Fiber optic strand and buffer tube coloring typically follows an industry standard (TIA-598-C).  The below figure shows this color scheme.  Fiber 1 is blue, Fiber 2 is orange, and this continues to Fiber 12 (which is aqua).  

These colors are repeated for the second buffer tube where Fiber 13 is blue, etc.  The purpose is to visually keep track of the fiber and buffer tube numbers.

This color scheme is utilized by Schneider Electric’s Fiber Manager™ in Connection Manager and trace reporting.   There are two domains related to fiber/buffertube color:

• Fiber Color Names – Manages the color abbreviations to minimize column width for reports.
• Fiber Colors – Manages the color name and the MS Access color value.  The value assigned instructs the computer how to display the color.

In the event there are more than 12 stands in a buffer tube (or 12 buffer tubes in a cable), stripes are utilized.  For example, if there were 24 strands in the blue (1st) buffer tube, Fiber Manager™ utilizes the MS Access color value of 255-0 and abbreviation BL1 for Strand 13.  A value of 16744448-0 and abbreviation of OR1 would exist for Strand 14.

There are some cable manufactures that produce cables that utilize nonstandard colors.  In the event a customized color is required, the following steps can be taken:

• Determine the MS Access coded value.  There are websites that enable the user to choose a color, and it will supply the value. 
• Update the Fiber Color Names domain in ArcCatalog.
• Update the Fiber Colors domain in ArcCatalog.
• Build an ArcFM™ Favorite (future blog) with the specified attributes in either ArcCatalog or ArcMap.

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