Hanging strand for Fiber internet

10:08am July 20, 2018

One down, 58,999 poles to go. ... Installing fiber internet in the rural parts of south central Indiana is no easy feat. The crews are putting up strand, which is sort of a guy wire for the fiber. The fiber will be lashed to the strand once all the strand is up. SCI REMC, a local electric cooperative in investing nearly $100 million to make sure its members have the same access to high-speed internet as metropolitan residents.

Crew Location Update

10:40am July 9, 2018

We have crews out this week on Mahalasville Road in Martinsville, and in Brown County on Gatesville Road. The crews are putting up strand, which is sort of a guy wire for the fiber. The fiber will be lashed to the strand once the strand is up.

They are inspecting all of the poles along the planned routes, checking to see if they may need to have work performed (“make-ready”) to make room for the fiber and, also, to confirm that the proposed route is acceptable. 

First lines for SCI Fiber

8:29am June 26, 2018

Construction for Fiber started June 25, 2018 off Mahalasville Rd,
and will be available to 3,754 homes in Phase 1 in early 2019.

Fiber Construction Begins!

3:50pm June 21, 2018

SCI Fiber begins construction on Phase 1

MARTINSVILLE — South Central Indiana Rural Electric Membership Corporation (SCI REMC) recently began construction of a fiber-to-the-home network, SCI Fiber, across its service territory. Construction on the SCI Fiber network started this week and will be available to 3,754 homes in early 2019. The first construction area, known as Phase 1, is southeastern Morgan County near Cope and Taggart Crossing, northwestern Brown County near Waycross, and around Lake Lemon in Monroe County. SCI REMC members in these areas will have high-speed internet available up to 1 Gigabit per second. 

SCI Fiber is asking that customers preregister for service on their site https://join.sciremc.com. Once the technology is installed and tested, SCI will contact preregistered customers to start scheduling installations. At installation, SCI Fiber will connect the fiber line to homes and set up the equipment.

“Today, quality of life and economic development are tied to the availability of high-speed internet,” said SCI REMC President and CEO James Tanneberger. “Communities within our service territory are underserved, and we recognize the positive role SCI REMC can play in meeting our members’ needs.” 

High-speed internet in rural areas has been a large cause, shared by several groups including the Office of the Lt. Governor of Indiana, the Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) and local legislators. 

Since 1939, SCI REMC has provided essential electric services, mostly in remote rural locations. Availability of high-speed communications and internet access in the areas they serve has today become as critical to the health and prosperity of rural communities as availability of electricity service was in the 1930s. 

“Access to a high-speed internet connection has gone from a luxury to a necessity, and most of our electric members are at risk of being left behind,” said Tanneberger. “We want to make sure this does not happen.” 

High-speed internet access in the rural areas means: more economic development with businesses being able to move into these areas, potentially higher property values for electric co-op members, access to advancements like tele-health, online classes and more. Additionally, installing fiber throughout the SCI REMC service territory will help modernize electric operations to meet members’ growing desires to save energy through load control and other functions that require smart infrastructure.

SCI Fiber is a division of SCI REMC, a member-owned cooperative electric distribution facility. A cooperative is a business owned by its customers, known as members. SCI REMC is one of 38 rural electric cooperatives in Indiana. Electric cooperatives were organized throughout the state in the 1930s. At that time, investor-owned utilities were supplying power in urban areas but would not supply electric power to rural customers. This was common across the country at that time in history. People living in rural areas saw that those in cities had electricity and wanted it as well. As a result, with loans from the Rural Electrification Administration, rural communities banded together and created electric cooperatives. Hoosiers 79 years ago in Morgan, Monroe, Owen, Brown and parts of Putnam, Clay and Johnson counties, pooled their money, and set poles and tied lines by hand to bring electricity to rural South Central Indiana in the form of SCI REMC.

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Construction is right around the corner!

3:50pm May 31, 2018

SCI's Fiber construction will start June 18, 2018. We expect to still have Phase 1 completed by the end of this year.

New option added to plans & pricing!

9:31am May 7, 2018

Based on member feedback and interests, we have decided to expand our service offerings to include a 500 mbps plan. Click on our "Plans & Pricing" tab to view the updated pricing and information. 

Legislation Hasn’t Solved Indiana’s Rural Broadband Problem, But REMCs Might

12:27pm April 16, 2018

Many rural Hoosiers still don't have access to broadband internet, despite legislative efforts. But electric cooperatives like SCI REMC are stepping up to address the need.

Why is high-speed internet critical to our future?

9:13am April 9, 2018

Check out this video!

Why is high-speed internet critical to our future?

Announcing Phase I Of Fiber-To-The-Home Project

2:21pm April 4, 2018

We're bringing fiber to rural Hoosiers!

8:21am April 3, 2018

Since 1939, SCI REMC has provided south central Indiana with essential services, even in remote rural locations. Recently, you—our members—asked us to investigate the option of providing high-speed internet to our service area. We heard you, and I am thrilled to announce the launch of SCI Fiber. SCI Fiber brings members high-speed internet up to 1 Gigabit per second. That’s 1,000 Megabits per second—100 times faster than the national average.

Fiber is known for being future-proof, meaning the fiber we install today will be able to handle increased data loads as the need for more and more speed grows. Our fiber network is also more reliable than other types of networks, less prone to interference and complications from lightning and other natural elements. Fiber also tends to raise the property value of homes by as much as 3.1%.

Every SCI REMC member who preregisters on this site will be eligible for free installation when SCI Fiber gets to their area. You will also receive a wifi router so you have the best possible wireless connection in your home or business. This will allow you to have multiple devices from desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, TVs, and more all connected at speeds that will make everyone happy.

SCI Fiber also introduces phone service! Our phone service will provide crystal clear connections, including reliable access to 911 emergency services and advanced calling features.

South Central Indiana REMC has a proud history of bringing power to the area, and we look forward to the future as we bring fiber to the communities we know and love.

Sincerely,
James Tanneberger
President & CEO, SCI REMC