Cabling Installation & Maintenance articles from August 2007

Cabling Installation & Maintenance archives from August 2007

40-Gig is a go, and other late-breaking standards activities.(EDITORIAL)
August 1, 2007... Two of the articles in this month's issue, beginning on pages 9 and 17, discuss the progress on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE; www.ieee.org) 802.3 group's efforts to specify a 100-Gbit/sec Ethernet protocol. Both...

On the road to 100-Gbits/sec transmission: development of the next generation of Ethernet is well underway.(design)
August 1, 2007... As anyone who is carefully watching can tell, the data communications industry is moving to 100-Gbits/sec transmission speeds. The questions become: * What are the applications and key network points driving the need for 100-Gbits/sec in...

IEEE Ethernet Higher Speed closes in on initial approval: but a big question remains for the Higher Speed Study Group: should 40-Gig accompany 100-Gig down the path to standardization?(installation)(Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)(Cover story)
August 1, 2007... In Ottawa, Ontario this past April, an IEEE 802.3 interim meeting was held in a hotel two blocks away from the Canadian Parliament building. The Ethernet Alliance- and IEEE 802.3 committee-sponsored Higher Speed Study Group (HSSG) met to...

Ubiquitous media converters go the distance, and then some: today's media converters deliver the benefits of fiber and extend the lifecycle of legacy equipment.(technology)
August 1, 2007... Media converters are commonly used to covert copper to fiber-optic cabling and vice versa, as well to convert multimode to single-mode fiber. They support a variety of protocols, from Ethernet and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) to serial data...

Fibre Channel standard: more copper in the SAN? The INCITS is on the verge of approving a standard for transmission over twisted-pair cabling systems.(data center)(International Committee for Information Technology Standards)(storage area network)
August 1, 2007... For years, Category 6 has been criticized as the cabling system without a protocol. In the early stages of the Telecommunications Industry Association's (TIA; www.tiaonline.org) development of Category 6, a group within the Institute of...

Analytics add intelligence to IP surveillance systems: the relatively new technology is one of several factors users must consider when choosing a system.(security)(www.axis.com)(www.objectvideo)(www.ioimage.com)(www. boschsecurity.us)(internet protocol)
August 1, 2007... End-user organizations planning to include video surveillance among the operations that function over their information technology (IT) networks face a myriad of questions and possibilities before beginning deployment. Surveillance systems...

CommScope enters wireless arena with acquisition of Andrew Corp.(INDUSTRY spotlight)
August 1, 2007... The second time has proven to be the charm for cabling infrastructure manufacturer CommScope (www. commscope.com), which is venturing into enterprise wireless solutions with its recently announced acquisition of wireless technology manufacturer...

A high-definition touchdown for Michigan State stadium project.(INDUSTRY spotlight)
August 1, 2007... Replacing broadcast-quality cables that had been used for more than 20 years, installers and technicians recently got Michigan State University's Spartan Stadium updated to the high-definition age, making it ready for next-generation audio and...

St. Louis, MO--Federal antitrust regulators have approved Emerson's (www.gotoemerson.com) $85 million purchase of optical component manufacturer Stratos International, to become part of the Emerson Network Power data center and telecom power, connectivity, and cooling division.(Short runs ...)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... ST. LOUIS, MO -- Federal antitrust regulators have approved Emerson's (www.gotoemerson.com) $85 million purchase of optical component manufacturer Stratos International, to become part of the Emerson Network Power data center and telecom power,...

New London, CT & New Holland, PA--New web content and a brochure focus on the NetClear ESS (Electronic Safety and Security) structured cabling solutions developed by Ortronics/ Legrand (www.ortronics.com) and Berk-Tek (www.berktek.com).(Short runs ...)
August 1, 2007... NEW LONDON, CT & NEW HOLLAND, PA -- New web content and a brochure focus on the NetClear ESS (Electronic Safety and Security) structured cabling solutions developed by Ortronics/ Legrand (www.ortronics.com) and Berk-Tek (www.berktek. com)....

Everett, WA--Fluke Networks' web-based VoIP performance management solution center (www.flukenetworks.com/voip) is designed to help customers solve real-world network VoIP problems.(Short runs ...)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... EVERETT, WA -- Fluke Networks' web-based VoIP performance management solution center (www.flukenetworks.com/voip) is designed to help customers solve real-world network VoIP problems. The site leads users through basic concepts of VoIP...

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam--Vietnamese fishermen who had been granted government permission to take unused undersea copper cables for salvage also recently hauled in about 27 miles of fiber-optic cable--including a seven-mile section that was part of the line that transmits data from Vietnam to Thailand and Hong Kong.(Short runs ...)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM -- Vietnamese fishermen who had been granted government permission to take unused undersea copper cables for salvage also recently hauled in about 27 miles of fiber-optic cable--including a seven-mile section that was...

Connector technology tackles data center power consumption.(INDUSTRY spotlight)
August 1, 2007... An integrated four-channel equalizer with high layer functionality embedded within an ultra-small quad small-form-factor-pluggable (QSFP) connector is designed to help data center installers stick with copper rather than convert to more costly...

