Ryan Martin, senior legislative aide for Rep. Marci Mustello, learns about the benefits of Armstrong’s new fiber network services from Caleb Grabowski, of Slippery Rock University’s esports team, at the Zoom 10G Network Expo at the Regional Learning Alliance on Thursday in Cranberry Township. “What a great thing for Butler County,” said Martin. “It makes Butler County more attractive.” Joseph Ressler/Butler Eagle

CRANBERRY TWP — In a change county commissioners chairwoman Leslie Osche called “transformational for the county,” Armstrong on Thursday announced the availability of its new fiber network services.

During the “Zoom 10G Network Expo” at the Regional Learning Alliance on Thursday, Armstrong Utilities Inc. executives announced that its fastest internet speeds — of 3 Gigabits per second (Gbps) — are now available to more than 15,000 households in southern Butler County, an expansion on which the company has worked for roughly three years.

“We’re one of the first companies in the country that’s making this available to residential customers,” Armstrong president Jeff Ross said. “It’s not something we’re talking about doing. It’s already done.”

Armstrong president Jeff Ross counts down for a demonstration of the new speeds of their fiber network compared to other services at the Zoom 10G Network Expo at the Regional Learning Alliance on Thursday in Cranberry Township. Joseph Ressler/Butler Eagle

With the availability of Armstrong’s newest internet service plan — dubbed “Zoom Extreme Plus” — in the county’s southern tier, local officials believe Butler County is on the precipice of a vast change.

“This is all transformational for the county,” Osche said. “I think the applications are endless.”

Armstrong itself boasted about the potential applications for its multi-gigabit internet speeds: Better telemedicine and easier video conferencing, for instance, but also the ability to attract to Butler County workers who are remotely employed.

Mark Gordon, the county’s director of economic development, said the past two years have highlighted the importance of internet connectivity.

“Today, this type of technology really has to be classified as infrastructure,” Gordon said.

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