Benefits to Cable Management and Electrical Raceway

One of a company’s largest investment is into IT and the infrastructure, so an important element of IT is the cabling and supporting cable management system – but is an area which is traditionally overlooked. Selecting the right cabling system can have a tangible impact on a range of day-to-day issues, including network performance, the speed at which data can pass through the network, power consumption and even green IT strategies. Therefore, making the right choice of cabling system is too important an issue to be ignored.

Cable management and  electrical raceway is seen as merely knowing what cables plug into which device or where is a rack it is connected, but it also means improve speed, efficiency, bandwidth, performance and up time whilst reducing carbon footprint so offering savings. It is also a means to extend the life of IT equipment, reduce failures

Businesses, traditionally left cabling systems as the last item on a check list, whether completed by contractor or in-house but recently the cost-saving, future proofing and benefits to a business of a strong cabling system has changed this view.

Benefits of Cable Management

Proper management of data and power cabling within or around an IT environment will deliver a number of benefits that will enhance the system availability, user experience and improve the bottom line.

Reduced signal interference

The elimination of crosstalk and interference between cables will enhance system performance. Data and power cables running close to each other in parallel groups or in loops may create electromagnetic Interference (EMI) due to induction. EMI can cause errors in data transmission over these cables. Cable Management can help segment and separate power cables and data cables to reduce the chances of EMI

Improved maintenance and serviceability

Easier access to internal rack components reduces maintenance time and improves safety.

Cooling and airflow restriction resulting from poor cable placement

Cooling efficiency within the rack is enhanced thanks to proper positioning of cables to avoid air flow blockage.

A roadmap for growth

Effective cable management solutions provide the ability to scale and adapt to changes in the IT infrastructure while minimizing service time

Reduced time and chance of error for maintenance, troubleshooting and cabling changes.

Servicing network devices, as well as replacing and rerouting cables is unavoidable. To make this process easier, cable management should be installed to enable quick access to reduce downtime or outage.

The chance of cable damage due to improper bends, movement or sharp edges

Installing cables will require the bending of cables in the rack. Cables also need to be protected wherever there is a chance of contacting sharp edges or high heat. This is especially true with power cables where damaged can result in downtime or safety concerns.

Areas to consider when considering cabling

1. Start with proper planning Understand the cable and infrastructure requires today but also future growth, once you have determined the amount of cabling required, you need to understand the IT requirements, what infrastructure is required, what rack what network, what IT equipment will be required around the building(s). This will then allow you to select the proper cable management components needed to properly secure the all of the wiring and connections

2. Keep growth in mind Growth in an IT environment is a certainty. Planning ahead for installing additional cabinets, servers and network Need to be consideration even at the initial install stage of IT rack, not considering will make it more complicated if additional racking or infrastructure is required. It is strongly viewed, that not only installing cable for present needs, but also anticipated future growth that has been identified.

3. Change is inevitable The rack and the IT systems within the rack will change configuration as a business grows, but with the proper installation of cable management system will help downtime and outage. With change comes the risk of critical systems being down, due to human error.

Cabling systems are probably the most overlooked aspect of business IT systems, yet one of the most critical. Business overlook that poor cabling systems can often be the cause of reliability and performance problems on the network. The cables that connect your computers, servers, printers and other devices together and to the outside world really are the foundations of your computer network Good cabling and cable management is not only critical to reliability and good performance, but a well designed and installed system will always pay dividends in the long run.