LANSING ? ACD.Net has begun work on its 1,017-mile fiber network that will provide thirty-two counties in Michigan, and many rural areas, with very high-speed Internet connections.
The Lansing-based company opened a collocation site in Muskegon last year that provides low-cost data and voice services. ACD.net also is building out collocation sites in Traverse City, Three Rivers, Adrian and Hillsdale. ACD.net?s sweet spot is connecting small to medium-sized businesses. But about 40 percent of the company?s customers are residential.
?Fiber optic allows people to break the 10- to 20-megabits per second barrier,? said ACD.Net CEO Kevin Schoen. ?Our baseline connections are around 1000 megabits.?
The main Western Michigan leg, which covers 401 miles, includes fiber-optic drop off points at Niles, St. Joseph, South Haven, Zeeland, Ludington, Beulah, Traverse City, Kalkaska, Charlevoix, and Petoskey. This leg will connect the West Michigan region to ACD?s fiber backbone.
?We?re building two phases ? yellow and blue,? said Schoen. ?We have about 100 miles built so far, with approximately 900 miles to be built this year, we have another 1,200 miles scheduled for next year. The green segment is about 120 miles.?
Schoen said his company, using federal funds, will provide broadband to these communities around the state. He said ACD.net is building fiber into industrial parks, office parks, downtown areas, apartment complexes and medical facilities.
?We?ll put equipment into AT&T and Frontier central offices,? he said. ?We?ll provide Ethernet and DSL with phones out of those offices. ?
We?re going through substantial expansion right now,? he said. ?We just hired five people in sales, construction, and engineering. We plan to hire another five to 10 people later this year. Biggest thing looking for is telecom sales people. ?
If you?d like to apply for a job at ACD.Net, email [email protected]
a>>
