Network Cabling: Why Upgrade it?

You may think that your network cabling is fine; it was installed years ago, but it still does what you need so you don’t want to invest in an upgrade to a more advanced form of network cabling. However, you’re likely to cost yourself more by sticking to your existing cabling. Upgrading is worth the investment and, in this article, we explain why.

Poor quality cables are more susceptible to interference and this leads to lower performance, an unreliable network and less productivity.  Staff and customers will gradually grow more frustrated when they make calls and, if you suffer from down time, suppliers and customers might be put off entirely and this can only be bad for business. You don’t want to lose your customers, revenue or reputation.

Remember that although cabling is expected to last for approximately twenty years, having upgraded and high technology cabling reduces the need for network maintenance, which is a significant business overhead saving factor.

At present, standards for data cabling specify that the eight connectors in Cat5/e and Cat6 cabling are connected so you cannot use a single cable for both data and voice purposes. The old cabling could be costing you money as well as time.

Here is an overview of network cabling from CAT5 cabling to fibre optic, so that you can see the benefits of upgrading:

CAT5 – Invented in the 1990’s for LAN transmissions up to 155mb/s including Ethernet. It is now obsolete, yet remains in use in a significant number of premises.

CAT5e – This is CAT5 with additional efficient technology installed. It works to 100MHz.

CAT6 – This cabling works to 250MHz, offers high video transmission and better LAN performance. The broader bandwidth allows greater network traffic.

CAT6A – The minimum level for data centres and computer rooms. The bandwidth is up to 500MHz.

CAT7 – Used for Gigabit Ethernet communication, up to 600MHz. Shields are over each pair and overall so it deflects interference, far superior to CAT5 and CAT5e.

CAT8 – A work in progress, additional shielding is set to enhance the CAT6 and 6A cabling performance.

Fibre optic - Fibre optic cabling uses light signals rather than electrical signals, excellent for computer networks, telephone, broadband and CCTV.  Uses less power than the twisted pair copper cabling but carries large amounts of digital data.

Fibre optic with CAT cabling - Instead of having an entirely copper based or fibre optic communications system, it’s a good idea to use a mixture as many businesses have opted to do. In commercial and industrial environments, it cannot be bettered.

Structured cabling connects everything, voice, data, multimedia, ADSL, WAN, ISDN, and LAN. It provides connections from various points around a building to a central patching location and can be cross-connected to deliver services around a business premises.

Businesses choosing network cabling today need to think about tomorrow’s needs too. Advances in technology mean that demands for data capacity and processing power will inevitably increase. This means that if you’re working with an older type of cabling now, you are already behind and therefore less competitive.

Greater efficiency leads to increased productivity and this increases revenue, while better cabling reduces overheads. Don’t lose out. For network cabling upgrades in Birmingham and the surrounding areas, contact Midland Networks.