CABLE UPDATE

COPPER AND FIBER

REVIEW

Presented by Ken Pimental

Category 5 Installation

STANDARDS TO KNOW BASED ON A STAR TOPOLOGY INSTALLATION

• ANSI/EIA/TIA-568B COMMERCIAL BUILDING WIRING STANDARD

• ANSI/EIA/TIA-570 RESIDENTIAL/LIGHT COMMERCIAL WIRING STANDARD

WORK AREAS WIRED TO CENTRAL LOCATIONS

SUPPORT THE LISTED CABLE TYPES:• 4PR 100 OHM UTP• 150 OHM STP (IBM TYPE)• 62.5/125 OPTICAL FIBER

Quick Facts:• CAT 1 = POTS (PLAIN OLD TELEPHONE SERVICE)• CAT 2 = ISDN ( INTERGRATED SERVICES DIGITAL NETWORK

• CAT 3 = 16 MHZ 100 OHM UTP• CAT 5 = 100 MHZ 100 OHM UTP• CAT 5E = 100 MHZ with enhanced

requirements• CAT 5E = 350 MHZ same as above with

extended testing • CAT 6= Draft Gigabit Ethernet

NOW THE IMPORTANT STUFF!

LETS LOOK AT THE PARTS OF AN INSTALLATION THAT TYPICALLY CONCERN US THE MOST!

• PULLING AND PLACING THE CABLE

• FORMING AND TERMINATING

• TESTING AND DOCUMENTING

PULLING THE CABLE

• AVOID SHARP CORNERS, KINKS AND TURNS

• GRADUALLY PULL CABLE INTO PLACE

• PULLING CAT 5 CABLE SHOULD NOT EXCEED A TENSION OF 25 LBS

• NEVER JERK OR DRAG CABLE AROUND CORNERS

CAT 5 VS THE ENVIRONMENT

• WATCH PATHWAY CONGESTION

• MOISTURE WILL AFFECT CABLE PERFORMANCE

• HIGH TEMPERATURES INCREASE CABLE ATTENUATION

LET TALK ABOUT BENDINGDURING INSTALLATION KEEP THE BEND RADIUS AS LARGE AS POSSIBLE

• EIA/TIA-568-B STATES THE MINIMUM BEND RADIUS IS 4 TIMES THE OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF THE CABLE

• ALWAYS AVOID TIGHT BENDS AND SHARP EDGES

COMMON SENSE IS KEY:• MAKE PULLS AS STRAIGHT AS POSSIBLE!• USE THIRD MAN PULLEYS OR PEOPLE AT POINTS IN QUESTION

WHAT DOES THE STANDARD REALLY SAY ABOUT CABLE FORMING AND TERMINATION?

• RUMOR: THE RECOMMENDED MAXIMUM STRIP LENGTH IS 2 1/2 INCHES FOR CAT 5 4PR. CABLE

• FACT: EIA/TIA-568-B CABLING PRACTICES 10.6.3.2 STRIP BACK ONLY AS MUCH CABLE JACKET AS REQUIRED TO TERMINATE CONNECTING HARDWARE

PROPER CABLE FORMING

• AVOID UNNECESSARY BENDS• MINIMIZE JACKET TWISTING• REPLACE DAMAGED CABLE• AVOID HIGH TEMPERATURE AREAS• APPLY CABLE TIES LOOSELY• MAINTAIN AT LEAST A 4 TIMES THE DIAMETER BEND RADIUS

PROPER CABLE FORMING

• STORE AND RUN CABLE IN PROTECTED, MOISTURE FREE AREA

• MAKE ALL CONNECTIONS VIA PATCH PANELS AND CROSS CONNECT BLOCKS

• AVOID SOURCES OF EMI.• RUN CABLE AT LEAST 5 INCHES AWAY FROM FLUORESCENT LIGHT FIXTURES. EIA/TIA-569 10.4.2

CONTINUED

AVOID AT ANY COSTS• EXCEEDING 90 DEGREE BENDS• NEVER OVERTIGHTEN CABLE TIES• DO NOT STEP ON OR RUN OVER CABLE• NEVER SPLICE OR USE BRIDGE TAPS• USE PROPER STAPLING METHODS• AVOID OVERSTRESSING THE CABLE• DO NOT LEAVE LARGE SERVICE LOOPS

