Structured Cabling Products & Accessories
FAQs
Structured cabling is a standardised system of cables, connectors, and related hardware that provides a comprehensive telecommunications infrastructure. It supports multiple hardware uses, such as data, voice, and video, in a consistent, organised manner. Properly designed structured cabling ensures reliability, scalability, and easier maintenance, while reducing downtime and installation costs over time.
Structured cabling typically uses:
- Copper twisted pair, like Category 5e, 6, 6A, and higher, for Ethernet and PoE applications.
- Fibre optic, like singlemode and multimode, including high density MPO/MTP systems for data centers.
- Speciality cables, like low smoke zero halogen (LSZH), and armoured cables for specific environments.
It depends on distance, bandwidth, and application:
- Copper is cost effective for short runs (up to 100m) and supports PoE devices.
- Fibre is preferred for higher bandwidth, lower latency, and longer distances, up to several kilometers.
Many networks use a hybrid approach, with copper for horizontal cabling and fibre for backbone connections.
To make your structured cabling system future ready, select cabling and connectivity components that exceed current performance standards, such as Cat6A for copper and OM4/OS2 for fibre. Use modular patch panels and cassettes for easy upgrades, ensure proper pathway capacity for growth, and follow best practices for bend radius, separation, and labelling. Designing with headroom now reduces the need for costly recabling later.
