Steps for Upgrading Your Company’s Cabling – Part 1
As your company experiences growth, its IT network will probably require a structured cabling upgrade to meet new demands. Unfortunately, it is far too common that networks do not evolve in a properly organized way.
Businesses often add hardware devices haphazardly after making purchases from different manufacturers of varying quality. Over time, network performance gradually degrades after integrating new equipment into the system. In spite of these so-called upgrades, your company’s network may be unable to support the traffic generated by your employees.
In order to efficiently and correctly handle growth and future-proof your IT network, careful planning and implementation of a structured cabling upgrade is required. The following will discuss the necessary steps.
Site Survey
Providing your network designer with important information, a site survey will help this professional understand what will be needed to upgrade the existing cabling system. A site survey will typically involve the following items:
- Determine equipment required for specific wired and wireless operations.
- Document current configurations loaded on existing devices.
- Pinpoint the network infrastructure’s existing physical layout.
- Create floor plan featuring locations of current cable runs, outlets, and wiring closets, which will be used as a reference.
- Make a map of a logical topology illustrating the paths data travels over the network and where routing occurs.
Documentation of Network Requirements
Through interviews of employees, a network designer will determine a company’s present network requirements. By gathering information from every department, the professional will be able to also forecast future network needs accurately. Below is the information that will need to be gathered:
- Existing number of network users and how many more will be added in the next 12 months.
- List applications that must be supported, like video conferencing and VoIP.
- List the new services needed now or in the near future that must be supported.
- Determine reliability and uptime expectations for needed system redundancies.
Part 2 will discuss Analysis Report, Selection of Cabling & Devices, and Process of Upgrading.
Progressive Office Cabling
Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking cost-effective solutions. Working together, Progressive teams are committed to getting your data cabling, access control, and telecom systems installed and operating while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll-free number (800) 614-4560 today.
