Managing Voice and Data in Modular Offices
Modular Office; Voice, data and power cabling comprise a largely unseen yet undeniably crucial element to conducting business. Network downtime regardless of the cause wreaks havoc that can cost businesses thousands of dollars per hour. Externally caused outages due to carrier failures can be managed when redundant or backup wide area network (WAN) routing is in place. Interruptions in the local area network (LAN) are an internal matter but their impact can be minimized when planned for in advance by using cabling systems especially designed for modular office furniture systems.
"With continued advances in technology and reliability, LAN outages due to equipment failure are relatively rare," reports Mark Bassil, vice president and co-founder of modular office systems furniture manufacturer MAiSPACE, based in Mt. Olive, NJ. "Instead," he says, "most LAN outages are due to taking the network down to accommodate reconfigurations in office floor plans, the addition, relocation or removal of cubicles in an activity described as moves, adds and changes (MACs). While these outages can be planned, they are never without risk when conventional LAN cabling systems are involved simply because of the complexity of the operation. Conventional cabling rerouting is also costly, requiring the use of outside experts and relying on them to stick to schedules and budgets."
A Cabling System with MACs in Mind
MAiSPACE was established in 1993 focusing on an entirely new way to design and build modular office furniture systems components. "We threw away the book on contract furniture manufacturing procedures in place for 100 years or more," Bassil states, "and at the same time took a brand-new look at structured cabling systems. It was clear to us that conventional LAN cabling technology was a major weak point in modular offices. This is because it is installed based on the old concept of fixed workspaces rather than the reality of MACs. With today's office churn rates averaging 40% a year, conventional cabling does not cut it."
To bring office LANs in line with the reality of MACs MAiSPACE teamed with the Siemon Company to design a standards-compliant plug-and-play cabling system that received a "Best of NeoCon Award," the highest award in the contract furniture industry.
"Everything about MAiSPACE modular furniture construction from basic framing through snap-off tiles is designed to work in harmony with the cabling system," Bassil says. "We aimed for and succeeded in creating a cabling system so elegant in its simplicity that, with a minimum of training, in-house IT staff can handle network reconfigurations in a matter of hours. But the real beauty of the MAiSPACE cabling system," he says, "is that only workspaces involved in MACs need be disconnected from the LAN, leaving the rest of the office doing business as usual."
System Components
From telecommunications closets horizontal cabling extends to multiuser telecommunications outlets located in ceilings, raised flooring, in walls or columns. Power distribution systems are likewise configured. These outlets are positioned to serve multiple users in modular furniture clusters.
"It is from these outlets that the MAiSPACE difference comes into play," Bassil explains. "Cabling is laid in behind snap-off tiles. This provides easy access compared to conventional methods of bundling and fishing it through structural components. We also provide ample space to store slack or extra cable, the lack of which can significantly slow down an office reconfiguration."
Also located behind snap-off tiles are consolidation points serving as interconnection brackets to extend cabling coming from the multi user outlets to voice and data connection plates in individual workspaces.
At the consolidation points factory-terminated and tested cable assemblies in copper or fiber support a "plug and play" approach to facilitate the addition, relocation or removal of workstation clusters without impacting adjacent clusters.
"In a move situation, simply unplug the affected workstations from their nearest consolidation point, move them and reconnect them either to an adjacent consolidation point or telecommunications outlet," Bassil explains. "In an add situation new workstation clusters are connected to a nearby consolidation point or telecommunications outlet."
Power distribution is similarly supported by lay-in jumper cable for fast and easy MACs serving outlets located above or below work surfaces. Each workstation can be equipped with at least one 4-circuit 8-wire system including a dedicated circuit for computer equipment.
MAC-Friendly Cabling part of the MAiSPACE Value Proposition
"Our MAC-friendly cabling system is not a premium add-on, but integral to the MAiSPACE value proposition," Bassil says. "Our price points average 40% lower than some of the best known names in the industry. We provide ready-to-move-in offices starting from $12 to $15 per square foot along with a lifetime warranty and guarantee against obsolescence.
"An added benefit is that cabling used in our design can be reused rather than discarded," he adds. "Because cabling used in workspaces of older design generally cannot be reused after MACs a lot gets thrown out, either to end up in a landfill or to have the PVC burned off to reclaim the copper. In the latter instance, energy is consumed and toxins can be admitted to the air."
