare. So yeah, that's really awesome.

Adam Churchill
Yeah, absolutely.

Laura Seney
Do you have any funny or unusual stories from installations that you'd like to share? I mean, I guess like the funniest thing is maybe a dog. Jason. Yeah. You know. Yeah. And me running away from a dog or. I remember one time I, was installing and the dog ran into the beehive, and then the bees started coming after me, and I got stung. So, I mean, those are the stories, like, you don't want to remember, but. Yeah, you look back like, oh, I guess that was pretty funny, you know.

Laura Seney
You can look back and laugh even though it was rough at the time.

Adam Churchill
Yeah, absolutely.

Laura Seney
I think anyone who has any kind of job where they have to go out and visit people's houses, they have to deal with the pets and any other unknowns, like beehives. You never quite know in a day what you might run into.

Adam Churchill
Yeah. And I was kind of surprised, like, I didn't even know what was going on until I saw the dog going back and forth. And then I got stung and I'm like, oh my goodness, that dog's in the beehive. And I'm still, you know, I'm running away.

Laura Seney
Yeah. How do you see fiber technology evolving in the future?

Adam Churchill
You know, I would like to time stamp this if I could. I feel like fiber is the future. I don't think it's going to go anywhere. It's the best internet out there right now. So, you know, maybe you never know. 20 years from now I might be wrong, but I feel like fiber. I mean, how much faster you can get the speed of light, you know? So yeah, I think it's going to be the future.

Laura Seney
Yeah, I agree, from what I've heard, it's the best quality internet there. Are there any tips you have for maintaining a strong, reliable internet connection for our listeners?

Adam Churchill
Yeah. So I always tell people if you're having issues with your service, first thing to do is reset your router, reset your modem, or your ONTs, is basically the correct term, but I say modem because most people don't know ONT. What is an ONT, you know it's what we use instead of a modem. It's an optical network terminal. So I tell people to reset their equipment first. If that doesn't work, if it doesn't fix your issue, I would maybe look into the cable, the fiber line from the wall plate to your ONT, if there's like a hard bend in it, or if you see break and that yellow line or black line that you have on the wall plate, that's something you might want to give us a call, right? Especially if it's broke. You probably are not going to have service. And if everything looks good inside, you reset the modem, ONT, you looked at the wall plate and everything looks good. The next thing is, you know, maybe go outside, take a look at the line from your box. You know, the did outside. Look outside and follow that line into your house and see if like an animal chewed it or the fiber line, come in inside your house. And I guess taking a look around your environment. Also, if there's construction going on, sewer lines, landscapers, anything like digging outside, you know, make sure nothing's out there that can cause your fiber to go down or your internet go down. So those are those are like three things that I would look at.

Laura Seney
That makes sense. Look around. See what could have broken or gone wrong. What are the most common questions you receive from customers during installation of their internet?

Adam Churchill
The most common questions I get are how is this service different than what I have? I always tell them fiber's most reliable, most consistent, speeds are symmetrical. They're 100MB per second up, 100 down. So if you had the 100 plan and the other question is, well, I get Wi-Fi throughout my whole home and I always answer, yes, as long as we put the router central in your house, everything should be good. And the question I always hear is, how do I get internet to my pole barn? You know, I work in my garage or my pole barn. How do I get internet there? And I always tell them we have to do a site survey. There might be some custom work involved here and charges for that.

Laura Seney
So yeah, that makes sense. People want to make sure they have access to the internet everywhere in their house or property that they need to. Is there anything else you would like to share with our listeners about fiber, internet or anything else that you do as a technician, or did we cover at all?

Adam Churchill
Yeah, I think what I like to share is that we are getting into other lines of work. We're doing security cameras, so we're really excited about that. So that's one thing I would like to I don't want to get too much into it, but having security at home is important. And so we're excited as a team to offer that to customers. So it's a new thing. We're opening up to the customers, new service basically.

Laura Seney
Yes. We are super excited that Kosciusko Connect is now offering Arlo security cameras, and we're really as you said, we're excited to provide that to our customers.

Adam Churchill
Yeah, absolutely.

Laura Seney
Well, awesome. Thank you for being a guest on our podcast today Adam. And I hope you have a good rest of your day.

Adam Churchill
You too. Thank you.

Laura Seney
If you would like to learn more about Arlo security cameras or have Arlo cameras installed by Kosciusko Connect, call (574) 269-0327 and our Kosciusko Connect team will be happy to assist you. You have been listening to Connected Conversations, the official podcast of Kosciusko Connect. From all of us at Kosciusko Connect, thank you for connecting with us today.