PHY device extends Ethernet over Category 5 cabling.(INDUSTRY spotlight)
August 1, 2007... A65-nm CMOS octal physical layer (PHY) device from Broadcom Corp. (www.broadcom.com) is designed to enable 10/100 Ethernet transmission over extended distances--up to 500 meters--over one, two, or four wire pairs of Category 5 or telephony...

OSP multimedia gateway.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The Total Access 1124P Outside Plant Broadband Multimedia Gateway is designed to deliver baseband POTS and broadband multimedia to any customer over a single phone line--copper or fiber. Featuring a proprietary DSLAM VoIP technology, the...

FTTx no-polish connector.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... OptiSnap is a field-installable, no-epoxy/no-polish connector designed to be installed in less than a minute via the company's patented mechanical splice technology. Especially suited for singlemode FTTx applications, maintenance and...

Recessed combo plate.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... This combination recessed low-voltage cable and 15-amp/120-volt power plate requires just one opening in a wall for multiple applications, and is designed especially for security and media room installations. The recessed plate was developed as...

System integrator software.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... SI5 system integrator software lets you create detailed projects managed with automated proposals, scheduling, pick lists, purchase orders, drawings, and additional documents designed to streamline the integration of audio and video products....

Twin-blade stripper.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The Model C300 twin-blade rotary wire strip and twister is designed to strip insulations from solid and stranded wires, including miniature coax, coaxial cables, and shielded wires and cables. The stripping head incorporates a pair of...

4-radio WAP.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Billed as the first 4-radio WLAN access point (WAP), the EXRP-40 Ultra-Thin Access Point is designed to operate on any combination of four non-over lapping channels in any band, in any Wi-Fi mode (a/b/g). The 4-radio technology lets you...

4-in-1 visual tester.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The MicroScanner2 cable verifier shows test results for cable length, wire map, cable ID, and distance from break or short on a single screen, which the company says will reduce the chance of human error when switching between tests. In...

Wi-Fi spectrum analyzer.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Wi-Spy 2.4x spectrum analyzer offers three times the frequency resolution and amplitude resolution, and twice the amplitude range of its predecessor in helping to more easily identify wireless signals that could be causing interference with...

Cat 5, 6 link for audio/video.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... TP-RGB-1000 transports RGB/UXGA and stereo audio over more than 1,000 feet of Category 5, 5e, and 6, and supports UXGA resolutions of up to 1600 x 1200. The unit includes automatic equalization and anti-skew technology. Supporting computer...

High-capacity poke-thru.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Designed for power, communication, and audio/video access in open space plans, this family of poke-thrus comes in a variety of finishes to accent flooring, meet or exceed UL scrub water exclusion tests, and meet fire rating requirements for...

Harsh environment Cat 6.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Designed with a metal housing for RJ-45 cable connectors used in Category 6 installations, the EtherCon CAT6 patch cable solution is equipped with a proprietary chuck-type strain relief with separate push-pull locking mechanism built in to...

Copper termination tool.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The TG Termination Tool is designed for single-handed termination of UTP and STP TG-style jack modules, and in less time when compared to traditional on site methods. Ergonomically designed for improved productivity, the tool seats and...

Pre-terminated cabinets.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The Axcess Solutions Series of pre-terminated fiber cabinets is designed to provide secure splice protection and interconnection for customer demarcation and remote site installations. These wall- and rack-mount cabinets are made of 16-gauge...

Compression assembly tool.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The CT2-AS and CT2-AS-EX compression assembly tools feature a patented Split Jaw technology that secures the cable assembly a full 360 degrees, ensuring consistent linear cable-to-connector compression. These tools assemble 59, 6, 7, and 11 "F"...

Harsh environment coupler.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... This RF-45 Industrial Bulkhead Coupler provides back-to-back shielded Category 5e outlets in a single Industrial MAX shell to enable protected plug-to-plug connections. Used with Industrial MAX 5e plugs, the coupler is protected on both sides...

Outdoor LAN link.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Designed for wireless building-to-building LAN links, EliteConnect 802.11a/g Outdoor Enterprise Access Point/Bridges can be installed in a variety of indoor or outdoor environments. Incorporating a 2.4-GHz/5-GHz dual radio system, these bridges...

Security rack manager.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The PowerMount system, designed for mounting vertical power strips within a security system rack, features full-length mounting brackets that accept all styles and sizes of the company's power products. The system is designed to hold power...

Fiber test set.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The six-in-one HPT-5100 advanced fiber-optic loss test set measures loss and ORL (optical return loss) of a fiber link at 1310 and 1550 nm bi-directionally, in real-time and with pass-fail notification. It is also a standard loss test set, a...

Server room-in-a-box.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The Armarac is a zero-footprint rack-mount enclosure that lets you deploy servers and network equipment without a network room. This 19-inch server room-in-a-box features the company's patent-pending Vertiblade hinging mechanism that holds five...

Two options for 10-GbE.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... The GenSPEED 6500 shielded (below) is a 600 MHz Category 6A cable designed to offer maximum immunity from external noise caused by power sum alien crosstalk in cable bundles. It features 17 dB of PSNEXT margin guaranteed, and positive power sum...

