Optical fiber splice manufacturing process

A method for splicing a first optical fiber with a second optical fiber, comprising:

• securing the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber within an apparatus;
• stripping a first coating from about the first optical fiber by a first laser beam generated by at least one laser;
• stripping a second coating from about the second optical fiber via the first laser beam;
• cleaving an end of the first optical fiber by a second laser beam from the at least one laser;
• cleaving an end of the second optical fiber by the second laser beam;
• splicing the ends of the optical fibers together by longitudinally aligning the fibers, heating the ends of the fibers with a third laser beam from the at least one laser, and pressing the ends of the fibers together, thereby creating a fused connection between the first optical fiber and the second optical fiber;
• coating the fused connection with a third coating by shrink wrapping the third coating about the fused connection via a fourth laser beam generated from the at least one laser;
• removing debris created during the stripping, cleaving, splicing and coating steps by regulating the airflow about the first and second optical fibers;
• and
• removing the first and second optical fibers from within the apparatus.