KEEP IN MIND

MAXIMUM HORIZONTAL RUN:• 295 FT OF HORIZONTAL CABLING OR 90 METERS

• RECOMMENDED WORK AREA CABLE (MAX) 3 METERS OR (10 FT)

RECOMMENDED JUMPER/PATCH CORDS 7

METERS OR 23 FEET (MAX OF 2 PATCH

CORDS PER HORIZONTAL RUN)

THE STANDARD TELLS US

EIA/TIA-568-B ALLOWS THAT OVER THE

LIFETIME OF A CABLING PLATFORM BOTH

VOICE AND DATA WILL PROBABLY BE

REQUIRED AT EACH INSTALLED WORK

STATION, SO IT DICTATES WIRING AT

LEAST A MINIMUM OF TWO OUTLETS

THE STANDARD ALSO TELLS US THAT AT LEAST ONE OF THE MEDIA CABLES SHOULD

BE• 4 PR 100 OHM UTP FOR VOICE

THE OTHER CAN BE:

• 4 PR 100 OHM UTP OR

• 2 PR 150 OHM STP FOR DATA

• 2 STRAND, 62.5/125 MULTIMODE OPTICAL FIBER FOR FUTURE APPLICATION/NEEDS

WHAT ABOUT COMPOSITE ?

• A HYBRID CABLE IS WHEN MORE THAN ONE (RECOGNIZED) CABLE IS PLACED UNDER ONE SHEATH

• WHEN ALL THE CABLES UNDER THE SHEATH ARE EIA/TIA-568-B COMPLIANT, THE CABLE MAY BE USED IN THE HORIZONTAL!

HOW ABOUT A LITTLE FIBER • ALTHOUGH THIS PRESENTATION IS MOSTLY ON COPPER, WE STILL NEED TO ADDRESS FIBER IN THE HORIZONTAL RELATING TO PULLING AND TERMINATION

• BE AWARE THAT YOU DO NOT EXCEED THE MANUFACTURERS RECOMMENDED PULLING TENSION

• INNERDUCT IS TYPICALLY USED ON THE BACKBONE ONLY, BUT IF CONDITIONS DICTATE IT MAY BE NEEDED IN THE HORIZONTAL

MORE FIBER STUFF

• FIBER IS AVAILABLE IN BOTH PVC AND PLENUM, AS IS INNERDUCT:

• DETERMINE CABLE ENVIRONMENT• CHECK ANY LOCAL CODE• SELECT PROPER TYPE CABLE• FIBER AND INNERDUCT COME IN VARIOUS COLORS

• WHILE NOT A STANDARD, MULTIMODE IS TYPICALLY ORANGE JACKET AND SINGLEMODE IS YELLOW JACKET.

STILL MORE FIBER STUFF• AS A RULE MORE PULLING TENSION MAY BE EXERTED ON FIBER THAN ON CAT 5 COPPER

• MANY MANUFACTURERS MAKE FIBER ENDS RE: SC OR ST TYPE AND THEY ARE AVAILABLE IN ADHESIVE, EPOXY, CRIMP CONFIGURATIONS

• TRAINING IS AVAILABLE FROM MANUFACTURERS AND THE BICSI INSTALLATION COURSES AS TO PROPER FIBER TERMINATION

NOTE: FIBER IN THE HORIZONTAL HAS THE

SAME DISTANCE PARAMETERS AS COPPER!

LET’S TALK TESTING

• THE SYSTEM IS NOT INSTALLED UNTIL IT’S TESTED

• PROPER TESTING INCLUDES• PHYSICAL INSPECTION OF INSTALLED CABLE AND TERMINATIONS

• INSURE TRANSMISSION BY ACTUAL TESTING WITH A DIAGNOSTIC TESTER WHICH UTILIZES TSB67 PARAMETERS

• DOCUMENTATION OF ACTUAL TEST RESULTS

Near-End Crosstalk (NEXT)

• Defined as the induction of a portion of the signal from one pair into the adjacent pairs, measured from each end

• Maximum value determined by the formulas shown in TSB 67

• Measured in dB

Attenuation to Crosstalk Ratio (ACR)Definition:• A ratio comparing the received signal with the near-end crosstalk on a cable

It is not a test• It is a comparison of the attenuation

test and NEXT test used to give an

indication of how problem-free the

cable line will be