How to create space when there is no space in the data center.

One of the most common problems in today’s data center is real estate. For those that have seen their data center evolve over time, they may see that what was once an expansive open “white” space is now a maze of racks and cabinets that are stuffed to the brim with hardware and cables. Space has become a premium for many organizations. Combine this with a lack of flexibility and time to consolidate hardware and cabling because of the need for maximum uptime, and you now have the current state of affairs for most data centers today. “Space saving” products are needed!

There are many innovative products that address the space issue. Here are a few of them:

 Z-Mount Brackets:

These brackets eliminate the use of rack space for patch panels. They mount to any standard rack spacing with EIX-310D specs (which includes most racks and cabinets on the market today). This simple design allows for a TIA-942 recommended structured cabling system and utilizes no “U” space.

Ladder Rack Enclosure:

This is an enclosure that mounts above a rack or cabinet. It can be affixed to either ladder rack and/or basket tray. This is a good option for those that use overhead conveyance. Much like the Z-Mount brackets, it does not use rack space and allows for a TIA-942 recommended structured cabling system.

In this edition of Cable Talk, JT discusses TIA approved fiber polarity methods when using the MPO style (MTP®) connector in the data center. Light path, fiber cross, duplex patch cords, LC connectors, MPO modules and fiber optic trunking design all come into play.

Microsoft Visio is an easy to use yet powerful tool for cabling infrastructure design.

For years it has been the “go to” program for data center structured cabling design.  It has gained popularity in recent years due to the importance, and need for a cabling TIA-942 cabling design.  CABLExpress offers Visio stencils of the extensive data center structured cabling products like the H-Series fiber enclosures, RSD fiber enclosures and copper trunking panels.

Since the TIA 942 calls out for modular scalable products, the stencils meet that criteria.  All parts that interoperate in real life are able to do so in the stencils.  This allows the user to have a visual design that is more time effective and can help reduce errors in RFQ’s due to its visual nature.  If you would like to download these stencils for free click here

The TIA 568-C.0 standard includes a rating system for survivability of cabling components using the acronym MICE.  The acronym addresses site environmental classifications,  environmentally controlled areas such as commercial building offices, light industrial environments and industrial environments.  The standard includes a calculation table to measure the effects of the following conditions.

M echanical – vibration, shock and crushing factors
I ngress – liquid and dust particles
C limactic – temperature, humidity, solar radiation and chemical
E MI – Electro Magnetic Interference

Of M.I.C.E. and Men

Human factors, especially in the mechanical aspect are often missed.  Plugging and unplugging cables, accidental pulls and improper strain relief just to name a few.  Make sure your cabling can meet these daily rigors.  Ask about environmental testing procedures and find out what rigors your assemblies can handle!

The Cabling community is abuzz with excitement of the pending releases of ANSI/EIA/TIA-568-C standards. Most specifically “C.0”, a generic telecommunications cabling for customer premises.

The excitement is due to the fact that this new revision looks to simplify, and de-mystify standard cabling practices. They are creating the document as a default standard rather than a mass of generic information. This allows adopters to focus on their exceptions, rather than start from scratch and follow every rule from the ground up.

ANSI (American National Standards Institute) requires the standards to be re-written every five years. This was a perfect time to streamline how these documents are set up. In short, the name of the standard says it all.

Generic telecommunications cabling for customer premises standard. This document can serve as a default standard, and allows those who adapt this standard to focus on their unique exceptions rather than reconstruct a mass of generic information.

C.0 is scheduled to be available in December ’08. I think this is a giant step forward for the TIA. They have recognized how cumbersome and inflexible the standards have been for the “common people”. It is my hopes that this new standard will be more widely used, and further advance the industry towards future opportunities and challenges.

* submitted by Josh Taylor – Product Manager, CABLExpress