Our growing appetite for mobile communications is driving the need for wireless networking in places it had never been before. The irony is that installing the backbone to improve wireless network performance actually increases the need for cables and cable conveyance systems. Because at some point, every wireless access point requires a hard-wired connection to a router, server or service provider.
Architects and engineers know that using prefabricated materials when designing and building commercial structures speeds project completion and reduces costs. When it comes to wiring a building for data and communications, nothing gets the job done better, cheaper or faster than the 454 Series Universal Cable Management System from Snake Tray.
Architects and engineers have known for years about the advantages of raised access floors. In addition to creating an interstitial space for easy access to power lines and data cables, raised flooring eliminates the need for HVAC ductwork. Rather, climate-controlled air is pumped under the entire floor and rises up through diffusers.
Besides eliminating the labor and expense of fabricating sheet metal air ducts and vents reaching every floor and room of a building – in itself a major cost justifier – the removal of these obstacles allows for greater flexibility when running power lines and data cables, and contributes to increased airflow for better heat dissipation.
The California Title 24 Building Energy Efficiency Standards require builders to meet ever-evolving criteria for energy conservation and to use green construction practices whenever possible in order to protect our environment. What started in California is rapidly proliferating across the country as other states model Title 24 energy efficiency standards for large-scale commercial structures as well as residential homes. This has given rise to an entire industry focused on eco-friendly building design initiatives and innovations that make buildings smarter.
The National Electric Code (NEC) section 690.110.12 for the mechanical execution of work states, “Electrical equipment shall be installed in a neat and workmanlike manner.” Believe it or not, this is the only current cable management standard for the solar industry in 2019. This is a very subjective definition that is open to liberal interpretation from job to job.
Traditionally, solar plants sell 100% of the energy they produce to utilities as it is generated. There is no storage; every watt sent to the grid is for immediate consumption. When the sun goes down, utilities fire up additional fossil fuel turbines to meet demand.
Complying with building codes and industry standards is a necessary part of data center construction, and this applies to cable-tray system design and implementation as well. While the most cost and labor efficient method to cable a data center is the use of a prefabricated cable tray management system, you can’t just bundle as many cables as you’d like and drop them into a run. There are specific rules that must be followed for tray fill capacities.
Building a solar plant is about efficiencies. We’ve come a long way in terms of solar panel technology, evolving from an expensive government-subsidized industry into a self-sustainable energy market sector. However, power generation is a thin margin game, so squeezing the most wattage out of every dollar spent on materials, labor and ongoing repairs is critical to driving profitability.
Like any other industry, enterprises in the business of moving and storing data are learning to benefit from economies of scale. The next generation 5G wireless network promises to increase data volume exponentially. A 5G network provides vastly increased speed and capacity, but requires smaller cells and closer proximity to the cloud in order to deliver the low latency required for a seamless digital experience.
A tidal wave of data is coming, brought to you courtesy of the makers of 5G wireless networks and the billions of smart devices in use around the globe. A 5G network provides vastly increased capacity and lower latency – the time it takes for data to travel from the user, over the network to the central processor and back again. This will not only enable near real-time communications for things like VR and AI, it will spawn a whole new generation of applications like remote medical diagnostics and innovations we can only imagine today.
