A Guide to Optimizing Your Fiber Optic Cable Management

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How
safe, efficient, and organized is your fiber optic cabling? That largely
depends on your cable management practices. Optimal organization of your
networking cables delivers these benefits:

 

• Enhanced
signal integrity by minimizing macrobend losses

• Protection
of cables from macro-bending damage

• Improved
accessibility for maintenance and upgrades

• Quick cable
identification

• Neat and
aesthetically-pleasing fiber infrastructure

But
you need to use the right tools and methods to optimize your fiber
optic cable management. Here’s how to do it right:

 

Use
Vertical or Horizontal Cable Managers

 

Vertical
and horizontal cable managers hold your cabling together for orderly and
efficient management. You may need them both to secure and organize your
fiber-optic cables.

 

For
example, you may place horizontal managers in front of cabinets or racks and
use them to neatly hold your cables together. These tools also work well with
panel patches by providing a neat way to route fiber cabling from the back to
the front of the rack where switch ports are installed.

 

Horizontal
management helps to keep cables from tangling so you can quickly make changes
or identify, access, and fix specific cabling issues.

 

Available
options include:

 

• D-Ring

• Finger duct

• End ring

• Brush strip

• Lacing bar

 

Alternatively,
you may mount vertical cable managers on both sides of the rack to safely
bundle your cables. This management style provides a vertical path for a large
number of premise cables from switches or other network equipment.

 

With
vertical cable management, you’re also able to separate power cords from the
optical fiber cables.

 

Types
of vertical cable management products include:

 

• Finger Duct
Vertical Bars

• D-Ring
Vertical Bars

• Vertical
Lacing Bars

 

Use
Cable Lacing Bars

 

Cable
lacing bars provide a cost-effective way to secure and support fiber optic
cabling in rack or enclosure systems. Adjustable clips or ties are used to
secure cables to these metal bars. Their benefits include:

 

• Easing
strain on cables to optimize network integrity. They also prevent
strain-related damage to the ports on rack-mount devices. • Neat and
aesthetically-pleasing ways to route cables horizontally and vertically. • They
help with bend radius control to prevent damage to cables and minimize signal
loss.

 

There
are different shapes and types of cable lacing bars, namely:

 

• Round lacer
bars

• Rectangular
lacer bars

• L-shaped
lacer bars

• Square lacer
bars

• Horizontal
lacer panel

• 90-degree
bend lacer bar

 

When
choosing your lacer bars, consider factors like the size of the cable runs and
the offset required.

 

Zip
Ties vs. Velcro Hook and Loop Wraps

 

You
can also neatly and safely hold a bunch of networking cables together by
wrapping or tying them. In most structured fiber optic network projects,
technicians use zip ties or Velcro wraps to do that. Both options are
excellent, but a look at their distinct features can help to choose the best
for your cable management requirements.

 

Zip
ties features include:

 

• Easy to use:
Simply strap it around your cables and fasten it.

• Sturdy: They
steadily secure cables in place.

• Durable:
Excellent for permanent fastening.

• Cheap:
Cheaply available in large quantities.

 

However,
the main issue with zip ties is that they’re not reusable. You have to cut and
get rid of them to add in more cables. Also, there is the concern that the zip
tie can be “over cinched” – holding the cables together too tightly which can
cause attenuation or worse – broken fibers.

 

Velcro
straps features include:

 

• Reusability:
To add cables to a bundle, you quickly unwrap, add, and re-wrap. Velcro straps
are therefore an excellent temporary optical cabling support solution.

• Cable
safety: Cutting zip ties risks damaging the cables. But unwrapping Velcro wraps
involves no cutting.

 

Nonetheless,
Velcro straps are more expensive than zip ties, although their reusability
makes them a worthy investment for cable management.

 

Mark
and Label Your Fiber Optic Cables

 

When
you mark and label
[https://www.fiberinstrumentsales.com/searchanise/result?q=label+printer] your
fiber optic cables at both ends, you can quickly tell what you’re dealing with at
all times. Doing that saves you troubleshooting time, and makes it easier and
quicker to reorganize or make changes to your cabling structure. Here are some
tips for getting it right:

 

• Size: Pick
labels with sufficient space to add identification information for the size of
your simplex or duplex fiber optic cables.

• Visibility:
High-visibility labels display information clearly for quick identification .

• Labeling
standards: Use a consistent labeling standard, such as the TIA/EIA-606-A, to
name and number your optical fiber cables.

 

Different
types of cable markers and labels include:

 

• ID tags: You
may wrap these around bundles of cables. Other types of ID tags come with
hook-and-loop closures or ties for strapping around the cables.

• Wire
markers: Use these to identify individual cables. They may be numbered or
color-coded to simplify the labeling process. Some are available as labeling
tapes.

 

Cable
Management With Fiber Enclosures

 

Fiber
enclosures are boxes that house the devices and equipment that connect or
terminate optic fiber cables. They’re of different types, including:

 

• Rack-mount
enclosures

• Wall-mount
enclosures

• Indoor or
outdoor enclosures

 

The
19-inch rack-mount fiber enclosure is the most commonly deployed in fiber optic
cable management and termination, and it’s usually available in five different
configurations, namely 1RU, 2RU, 4RU, and 8RU. Of course, other configurations
are available – these are
just the most common.

 

Consider
the following requirements to select the right rack-mount enclosure
configuration:

 

• Number of
Connections Needed: These determine the number of rack units (RU) required. A
rack-mount enclosure with a larger number of RUs accommodates more fiber
adapter panels. The greater the number of adapters loaded on the adapter
panels, the more fibers the enclosure can hold.

 

•
Accessibility: The type with a removable top is cheaper but more difficult to
access when adding or moving cables. The slide-out or swing-out types have
support trays that come out, which simplifies internal access. They cost more,
however.

 

• Flush Mount
Patch Panels: One option is the flush mount patch panel enclosure for mounting
fiber optic adapters. Other rack-mount configurations may have several
removable front panels. Their plug-and-play construction makes light work of
fiber optic network installation and makes them an excellent cable management
solution.

 

Conclusion

 

When
your cable management is optimized, it brings organization to your cabling
infrastructure, enabling you to save time, effort, and costs. This way, you can
conveniently and quickly access cables within your network to implement
repairs, upgrades, or other changes. Equally important, keeping your optical
fiber network neat and optimally-managed means protecting it to preserve signal
integrity. Still not sure of the tools or methods to use for your specific
cable management solution? Contact one of our fiber optic technicians right
away to explore your options!