Secure network cable.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... LANmark FTP cables are built to eliminate alien crosstalk, provide immunity to EMI and RFI, and add an additional layer of security and immunity critical for networks. Available in Category 6 or 5e, these cables have received third-part...

Harsh environment cordsets.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... BradConnectivity M12 Industrial Ethernet cordsets are available with shielded PUR twisted-pair cabling designed for increased flexibility and high resistance to oil-based fluids. Featuring the company's Ultra-Lock connection system, the...

Plenum, riser Cat 6A.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... The company's selection of UL-verified F/UTP cables includes Category 3, 5e, 6, and 6A, with the 6A said to be the only one in the industry to have both plenum- and riser-rated UL verification. Designed to offer optimal performance in cables...

Individual foil shields.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... Category 6A individually foil-shielded twisted pair cables are guaranteed to perform out to 600 MHz and designed to exceed requirements of the draft TIA 568-B, 2-10/IEEE 802.3an 10-Gigabit Ethernet applications. Cables are available in plenum...

Cables for Industrial Ethernet.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... The VARIOSUB line includes Industrial Ethernet cables for Category 5e (up to 100 Mbits/sec) and Category 6 (up to 1,000 Mbits/sec). This heavy-duty cable with a solid twisted-pair conductor is suitable for permanent installation outside the...

Cat 6A for data centers.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... Augmented Category 6 (Category 6A) F/UTP CopperTen cables can be used in the data center, communications closet, and workstation for 10-Gigabit shielded applications. The cable is designed to minimize alien crosstalk and insertion loss, and...

Shielded assembly.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... These twisted-pair shielded cable assemblies can be custom manufactured to specific category specification, length, and color requirement. Crafted and thoroughly tested under strict quality control procedures, the cable assemblies are...

10-Gigabit shielded cabling system.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... The TX6 10Gig shielded copper cabling system is an end-to-end 10-Gigabit Ethernet solution designed to provide exceptional alien crosstalk performance beyond 500 MHz. The system delivers ETL- and Delta-tested performance in a 4-connector...

Twist-and-strand technology.(Product Focus: shielded twisted-pair cabling)
August 1, 2007... Uniprise FTP cables are designed to provide excellent crosstalk performance via optimized twist-and-strand schemes. Category 6 cables are manufactured with a patented pair isolator, which the company says provides further separation of the...

Network simulation module.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The company's network simulation product line now incorporates custom attributes and application requirements designed to emulate a specific network structure and profile. Each module can be designed and built to emulate virtually any network...

802.11n access point.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Based on IEEE 802.11n features, such as 3 x 3 MIMO, frame aggregation, and 40 MHz channels, the Mobility Point 432 (MP-432) wireless access point operates in 2.4 and 5 GHz bands at 300 Mbits/sec per band. It features two Gigabit Ethernet uplink...

Coax-based antenna.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Compatible with WLAN and other wireless frequencies ranging from 400 to 6,000 MHz, M/A-COM antennas feature a flexible coaxial cable construction that incorporates radiating apertures in the cable's outer diameter. Designed for transmit/receive...

Security management.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... ViconNet 4.0, an upgraded digital video management software tool designed to allow integration of analog and digital equipment into a network-based system, now features a virtual matrix controller that allows the display of video from any...

Multimedia cabling.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... AV2000 multimedia cabling combines audio, video, and data control signals through a hybrid connector that replaces multiple fragile tails and connectors, and allows each system to match equipment requirements. The access point can be...

Data center slot shelf.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Perform Series 14-slot AdvancedTCA shelf is designed for the space and cooling demands of data centers and blade server environments. The shelf offers improved computing density by fitting three 14-slot, 12U shelves mounted in a standard 42U...

Ribbon cable for FTTx.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... FlexNAP Terminal Distribution System with gel-free RPX ribbon cable features a rectangular, flat profile and can reduce cable preparation for FTTx networks to less than a minute. The system uses optical fiber cables upon which network access...

Remote power control.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... Designed to protect and maintain networking equipment in areas that cannot be easily accessed, and to streamline power control of servers, routers and other data center devices, the iBootBar enables browser control of eight AC power outlets for...

Rotary blade stripper.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The K8A rotary blade wire stripper is designed for round, extruded, built-up (solid and stranded), magnet, enamel, film-insulated wires, and coaxial cables. It can remove tough insulations, such as Kapton, silicon rubber, and armored...

Compact OTDR module.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... The DTX Compact OTDR module is now available for the company's DTX CableAnalyzer. This full-featured optical time domain reflectometer shoots and analyzes traces on single-mode and multimode fiber at four wavelengths. Tier 2 fiber certification...

96-port fiber panel.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... High-density 1U LC fiber patch panels feature 96 LC ports. Designed for simplified connecting and patching in server farms or high-density storage applications, these patch panels with LC connectors come with bronze alignment sleeves for...

Harsh environment fiber.(New Products)
August 1, 2007... These tight-buffered cables are designed for harsh environment installations. A pressure-extruded (Core-Locked) or tightly-bound outer jacket binds all the fibers together so that the cable moves as a single, solid, rope-like unit. Selected...