There are two categories of length: cable length (also known as sheath length) and glass length. Inside a cable, the fibers twist around a central core, and this twist adds length to the individual fibers. If you were to take out a fiber strand and lay it flat, the strand would be longer than the. Decibels (dB): A unit of measurement of optical power which indicates relative power. A -10 dB means a reduction in power by 10 times, -20 dB means another 10 times or 10 times overall, -30 means another 10 times or 1000 times overall and so on. Optical Power: is measured in "dBm", or decibels. Fiber optic cables can be custom cut by Proterial Cable America or distributor to match your required lengths for each cable run. Alternatively, you can order a reel matching the total length needed and cut your own segments as necessary. We advise you to incorporate a safety buffer when ordering. Indicator 1: Transmission network length (Route kilometers) Definition: Transmission network length refers to the physical length of fibre optic cable in a network irrespective of the number of optical fibres contained within the constituent cables of that network (see Indicator 5: Cable. A fiber-optic cable, also known as an optical-fiber cable, is an assembly similar to an electrical cable but containing one or more optical fibers that are used to carry light. The three most widely used multimode sizes are.