Fiber-Optic Cabling
Will Fiber-Optic Cabling Replace Copper?
Probably not.
But there's a strong case for fiber-optic cables in specific situations, and the cost gap has decreased quite a bit in recent years, making it a viable solution for many more projects.
Increased Security
With cybersecurity threats now more prevalent than ever, it's essential to make sure a business is as protected as possible. Fiber is much more secure than copper since it uses a light/laser signal versus copper's electrical signal. With copper wire, hackers can sit in the lobby of a building and hack in, whereas it is almost impossible to intercept with fiber-optic cable.
Going The Distance
For distances over 295ft – fiber cable is a clear choice.
"Along with advances in technology comes complications. Getting power and connectivity out to the devices that live on the edge of our networks can be a challenge," Steve Tucci, DataComm specialist at Schaedler Yesco, explains. "Many times, the distance to these devices exceeds lengths allowed by TIA standards for category cables."
Fiber uses photons traveling nearly the speed of light and has virtually no limit. In contrast, copper, using electrons, has limitations and begins to experience signal degradation at distances over 295 feet. Distances for fiber optic cable are application specific and can range from 1,800 feet for 10Gbps or up to 130,000 feet for Singlemode cable.
Another issue is that many of these devices require power in addition to transmission. Depending on the installed location, power may not be readily available. That's where Hybrid fiber-optic comes in.
"Hybrid fiber-optic cable solves this issue by combining both optical fiber strands for data transmission and copper conductors for power into a single cable," Tucci says. "Hybrids not only solve the power problem, but they also offer labor savings by pulling just one flexible cable versus multiple."
Preparing for the Technology of the Future
Speaking of speed, we know how frustrating it is when the internet is slow or the wifi won't seem to connect. Not an hour goes by where you don't have to access email, the internet, etc., on your devices. As bandwidth requirements increase, fiber is helping to bear the load of significant data needs.
But the beauty of this super cable is that it makes data faster and organizes it brilliantly. Many systems today power and transmit multiple applications at once, including data, audio, video, lighting, and control. Instead of having five cables to do five different things, you'll only need one fiber cable since it has multiple strands supporting multiple applications.
As the backbone of the industry for a while now, fiber helps prepare for new incoming tech and can handle what's coming down the pipeline. This is especially important in both healthcare and educational facilities.
Safety First
While relatively safe, there are certain aspects of fiber optic cables that require specific skills and training in order to ensure installer safety when working with and terminating the cables. This training is available through Schaedler Yesco’s BICSI Authorized Training Facility.
Although we don't see copper being entirely replaced by fiber anytime soon, there are good arguments for fiber-optic in certain situations.
Read more about the evolution of fiber cables here and contact our Datacomm specialist team today to order the best cable for your project at 1-800-998-1621.
Pennsylvania College of Technology, like nearly every campus, has a network of emergency call stations throughout its grounds. Hybrid fiber-optic cabling was the perfect solution for them.
"We needed to not only transmit data from our call stations, but we needed to power them too," Bryan Waltz of Penn College of Technology
“It wasn’t practical to install a new conduit to each installation location, so hybrid fiber was both a cost-saving and time-saving solution.”