Lightning Fibre – Connecting East Sussex Business

Lightning Fibre, an Eastbourne-based community-focused network builder and internet service provider, has set out to bring ultra-low latency, multi-gigabit-symmetric-capable full-fibre broadband to over 100,000 homes and businesses in East Sussex.

The Broadband Revolution

Hyperfast full-fibre broadband delivers speeds of up to 10Gbps compared to the average of 27mbps. With only 17% of the country currently enjoying up to 1Gbps and the benefits that this capacity brings, Lightning Fibre’s mission is to roll out hyperfast full-fibre broadband and future-proof broadband in Eastbourne, Hastings and the wider county of East Sussex for years to come.

While most of East Sussex has Superfast connectivity, most businesses and homes have to rely on an antiquated copper network for their broadband connection, Lightning Fibre are replacing that copper with full fibre, this paired with the latest cutting edge technology means we deliver only the very best broadband connectivity.

As news spreads about its services, Lightning Fibre’s rapidly expanding network is meeting ever-growing levels of demand from customers in residential and business premises.

Local experts

Focusing on East Sussex, Lightning Fibre’s plan is to support existing communities as well as new companies and new investments that come into East Sussex. The company is committed to work with any domestic customer or business that needs connectivity and capacity to support economic growth and it does this in a sustainable way, by connecting them to a network that generates on average 88% fewer greenhouse emissions per Gbps. 

Unlike other broadband providers, Lightning Fibre does not rely on BT Openreach and has taken control as a full-service provider. The company’s expertise in maintaining its own service and technology means it is quick to respond to customer needs and it does so with minimal disruption as it builds one of the south coast’s most developed networks.

Lightning Fibre believes in benefiting the communities in which our families both live and work in. Lightning Fibre Chief Executive, Ben Ferriman stated: 'Our mission starts with our internal teams and operations which continues to grow and create quality local jobs – all of which are above the living wage – and carries on into our wider supply chain where we actively seek locally based suppliers be it our civils crews or professional services. Lightning Fibre wants our towns to retain as much of the wealth we create as possible.'

 

Planning towards the future

Lightning Fibre Chief Executive, Ben Ferriman, worked with Jim Fletcher, a business manager at Locate East Sussex on the initial development of the company’s business plan. This formed the basis of Lightning Fibre’s five-year plan as Ben was then introduced to potential funders. Lightning Fibre has recently secured the backing of Foresight Group, an infrastructure and private equity investment specialist, with a long-term financing agreement and a defined path towards a more connected future.

Jim Fletcher said: “Broadband connectivity with Lightning Fibre is the future of this county. I am glad to have supported Ben and his team over the last couple of years in building their overall strategy, and this will eventually make business across East Sussex more competitive. We need true full-fibre broadband and this couldn’t be better timed."

Ben Ferriman commented: “Locate East Sussex has provided valuable expertise and support to Lightning Fibre which has enabled our growth plans to be realised. With funding now secured, we have accelerated our build programme in Eastbourne and Hastings to provide cutting edge full-fibre broadband in the South East. Delivering a higher quality of service, Lightning Fibre builds competitively priced and best in class networks for our customers. With works already well underway in Eastbourne and works about to begin in Hastings, we’re delivering our strategy of levelling up East Sussex.”

To find out how Locate East Sussex can help you prepare for investment, contact us

For support and advice on how to progress with your business goals get in touch and one of our team will contact you to discuss you needs.

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