Structured Cabling and It’s Importance in Modern Business
Cables are an integral component of any computer network, whether wired or wireless, although the latter will generally require significantly less. That being said, the length of cables used and how they are deployed can have a marked influence on a network’s performance, making the system more challenging to maintain and even posing a risk of tripping accidents. However, a business can avoid falling prey to all these potential pitfalls by installing a structured cabling system.
The concept is straightforward. Organising a network’s cabling infrastructure neatly and logically offers the means to optimise the efficiency, scalability, and connectivity of data, video, voice, and other network services. It can also improve the overall comfort and employee experience within the working environment.
One of the most common problems affecting the performance of copper cabling is interference from external sources, such as nearby electrical wiring. This can lead to data loss or corruption. Adopting a more structured approach when installing network cables can also help businesses eliminate this potentially damaging interference.
Understanding Structured Cabling
Whether carefully organised or random, the role of cables and associated hardware is to connect and support the various devices on a network. Structured cabling optimises network performance and typically consists of the following subsystems:
- Entry Point Facilities: These are the points at which a building’s internal network connects to an external service provider for access to the Internet or cloud-computing services and resources.
- Backbone Cabling: This refers to the cables that connect the entry point to specific locations on a company’s premises, such as equipment and telecommunications rooms.
- Horizontal Cabling: This is the final link in a computer network, connecting the incoming cables in equipment and telecoms rooms to the individual workstations within.
Completing the setup, the equipment rooms house the core networking hardware and telecoms equipment while the telecommunications room is the location at which the horizontal and backbone cables connect.
To ensure optimimum performance, reliability, and compatability with different applications and hardware, all these cabling subsystems should comply with South Africa’s industry guidelines as documented in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ publication, IEEE 802.3, covering the standards for wired connections.
Some Applications of Structured Cabling
While the focus so far has been on corporate office networks, there are many more day-to-day applications for which optimised networking cabling is vital. For example:
- Data Centres: Banks and other financial institutions collect, store, and manage their clients’ personal details, a task requiring thousands of high-speed, low latency copper and/or fibre connections and demanding a level of performance only feasible with a well-organised cabling system.
- Schools and Universities: Educational establishemnets have become increasingly dependent on Internet access to digital learning resources and networks for collating administrative functions and data storage. Well-organised cabling ensures optimal efficiency when performing these activities.
- Healthcare Facilities: Hospitals and clinics rely on data from advanced diagnostic equipment and patient monitorimg systems. They also required round-the-clock access to electronic patient records. Only optimised network cabling can adequately support the seamless exchange of data essential between departments like pathology, radiology, surgery, outpatients, and the ER.
- Manufacturing: Today, many heavy industries like aerospace and motor vehicle assembly rely heavily on the superior benefits possible by interconnected machinery, automated processes, and quality control systems via the the Internet of Things (IoT). Again, efficient cabling is crucial.
Business Benefits of Structured Cabling
There are at least five good reasons to optimise network cabling:
- Scalability: Easy updating and expansion
- Less Downtime: Fewer issues to resolve
- Cost-Effectiveness: Reduced power consumption
- Enhanced Data Security: Less chance of interference
- Inproved Aesthetics and Safety: Less clutter and reduced risk of tripping accidents
All these valuable benefits of structured cabling and more are available to companies in South Africa from a leading supplier of IT connectivity solutions with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Contact us today for more information.
