IT Support,Data Cabling,Atlanta GA

The Organizations that Set Cabling Standards

27 May 2017

Data Cabling,Network Cabling,Atlanta GAThe TIA (Telecommunications Industry Association) and the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) are the primary organizations that oversee the development of structured cabling standards for the industry. Committees formed by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) provide assistance through testing and setting performance specifications for various standards.


Compliance with standards ensures the functioning of systems at specified levels, backward compatibility, and a greater selection of equipment will exist. General global recognition of standards permit utilizing equipment sourced from various countries inside computer systems. Requirements for the components of optical and copper cabling including cables, assemblies, connectors, cabling spacing and pathways, administration, field testing, and installation are standardized to make worldwide acceptance possible.


Technicians in North America typically use TIA standards, while the rest of the world uses ISO standards. Examples of organizations that set regional and national standards organizations are CENELEC (European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization), CSA (Canadian Standards Association) and JSA (Japanese Standards Association). Their standards are generally compatible with TIA and ISO.


Different terminology used by TIA and ISO Associations sometimes cause confusion because they refer to the same item. For example, what the TIA terms as Cat5e is what ISO terms to be Class D. However, adherence to standards set by TIA and ISO ensure system cabling requirements are properly implemented in the categories below.




  • Insertion Loss – Decrease of signal strength down the transmission line.

  • Return Loss – Measurement of signal reflections on the cable.

  • NEXT – Near End Crosstalk Loss due to signal coupling.

  • Propagation Delay / Delay Skew – Elapsed time for signal to reach other end of cable or the delay between signal arrival at far end on slowest and fastest cable pairs.

  • ACR – Difference between insertion loss and NEXT.

  • ELFEXT – Identical to NEXT, but for cabling system’s far end.

  • PSANEXT / PSAACRF – Power sum alien crosstalk at near end / Power sum alien crosstalk at far end.


Due to ever-increasing data rates, the efforts of the standards organizations are assuming greater importance in terms of ensuring proper system design.



Union Network Cabling


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structured cabling, Data Cabling, cabling tester

Facts about Data Cable Testing

6 May 2015

structured cabling, Data Cabling, cabling testerTesting always plays a vital role in the process of installing new cables or servicing existing ones. Regular testers for data cabling include length, wire crimper map, attenuation, return loss, and DC loop resistance.



Complex Cabling Needs


Cabling infrastructure requirements have become more complicated. More standards are being developed for cabling professionals in testing and troubleshooting copper and fiber cables. And there are special requirements as well as downsides in the implementation of new  technologies. From 10BASE-T to 100BASE-TX to 1000BASE-T and now to 10GBASE-T. It is now more crucial to keep in step with the most up-to-date techniques in cable testing too. In short, cable testing infuses a higher degree of assurance that installed cable links will attain the preferred transmission capacity for your data communications.



Cabling Tester Categories


Cable testing instruments have been manufactured with unique features for specific tasks. Costs, performance, and applications vary. These depend on the required functions. The three main functions are certification, qualification and verification. Although certain attributes overlap, each category answers a particular testing prerequisite.


Certification facilitates conformity to standards defines by the industry. These are instruments signal a “Pass” or “Fail” towards data testing compliance within standardized industry norms. These testing instruments will find out whether a cable link conforms to a category or class such as Cat6 or Cat5e. It is the last step required by most structured cabling installers towards approval of a new  installation.


Qualification determines if the existing cable is capable of supporting specific network speeds. This special class of testers is supposed to meet the up-and-coming requirements of network technicians who troubleshoot data networks. These testers perform checks to make a decision on whether a present cable link supports the requirements for fast or gigabit Ethernet. With these instruments, network technicians can identify and isolate cabling issues. While Continuity testers do not perform the series of tests set down by these standards and are not  considered certification tools.


Verification makes sure that cabling connections are correct. This type of tool performs a continuity test. It guarantees all wires in the cabling link have been attached properly to termination points at each end. For twisted pair cabling, there is an appropriate pairing of the wires. Such testing tools also confirm wire pairing and find out installation flaws such as split pairs. These can also help in troubleshooting by working with a toner to pinpoint a certain cabling link. These testing tools do not give out any information regarding bandwidth and data integrity.


If you need your cabling tested or certified, contact us!