What affects the installed cost of DAS?

The installed cost of distributed acoustic sensing depends on the site, the sensing requirement and the scope supplied. Compare equipment, fibre and civil works, integration, commissioning and ongoing support together. A hardware quote is only one part of the decision.

Start with a common scope

Two proposals can look comparable while covering different work. One may include cable installation, configuration and operator training; another may assume that the customer or integrator will provide them. Ask each supplier to return a scope table with included, excluded, assumed and separately priced items.

Use the same route and operating requirements for each comparison. Record unknowns explicitly rather than treating them as zero cost.

Work through the cost categories

Equipment and software: interrogators, processing, licences, cabinets and any supporting equipment. Confirm what is purchased, subscribed to or provided as a service. Ask what happens when capacity or application requirements change.

Fibre and site work: route survey, cable supply or access to existing fibre, installation, splicing, testing, permits, access and reinstatement where applicable. Existing fibre may reduce work, but its suitability and access must be established first.

Power, communications and integration: equipment locations, network connectivity, interface development, event mapping, verification systems and the operational destination of the information. Name the owners of each dependency.

Commissioning and acceptance: configuration, representative tests, reporting, operator training and any agreed retesting. Define what constitutes completion and how unresolved issues are handled.

Operation and support: maintenance, software support, data storage where needed, servicing, response responsibilities and future changes. Distinguish supplier support from the customer's own operating workload.

These are comparison headings. Their relevance and cost must be established for the actual proposal.

Ask about uncertainty

Which assumptions could change the price? What site evidence would reduce that uncertainty? Who owns the next survey or design task? What is excluded from the quotation?

Compare proposals over the same time period, currency, tax treatment and support scope. Do not build a savings case from an unverified detection claim. Establish the operating baseline, the proposed change and how the customer will measure it.

Is there a reliable price per kilometre?

A per-kilometre figure can be misleading when equipment, access, civil works and integration differ. Use it only with a clearly defined scope and assumptions. Sentari does not publish a universal price estimate in this guide because it would imply comparability that has not been established.

Compare what each proposal includes

Use one table for all bidders. Ask for both the supplier's scope and the work expected from the customer or integrator. Do not enter zero against an unpriced dependency.

Example: two quotes for the same route

In a hypothetical comparison, Proposal A includes sensing equipment and initial setup. Proposal B also includes a route survey, event mapping, integration testing and operator training. A lower total for A does not establish that it is the lower-cost route to an accepted working system.

First price the missing scope on the same basis. Then examine uncertainty: who pays if the assumed fibre route is unsuitable, an interface needs additional work or acceptance testing must be repeated? This comparison can change the decision without changing either supplier's equipment price.

Keep the business case separate from the quote

A quote describes what you buy. The business case should explain what operational change would justify buying it. For example, if the objective is to reduce unnecessary dispatches, establish the current dispatch process and cost, how incidents are classified, and how a change will be measured. Check that improved efficiency does not come from missing relevant events.

Assign each proposed benefit an evidence source and an owner. Keep unproven savings as assumptions until measured. Avoid counting the same saving under both labour reduction and avoided call-outs.

Buyer questions

What information is needed for a meaningful DAS budget?

A defined application, route or asset scope, available fibre information, installation constraints, required interfaces and a proposed acceptance approach. Suppliers should identify which parts can be budgeted now and which depend on survey or design work.

Does existing fibre make the project inexpensive?

It may remove some cable work. It does not remove the need to establish suitability, access, equipment locations, integration, commissioning and support. Ask which costs are actually avoided and which remain.

Should I compare purchase and subscription options?

Yes, where suppliers offer them, using the same service period and scope. Record ownership, software access, renewal assumptions, support and what happens when the arrangement ends. Do not compare an upfront purchase figure with one year of service and call the difference a saving.

Before you approve the purchase

Bring the operating brief and a non-confidential scope comparison to Sentari. We can help identify exclusions, uncertain assumptions and questions to resolve before you commit. Agree any document review and wider advisory scope with Robin first.

Discuss your proposal comparison.

Sources and scope

Further reading: Practical Considerations for Field Deployable DAS Systems, David Hill, 2024, supporting the relevance of deployment infrastructure. The cost framework here is original commercial guidance; it is not a price benchmark, quotation or validated savings forecast.

Related guides: choosing fibre sensing and trial acceptance.