Bean Cables builds FIST — a compact field splice toolkit that restores broken tactical fiber where it fails, in under an hour. No depot. No replacement reel. No waiting on the supply system.
Aircraft, ground systems, command posts, and comm nodes all run on fiber. One broken strand or one damaged connector brings a system down — and there is no internal way to fix it.
THE GAP TODAY: THREE WAYS TO GET A LINE BACK, ALL BAD
Custom tactical assemblies aren't stocked. A requisition triggers a fresh procurement: solicit → award → build → deliver. The operator waits the entire cycle.
These are not commodity buys. The industrial base behind custom tactical fiber is thin, and it's stretching.
Pull a working cable from a less-critical platform. One system comes up, another goes down.
A compact kit: fusion splicer, cleaver, Kevlar shears, splice-ready pigtails, cleaning supplies, and a VFL.
Splice the damaged line where it failed and restore operation. No depot, no waiting on a replacement reel — just the gear one operator needs to put the system back in the fight.
Fielded fusion-splice kits already restore tactical fiber in minutes (KITCO Quad EL 0831-1119, kitcofiberoptics.com). FIST narrows that capability to a single-channel patch one operator can carry.
IN THE FIELD
Bean Cables is built to close the gap between "the system is down" and "the system is back," without a 217-day round trip through the supply chain.
Two operational prototypes, built to prove the field splice and the compact form factor — not a slide deck concept.
Built around how operators actually work in austere environments: one kit, one operator, no specialized training required.
Working directly with operators and program offices to validate the gap and get FIST in front of the units who feel it.