Stringent Practices
Following best practices are irrespective of the cable categories, but some categories like Cat 6 and Cat 6A require more care as the cable pair twist ratios are more in these cables. Although the base guidelines for best practice for different categories of cable remains the same, the measurement or the criteria changes for different category of cables. Sometimes, even within a category, practices may vary slightly according to cable construction. DS Nagendra, GM, LAN, Nexans Singapore, says, “The best cabling practice is to be followed irrespective of the category of cables. One needs to cultivate the best installation practice as a habit at the initial stages of the profession to ensure that the installer delivers the best each time and every time.”

In the case of Category 6A, the laying and containment of cables become far more critical, particularly, when it is a UTP solution. But in case of Cat 6A STP not much precaution is required compared to UTP Cat 6A cables, since shielding reduces the alien cross talk effect while running the cables parallel. While routing the Cat 6A cable, there should be a control on the alien cross talk. And while doing the terminations, the twist ratios and opening of twist has to be maintained as Cat 6 cabling requires tighter termination practices than Category 5e, and Cat 6A requires even tighter termination and implementation practices than Cat 6.

Fiber cables also require more careful handling during installation, which is why fiber optic cable adoption has been less. For fiber installation for 10G traffic, prescribed bending radius should be maintained as per the standards while laying the cable. If it's not handled carefully there is every chance of the fiber core breaking due to its inherent fragile nature, which also can cause serious injuries to the installer. So fiber cabling obviously requires a skill set that is somewhat different to copper.

Green Practices
Studies have revealed that cost of power alone represents a considerable chunk in an overall data center budget. Thirty to fifty percent of funds are allotted to power in a typical data center budget. While some people do question how green product is possible in the structured cabling industry, terming green products as a marketing gimmick, others say it's very much possible.

Dileep Kumar, director, Enterprise and Carrier Product Development, ADC Krone, says, “Actually most people think that structured cabling is a passive cabling industry and it does not emit any heat because there is no electronics involved in it, so what's the big thing one can do in terms of green in structured cabling. But in structured cabling also a lot of things can be done to support green initiatives.” SA Mohan, regional sales director, India and ASEAN region, also agrees that green practices are possible in the structured cabling industry. He says, “Cables and their bundling can impact heat emissions in a communications room. Use of multi-pair cables in a plug-and-play solution can help to mitigate this. Also, electronic devices within a network emit a considerable amount of heat.”

Airflow Management
Industry experts say that a proper airflow management in cabinets and data centers could reduce heat and indirectly save energy used for cooling processes. When air cannot properly circulate in the cabinet or data center, electric fans have to be used to move more air and cooling units have to be brought in to lower the air temperature. These two processes require additional, unnecessary electricity.

Dileep Kumar of ADC Krone says, “In a data center or a populated rack area, the hanging patch cords on the front in a massive set up blocks proper airflow. So, we have come out with a very innovative cable management solution for both horizontal cables for rear, as well as for the patch cords in the front and the verticals.” ADC Krone has cable management products including very innovative patch panel with rotating modules to facilitate proper airflow. It also has a product called AirES, which claims to provide superior conductor insulation using smaller, gauge copper, and less insulating material. As it reduces the average outside diameter from 28-32% than the size of standard Category 6 or Category 6A cables, it facilitates proper airflow.

Apart from these techniques, a proper placement and planning of the equipment inside a rack also helps conserve energy. Using open racks wherever possible also helps reduce cooling requirements, as open racks help faster dissipation of heat in comparison to cabinets. In high density applications environment like data centers these practices are quite important.

According to ADC Krone there are also solutions to improve overall airflow efficiency in the data center. These solutions can be implemented easily, without major changes in the design and layout. Every single improvement in green practice should facilitate the use of lesser energy to cool equipment, reduce cost for the enterprises, and prevent emission of greenhouse gases from the process of electricity generation. In today's high-density data centers, the sheer volume of cabling, both active and abandoned, can create a serious impediment to an efficient airflow. Rajesh Kumar, country manager, Siemon says, “The answer for this can be a combination of better data center design, more careful planning, management of cabling pathways, and avoidance of very large-diameter cables.”

Some other green practices in data centers include plugging unnecessary vents in raised floor perforated tiles; plugging other leakages in the raised floor by sealing cable cutouts; sealing spaces between floors and walls; replacing missing tiles; reducing air leakage by using gaskets to fit floor tiles more securely onto floor frames; ensuring vented floor tiles are properly situated to reduce hot spots and wash cool air into equipment air intakes; reducing overall data center lighting requirements by using small, portable lights within each cabinet, which puts light where technicians need it; and by turning off servers when not in use.

Narayanan MS of Hubbell Wiring Systems India says, “PoE would help save power by enabling the customer control their power consumption in BMS systems. Also customers can opt for low smoke zero halogen jackets and cut down on their carbon footprint instead of going for regular PVC jacketed cables.” RoHS compliance by manufacturers is another important practice that contributes to green commitments from manufacturer's side. Radhakrishna KV, manager, Projects & Business Development, Tyco Electronics' AMP NetConnect Division says, “Green initiatives are possible in structured cabling and in fact all Tyco Electronics' products are RoHS compliant. In addition, our cables are constructed with substances that, in the unfortunate event of a fire, emit very less smoke.”

While commenting on green practices, Kumar Natarajan, regional director, SW Asia, Panduit International says, “This is possible only when leading brands will work closely with the active HVAC and power supply vendors, and this will impact both in direct and indirect ways.” Many vendors have a separate policy for green commitment. From a manufacturing perspective, green practice includes addressing the environmental impact of manufacturing, packing, recycling, and shipping processes. Vendors can use the recycled boxes with environmental friendly packing instead of polybags and plastics.

Kannan K
kannan@cybermedia.co.in

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