To split a string into chunks based on field LENGTH, not field DELIMITER, use unpack().

my ($x, $y, $z) = unpack "A10 A3 A*", "example   987testing 1, 2, 3";
# $x = "example"
# $y = 987
# $z = "testing 1, 2, 3"
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You'll notice $x had trailing spaces removed. If you want to keep trailing spaces, use "a" instead of "A" in the unpack format string. Read perldoc perlpacktut for more.